Telecom News - CWA Mobilizes for Broadband Bill, Rural High-Speed Rollout in Pennsylvania

CWA is expanding a grassroots campaign launched in Pennsylvania in August to bring high-speed Internet access to all residents and create a statewide franchise for cable TV.

Jim Short, vice president for CWA District 13, urged members to visit the district's website and participate in an e-mail campaign to pass the Consumer Choice Cable Franchising and High Speed Broadband Promotion Act, introduced in the State Legislature by Majority Policy Chair Todd Eachus.

"Far too many of our fellow citizens have been left behind in the information age, and this bill would be a huge step toward closing the digital divide," Short said. "First and foremost, this bill would require companies to provide service to residents of rural Pennsylvania and low-income households, as well as schools, hospitals and government agencies."

CWA members are working to build a strong coalition of city governments, consumer groups and other organizations interested in the bill, which has 20 cosponsors in the legislature. Short said AFL-CIO central labor councils are asking their member unions to take part in CWA's email campaign.

As the CWA News went to press, the broadband bill was with the legislature's Consumer Affairs Committee and CWA leaders were pushing for hearings and seeking a state senator to introduce a companion bill.

The union was also putting together a slide show to show lawmakers. "There's a lot of confusion out there, and we want legislators to understand, this is a community issue," Short said. "When they don't have high-speed broadband, schools are affected. It affects the way kids learn."

Short also said that he'd had reports of Comcast calling customers to make sure they were happy with their service. "To my knowledge, they've never done that before. Right now, they have no one watching over them. They sure don't want to come under the PUC, as the legislation would provide."

In addition, the Pennsylvania broadband bill would: