The “digital divide” is the gap that exists between individuals advantaged by the internet and those individuals disadvantaged by lack of access to the internet. The divide has widened as technology has advanced with the advent of next generation fiber optic broadband that can make 1 GB broadband speeds available. The growing gap disproportionately affects rural areas as rural residents have few choices of internet service providers – or none at all. They pay higher prices for lower quality service.

For small towns, having high-speed Internet can be a critical factor in growth and prosperity (https://broadbandnow.com/report/10-small-towns-with-blazing-fast-intern…). Studies have shown that increased Internet access has a positive effect on employment and economic growth in rural townships. Tullahoma, Tennessee was the focus of a study by Allan Holmes of the Center for Public Integrity in 2015, which drew attention to the huge benefits that next generation fiber optic broadband access brings to small towns.

The positive results on job growth speak for themselves: Employment in Tullahoma lagged statewide job growth before next generation fiber optic broadband was turned on. Since the recession ended in 2009, two years after the city began offering broadband, the city has outpaced job growth in Tennessee. The city added 3,598 jobs from April 2009 to April 2014, a 1.63 percent annual growth rate, about double the statewide rate, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

According to Holmes, Tullahoma is one of the battlefronts in a nationwide war that telecommunications giants are fighting to undermine the spread of next generation fiber optic broadband networks. For more than a decade, AT&T, Comcast, and CenturyLink Inc. have spent millions to lobby state legislatures, influence state elections and buy research to try and stop the spread of Internet services that often offer faster speeds at cheaper rates (https://www.timesfreepress.com/news/local/story/2014/sep/02/tullahoma-f…). The companies have succeeded in getting laws passed in 20 states that ban or restrict municipalities from offering Internet to residents.

Holmes found that by far, AT&T is the company with the most political influence. In Tennessee, AT&T spent between $250,000 and $300,000 in 2014 hiring 15 lobbyists, ranking it among the largest spenders, according to the Tennessee Ethics Commission. AT&T's political action committee (PAC) is also the biggest donor among telecommunications companies to state campaigns nationwide. Since 2000, its donations more than tripled to $13.6 million in the 2012 election cycle, according to the National Institute on Money in State Politics, which tracks campaign contributions in the states. Comcast, the second-largest campaign contributor among telecommunications companies in Tennessee, has upped its PAC giving from about $3,200 in the 2004 election cycle to a record of more than $270,450 in the 2012 cycle, according to the money in state politics institute.

Their influence doesn’t stop in Nashville. Franchise agreements, such as the 20 year agreement Union County entered into with Comcast in 2005, resulted in higher fees for subscribers, no requirement for access for areas of less than twenty (20) dwelling units per mile, burdensome requirements for developers, and specific exclusion of “that portion of Union County north of Norris Lake.” The “cherry picking” of high density areas and favorable permitting requirements for cable deployment discourages other providers from entering the market. Although the 5% of gross receipts in franchise fees may have seemed attractive to elected officials at the time, the little over $30,000.00 annual payment to the county pales in comparison to the estimated $1M in additional annual property tax revenues that would have come from full development, encouraged by the availability of high speed broadband service, of just two communities in Sharps Chapel, Norris Shores and Sunset Bay.

While the telecom giants are battling to restrict competition, rural communities are being economically crippled by the lack of broadband access. In Tennessee’s rural regions, 34 percent of residents lack access to basic internet, according to a report released in July 2016 by the Tennessee Department of Economic & Community Development (ECD). That disparity weighs on the state’s overall connectivity ranking, now at 29th in the nation, and its ability to improve rural economies. Among the 34 percent are many who simply cannot afford the costly monthly bill for service. The collective deficit in opportunity, education and prospects–everything implied in “being connected”–further separates urban and rural Tennessee into haves and have-nots. According to former ECD Commissioner Randy Boyd, “If we ever want our rural communities to be able to compete and have a chance for success in the future, we have to eliminate that divide. That’s why rural broadband is so critical to our state’s future and the future of our rural communities.”

Participating businesses in this 2016 study reported that broadband enabled 43 percent of all net new jobs and 66 percent of revenues. Additionally, 34 percent of businesses indicated broadband was “essential to selecting their location,” and 56 percent claimed a high-speed connection was essential to remain in their location. Sixteen percent of economic development agencies reported that businesses frequently chose not to locate in an area due to insufficient broadband and realtors say it’s much more difficult to sell homes that aren’t connected. In Tullahoma, if you have fiber optic at a house, your house increases in value anywhere from $4,000 to $7,000 (https://www.tullahomanews.com/news/local/grant-funds-could-expand-broad…).

The lack of broadband and the advantages it brings to a community is forcing many young people to move away. According to the Boyd Center for Business and Economic Research, Union County is experiencing population decline that began in 2011, and without intervention the population decline is expected to extend beyond 2040. Union County is also experiencing out-migration, mainly among 20 – 29 year olds. Union County’s negative population growth and out-migration brings with it severe negative economic consequences including fewer workers available to businesses, fewer customers to buy their goods and services, and a shrinking tax base all resulting in a severe impact on the finances of government. A lack of internet access hurts businesses, hinders education, prevents people from getting jobs, and can even be life-threatening, as emergency services increasingly rely on internet-connected communications and documentation.

Educators have been talking about the “digital divide” for two decades, and while some progress has been made in closing the gap, inequities persist in communities across the country (http://neatoday.org/2016/04/20/the-homework-gap/). Keith Krueger, CEO of the Consortium for School Networking (CoSN) points to the so-called “homework gap,” or the barriers students face when working on homework assignments without a reliable Internet source at home. This gap has widened as an increasing number of schools incorporate Internet-based learning into daily curriculum. In 2009, the Federal Communication Commission’s Broadband Task Force reported that approximately 70% of teachers assign homework requiring access to broadband. In addition, about 65% of students used the Internet at home to complete their homework, which could include submitting assignments, connecting with teachers and other students through group discussion boards, working on shared documents as part of a group project and doing online research for a school paper. The homework gap forces students to head over to a neighbor’s house, the library or a commercial parking lot with free Wi-Fi access to complete their homework. Many students are simply unable to finish the work. According to a recent study from the Hispanic Heritage Foundation, Family Online Safety Institute and My College Options, nearly 50% of students say they have been unable to complete a homework assignment because they didn’t have access to the Internet or a computer. Furthermore, 42% of students say they received a lower grade on an assignment due to lack of Internet access. Lack of Internet in Union County has most definitely impacted school performance with SchoolDigger.Com ranking the Union County School District 116th of the 124 Tennessee school districts.