HOUSE MEMORIAL 46

56th legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - second session, 2024

INTRODUCED BY

Debra M. Sariñana and Tara L. Lujan

 

 

 

 

 

A MEMORIAL

REQUESTING THAT NEW MEXICO'S CONGRESSIONAL DELEGATION SUPPORT FUNDING FOR THE FEDERAL AFFORDABLE CONNECTIVITY PROGRAM.

 

     WHEREAS, internet connectivity is essential to the success of families, businesses and government; and

     WHEREAS, congress created the federal affordable connectivity program in 2021 to make broadband service and connected devices available to lower-income households at discounted prices from internet providers that opt in to participate in the program; and

     WHEREAS, the federal affordable connectivity program has enabled low-income families to access online educational resources, gain employment opportunities, receive telehealth services and participate in civic life; and

     WHEREAS, as of January 2024, more than twenty-two million American households rely on the federal affordable connectivity program for access to the internet, many of whom receive broadband access effectively free after the federal affordable connectivity program discount; and

     WHEREAS, in recent years, the New Mexico legislature has taken significant action to promote access to broadband; and

     WHEREAS, in 2021, the New Mexico legislature passed the Broadband Access and Expansion Act, which created the office of broadband access and expansion under the department of information technology; and

     WHEREAS, in 2021, the New Mexico legislature also passed the Connect New Mexico Act with the aim of providing access to the internet to more than thirteen thousand homes, businesses, farms, ranches and community institutions across the state; and

     WHEREAS, in 2023, New Mexico received over six hundred seventy-five million dollars ($675,000,000) through the federal broadband equity, access, and deployment program to provide access to high-speed internet to residents of the state; and

     WHEREAS, approximately one hundred seventy-six thousand households in New Mexico are enrolled in the federal affordable connectivity program; and

     WHEREAS, this increased internet access allows New Mexicans to access social service programs such as medicaid; and

     WHEREAS, having access to the internet can allow New Mexicans to also access a higher quality of life; and

     WHEREAS, despite the benefits of increasing access to internet, current federal affordable connectivity program funding could be exhausted in early 2024; and

     WHEREAS, the end of the federal affordable connectivity program would impede the success of ongoing federal and state efforts to close the digital divide by halting construction of new infrastructure that otherwise would have helped to reach those in unserved and underserved communities; and

     WHEREAS, it is crucial for congress and the legislature to continue efforts to modernize and support access to internet connectivity for all New Mexicans, regardless of socioeconomic background;

     NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO that the New Mexico congressional delegation be urged to continue to fund the federal affordable connectivity program to ensure that everyone has access to broadband services; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that copies of this memorial be transmitted to the New Mexico congressional delegation and the president of the United States.

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