Catholic Law evening student Josh Perez (4E) was recently published in the Fall/Winter 2020 edition of The CCA Voice, a bi-yearly magazine put out by Competitive Carriers Association (CCA). Perez works for the trade association which has been a leading association for competitive wireless providers and stakeholders since 1992. His article focuses on the critical need for broadband in response to the COVID pandemic.

The CCA Voice
By: Josh Perez
Date: Fall/Winter 2020
Work/ Study from Home? Easier Said Than Done

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According to the FCC’s Eighth Broadband Progress Report, some 19 million people throughout the United States wake up every day without access to broadband. Of this population, 14.5 million live in rural parts of the country. Given the well documented flaws in the FCC’s data, this is likely a substantial understatement; indeed private research suggests that the actual number of people without broadband is closer to 42 million. In the pre-coronavirus era, I probably would have turned the page thinking this was another article talking about the ominous “digital divide” that’s always discussed and never seems to get better. But since we’re in the middle of a global pandemic, the above-mentioned numbers hit me a little differently.

I now realize why this is such an urgent issue for our country. Millions of people have been forced to work and study from home since the beginning of March 2020. Connectivity is indispensable for remote work and learning. Mobile broadband no longer is something that’s simply “nice to have”—it’s a vital resource for Americans’ everyday use.

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