Installing Broadband is Expensive—and L&I Isn’t Helping

Originally published by RealClearPennsylvania.

Pennsylvania needs more broadband. Connecting underserved communities to affordable, high-speed internet will help rural communities prosper. Unfortunately, one misguided Pennsylvania policy makes the process needlessly expensive and ostensibly blocks internet access.

This year, the Pennsylvania Broadband Development Authority (PBDA) will award almost $800 million in Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) grants, once fully approved by the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA).

Sadly, Pennsylvania’s prevailing wage designations will limit how far those federal dollars can go. As mandated by the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry (L&I), prevailing wage—or the minimum wage paid to workers on publicly funded contracts—adds unnecessary costs to broadband-expansion projects.

Read more at RealClearPennsylvania.