--- kind: "section" citation: "7 U.S.C. § 950bb–6" title: "7" title_heading: "Agriculture" number: "950bb–6" heading: "Federal broadband program coordination" release: "119-102" url: "https://uscodex.org/usc/7/950bb-6" units: - "Chapter 31 — Rural Electrification and Telephone Service" - "Subchapter VI — Rural Broadband Access" --- # §950bb–6. Federal broadband program coordination - (a) **Consultation between USDA and NTIA—** The [Secretary](/usc/7/913.md?p=5) shall consult with the [Assistant Secretary](#d-1) to assist in the verification of eligibility of the broadband loan and grant programs of the Department of Agriculture. In providing assistance under the preceding sentence, the [Assistant Secretary](#d-1) shall make available the broadband assessment and mapping capabilities of the National Telecommunications and Information Administration. - (b) **Consultation between USDA and FCC—** - (1) **By USDA—** The [Secretary](/usc/7/913.md?p=5) shall consult with the [Commission](#d-2) before providing broadband assistance for a project to serve an [area](/usc/7/1471.md?p=5) with respect to which another entity is receiving Connect America [Fund](/usc/7/4531.md?p=5) or Mobility [Fund](/usc/7/4531.md?p=5) support under the Federal universal service support mechanisms established under [section 254 of title 47](/usc/47/254.md). - (2) **By FCC—** The [Commission](#d-2) shall consult with the [Secretary](/usc/7/913.md?p=5) before offering or providing Connect America [Fund](/usc/7/4531.md?p=5) or Mobility [Fund](/usc/7/4531.md?p=5) support under the Federal universal service support mechanisms established under [section 254 of title 47](/usc/47/254.md) to serve an [area](/usc/7/1471.md?p=5) with respect to which another entity has received broadband assistance under a loan or grant program of the Department of Agriculture. - (c) **Report to Congress—** Not later than 1 year after December 20, 2018, the [Secretary](/usc/7/913.md?p=5), the [Commission](#d-2), and the [Assistant Secretary](#d-1) shall submit to the [Committee](/usc/7/2132.md?p=n) on Agriculture and the [Committee](/usc/7/2132.md?p=n) on Energy and Commerce of the House of Representatives and the [Committee](/usc/7/2132.md?p=n) on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry and the [Committee](/usc/7/2132.md?p=n) on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate a report on how best to coordinate federally supported broadband programs and activities in [order](/usc/7/2902.md?p=10) to achieve the following objectives: - (1) Promote high-quality broadband service that meets the long-term needs of [rural](/usc/7/1991.md?p=a-13-B) residents and businesses, by evaluating the broadband service needs in [rural areas](/usc/7/913.md?p=3) for each decade through 2050. - (2) Support the long-term viability, sustainability, and utility of federally supported [rural](/usc/7/1991.md?p=a-13-B) broadband infrastructure, by analyzing the technical capabilities of the technologies currently available and reasonably expected to be available by 2035 to meet the broadband service needs of [rural](/usc/7/1991.md?p=a-13-B) residents identified under [paragraph (1)](#c-1), including by analyzing the following: - (A) The real-world performance of such technologies, including data rates, latency, data usage restrictions, and other aspects of service quality, as defined by the [Commission](#d-2). - (B) The suitability of each such technology for residential, agricultural, educational, healthcare, commercial, and industrial purposes in [rural areas](/usc/7/913.md?p=3). - (C) The cost to deploy and support such technologies in several [rural](/usc/7/1991.md?p=a-13-B) geographies. - (D) The costs associated with online platforms, specifically the resulting constraints on [rural](/usc/7/1991.md?p=a-13-B) network bandwidth. - (3) Identify and quantify the availability of broadband service and ongoing broadband deployment in [rural areas](/usc/7/913.md?p=3), including ways to do the following: - (A) Harmonize broadband notification and reporting requirements and develop common verification procedures across all federally supported broadband programs. - (B) Consolidate and utilize the existing broadband service data. - (C) Collect and share data on those projects in [rural areas](/usc/7/913.md?p=3) where Federal programs are currently supporting broadband deployment, including [areas](/usc/7/1471.md?p=5) with respect to which an entity is receiving— - (i) support under a broadband assistance program of the Department of Agriculture; or - (ii) Connect America [Fund](/usc/7/4531.md?p=5) or Mobility [Fund](/usc/7/4531.md?p=5) support under the Federal universal service support mechanisms established under [section 254 of title 47](/usc/47/254.md). - (D) Leverage support technologies and services from online platforms for providers of broadband service in [rural areas](/usc/7/913.md?p=3). - (d) **Definitions—** In this section: - (1) **Assistant Secretary—** The term “Assistant Secretary” means the Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Communications and Information. - (2) **Commission—** The term “Commission” means the Federal Communications Commission. - (3) **Rural area—** The term “[rural area](/usc/7/913.md?p=3)” has the meaning given the term in [section 950bb(b)(3) of this title](/usc/7/950bb.md?p=b-3). ## Source credit (Pub. L. 115–334, title VI, § 6212, Dec. 20, 2018, 132 Stat. 4744.) ## Notes ### Editorial Notes ### Codification Section was enacted as part of the Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018, and not as part of the Rural Electrification Act of 1936 which comprises this chapter. ### Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries ### Definition of “Secretary” “Secretary” means the Secretary of Agriculture, see section 2 of Pub. L. 115–334, set out as a note under section 9001 of this title.