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Broadband proposed for S.C.’s rural communities
By Shelia Watson
Contributing Writer
Gov. Mark Sanford has proposed that $2 million be earmarked in next year’s state budget to help extend high-speed Internet access to rural communities across the state.
The proposed budget for 2007-08 recommends creating a South Carolina Broadband Advisory Committee within the Department of Commerce to manage and oversee efforts to provide people in rural communities with high-speed Internet access.
The $2 million would be used to provide direct grants and to match private-sector dollars aimed at creating broadband infrastructure in rural areas.
“In an increasingly global economy, it’s incredibly important that people living in places like Allendale have the same opportunity to access the information superhighway as people living in places like Greenville,” Sanford said in a written statement.
The task has some daunting aspects. Because state law does not allow the regulation of broadband services, specific availability is one of the issues that would need to be worked out.
According to the Federal Communications Commission, some form of digital subscriber line, or DSL, is available in 73% of the places across the state where phone companies provide service.
Although the concept still awaits vote on the budget, the Department of Commerce is beginning to bring together individuals and organizations that will make up the advisory committee.
“The governor wisely proposed establishing a Rural Broadband Fund in his executive budget,” said Commerce Secretary Joe Taylor. ”As we work to establish an advisory committee, our goal will be to assemble the best, brightest and most practical team from both the public and private sector.”
Among the team members already in touch with the Department of Commerce is Bill Mahoney, CEO of the South Carolina Research Authority, which currently has plans under way for a collaborative supercomputing network that will crisscross the state, connecting several research institutes with the state’s universities and colleges.
The project, known as SC LightRail, will connect South Carolina to the National LambdaRail supercomputing backbone and provide access to computer centers and national laboratories.
“We’re in close communication with the Department of Commerce in how our assets can be deployed,” said Mahoney. “So far there’s no decision and we’re a long way from having funding approved, but it would be good to not have duplication of efforts.
“If we can piggyback the proposal on the SC LightRail, we can get more bang for the buck in applying both federal and state dollars. We clearly have an opportunity to get unprecedented leverage out of those dollars by marrying up the Light Rail initiative with the rural health care and education initiatives. That’s really what the broadband initiative is for.”
High-speed Internet access would open up economic development opportunities for poor rural areas.
The Department of Commerce has a particular interest in working with the rural demographic, with the 17th annual South Carolina Rural Summit scheduled for March 5-6 at the Embassy Suites Hotel/Airport Convention Center in North Charleston.
This year’s conference will focus on how smaller communities can attract investment and create new jobs in today’s increasingly global economy.
Data from the Department of Commerce showed the broadband initiative could be instrumental in achieving that goal.
The United States leads all countries with 57 million total broadband subscribers, but on a per-capita basis the United States is only 12th among nations globally in broadband penetration with 19.2 connections per 100 inhabitants.
One recent study suggested that widespread broadband deployment would add nearly 13,000 jobs to South Carolina and increase the gross state product by $4.55 billion.
“South Carolina has experienced back-to-back record-setting years for new jobs and capital investment in our rural communities, and this summit provides the opportunity for discussion, training and the exchange of new ideas that will lead to even more of this success in the future,” said Taylor.
Mahoney sees the broadband initiative as a model of cooperation that can assure the success Taylor envisions.
“We’re in a situation where there’s no one entity in the state that can do all this alone, but we do have key entities with resources to put this together, and it would benefit everyone,” he said.
“There’s a good business case around this activity if we can unite behind it.”
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