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Get Truth About Broadband Access

Despite years of talk about the need to expand access to broadband internet service in West Virginia, state officials are not certain how many households lack it. No wonder there is no comprehensive strategy to address the problem.

Members of the state Broadband Enhancement Council are asking the Federal Communications Commission to help them in that regard. They have sent the FCC a letter asking that it require internet providers to provide reports on precisely what households have broadband access.

Providers already are supposed to provide reports on areas they serve with broadband — but the rule is that the information is broken down only by large geographic blocks used by the Census Bureau.

As council members explain, those areas can include urban neighborhoods with broadband access and rural households without it. The current reporting system may not reflect many West Virginians who still need the service.

One might assume providers would supply the household-level information voluntarily. Apparently not, or the council would not be seeking a requirement for it.

FCC officials should adopt the rule. The question is why anyone would not want the truth about broadband access revealed.

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