April 22, 2021 3:30 a.m.

On Wednesday, Governor Kate Brown appeared before the Joint Subcommittee on Transportation and Economic Development to urge her support for investments in expanding broadband access statewide.

A release said Brown’s recommended budget proposes an $118 million investment, with a focus on providing broadband access to underserved communities that have been disproportionately impacted by the pandemic. Brown said that would ensure that every school across Oregon is connected, along with connecting 50 additional communities statewide.

Brown said, “In today’s increasingly digital world, access to broadband is no longer a luxury, it is an absolute necessity”. Brown said the internet has become the platform on which the world works and “…broadband connectivity is becoming the universal common denominator – important and essential for all sectors of the economy, especially at a time when remote work is becoming more widely adopted”.

The release said broadband also opens up digital learning opportunities, brings the latest developments in science and technology into classrooms across Oregon and makes knowledge accessible.

Brown said the investments made today with state dollars will have a lasting impact for years to come and “…set us on track to further close the digital divide when additional federal dollars become available”.