“… That said, I couldn’t help but view Cuomo’s lofty plans with a measure of skepticism.
Take closing the digital divide, and the governor’s proposal that would mandate Internet providers make high-speed Internet plans available to low-income people for $15 a month.
I’m all for closing the digital divide, and for lowering the cost of high-speed Internet, especially for those who can least afford it.
But we’ve been down this road before, with mixed results.
The state launched a Broadband for All program in 2015, with a goal of bringing broadband to all New Yorkers by the end of 2018.
But that goal was not met – look no further than Duanesburg in rural Schenectady County to find a local community where a significant number of households are still without broadband – and the state’s digital divide persists.
Will this new push to close it succeed where the previous effort failed?
Only time will tell.
But I have my doubts.”
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Foss, Sara. Schenectady Gazette 13 January 2021.