Broadband Brigade Brings Message of Good Jobs and Affordable Broadband to the White House

Last week, CWA’s Broadband Brigade brought workers’ feedback on infrastructure spending through the Broadband Equity Access and Deployment (BEAD) program directly to the White House. Throughout the process, the Biden Administration has sought the input of workers to ensure that federal funding is used to build broadband the right way, creating good jobs and high-quality, reliable connections.

The Brigade met with senior Biden Administration leadership, including Deputy Secretary of Commerce Don Graves, and officials responsible for overseeing the BEAD program. During the meeting, the Brigade members provided feedback on the quality of the plans established by states to meet the goals set out by the Commerce Department to ensure that that money targeting telecom infrastructure goes to companies that employ well-trained union workers and not low-road contractors.

They also spoke to the problems of the digital divide and why it is so important to expand the Affordable Connectivity Program and make it permanent so that CWA members can continue to extend broadband connectivity to underserved and low-income communities.

While in Washington, D.C., the Brigade also met with Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.), Rep. Colin Allred (D-Texas), and staff for Senators Tina Smith (D-Minn.), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), and Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) to discuss CWA priorities on broadband.

Members of the Broadband Brigade address senior Biden Administration officials during a White House visit.

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This post originally appeared on cwa-union.org.