Trump’s rural broadband goal won’t be easy

President Donald Trump has promised to expand broadband service to rural areas as part of his $1 trillion nationwide infrastructure plan.

To accomplish that, it would take an estimated $80 billion to extend broadband to all U.S. areas that lack it. But the White House initially has proposed spending just $25 billion over 10 years on rural infrastructure needs.

At the same time, policy experts disagree about how best to expand rural broadband - and what responsibility government has to subsidize it.

'Our suspicion is the president's plan won't be sufficient,” said Johnathan Hladik, policy director for the Center for Rural Affairs, a Nebraska-based not-for-profit that advocates for small farms. 'We're happy he's saying it. You also have to do it, and that's where it gets tough.”

Only 55 percent of rural U.S. residents have access to download speeds faster than 25 megabits per second, the government's standard for adequate service. That compares with 94 percent in urban areas, according to a 2016 Congressional Research Service report.

Advocates say high-speed internet is an increasing necessity for everyday residential and business activity, and for economic growth.

For example, farm equipment now comes with the option of remotely troubleshooting a problem with a tractor or combine - but only if you've got the bandwidth. Farmers who lack broadband must haul their equipment to a repair shop and potentially lose days of planting or harvesting. They also can't get real-time data on soil or moisture conditions, which can lead to over-applying seeds and fertilizers, raising costs, creating environmental damage and making their farms less profitable and efficient.

'Without it, you're asking farmers and ranchers to operate a viable business without modern technology,” said R.J. Karney, director of congressional relations for the American Farm Bureau Federation in Washington, D.C.

Trump pledged during at Kirkwood Community College in Cedar Rapids in June that his infrastructure plan will include a provision 'to promote and foster, enhance broadband access for rural America.” Overall, the administration will call for $200 billion in federal spending over 10 years on public works of all types - and seek to leverage at least $800 billion in spending by states, localities and the private sector.

Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue told reporters the White House hasn't calculated how much it may invest in broadband. The administration will seek partnerships with state and local governments and the private sector, he said, but it won't be a one-size-fits-all plan.

'It's a big price tag, but who shares what part of that will probably differ from place to place,” Perdue said. The goal is to make rural broadband 'as ubiquitous as we can.”