WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Roger Wicker, R-Miss., today issued the following statement regarding a vote by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to take steps to improve data collection of mobile and broadband service, as well as provide $2 billion to the Connect America Fund over the next 10 years:

“Chairman Pai and the FCC should be commended for working to standardize the collection of wireless coverage data in the Mobility Fund. This is an important step to ensure that we have accurate information about where the coverage gaps actually are so that we can improve high-speed Internet service for consumers in rural areas. I am committed to working with the FCC to expand mobile broadband service and close the digital divide between rural and urban areas."

Wicker is Chairman of the Senate Subcommittee on Communications, Technology, Innovation, and the Internet.

Yesterday, the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee approved Wicker’s “Rural Wireless Access Act of 2017.” The bill, introduced with Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., would require the FCC to standardize its wireless coverage data. With better coverage data, the FCC could ensure that funds provided for expanding broadband infrastructure are equitably applied between rural and urban areas. Supporters expect the legislation would help close the digital divide between rural and urban communities.