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Merit Stimulus Blog Merit Stimulus Blog 9.21.09     By Gregory Monroe - September 21, 2009 12:35 pm Greetings! Welcome back to Merit Network's continuing coverage of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009. This post is just one of many weekly updates intended to keep you informed on the latest developments in funding opportunities for cyber-infrastructure, research and education. This week, we'll update you on some recent activity in the House and from the FCC regarding the Notice of Funds Availability (NOFA) for the Broadband Technology Opportunities Program (BTOP) and the Broadband Initiatives Program (BIP). FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski spoke this morning on the importance of public, transparent and accessible broadband data. The BroadbandUSA portal has been updated and appears to be in working order once more, this post will fill you in on the details. Three members of Congress have published a letter sent to the Assistant Secretary of the National Telecommunication and Information Administration (NTIA) that emphasizes the importance of connecting community anchor institutions. Doris Matsui, Anna Eshoo, and Edward Markey wrote Assistant Secretary Strickling, highlighting the crucial role that anchor institutions play in providing access to unserved and underserved populations. They pointed to the specific ARRA language which gives preference to community anchors and strongly urged Sec. Strickling to give community anchors adequate priority in subsequent funding rounds for the BTOP program. Last week, Representative Rick Boucher (D – VA) and Julius Genachoski, FCC Chair made opening statements at an FCC hearing on broadband in America that were rather favorable to community anchors. Boucher's first talking point, gave explicit mention to the importance of supplying them with adequate broadband. Using a talking point of the Schools, Health and Libraries Coalition (SHLBC), Boucher explained how an essential connection at a school or library would immediately improve unserved and underserved populations' access to broadband and the quality of life for citizens in the area, while that same connection could then serve as a "jumping off point" to connect private networks that would serve homes and businesses. Genachowski chose to focus more on the importance of connecting healthcare facilities with 21st century broadband access, most likely in anticipation of the upcoming Rural Healthcare Program. Today, Genachowski spoke to the importance of transparency in national broadband data and a plan for stronger "network neutrality" regulations during a speech at the Brookings Institution. Lastweek, we reported on controversy caused by several BTOP/BIP applicants who discovered a searchable database of Public Notice Filings (PFNs) on the BroadbandUSA web portal. The database was still in the trouble-shooting phase and not intended for public use at the time, though it has since gone live. The original database of applications submitted to BTOP and BIP has been updated so that State searches are applicable to service areas, and not the origin of the applicant. A number of applicants had official headquarters locations in one state, but were applying for projects with service areas in the other states. The previous search mechanism only searched by the address of the applicant. You'll notice that the database now includes links to the Executive Summaries of many projects as well. That's all for this week. Be sure to check back next week for the latest developments as they become available. Thanks for reading and have a great week! Post a Comment   Blog Archive   Merit Stimulus Blog Merit Stimulus Blog 11.16.09 By Gregory Monroe - November 16, 2009 9:50 am Merit Stimulus Blog Merit Stimulus Blog 11.12.09 By Gregory Monroe - November 12, 2009 12:35 pm Merit Stimulus Blog Merit Stimulus Blog 11.3.09 By Gregory Monroe - November 03, 2009 12:21 pm Merit Network Blog Members in the News 10.30 By Brian Warkoczeski - October 29, 2009 4:28 pm Merit Stimulus Blog Merit Stimulus Blog 10.26.09 By Gregory Monroe - October 26, 2009 10:42 am Merit Stimulus Blog Merit Stimulus Blog 10.19.09 By Gregory Monroe - October 19, 2009 10:58 am Merit Network Blog Members in the News 10.08 By Brian Warkoczeski - October 08, 2009 1:03 pm Merit Stimulus Blog Merit Stimulus Blog 10.6.09 By Gregory Monroe - October 06, 2009 1:19 pm Merit Stimulus Blog Merit Stimulus Blog 9.29.09 By Gregory Monroe - September 29, 2009 12:33 pm Merit Stimulus Blog Merit Stimulus Blog 9.16.09 By Gregory Monroe - September 16, 2009 12:41 pm Merit Stimulus Blog Merit Stimulus Blog 9.8.09 By Gregory Monroe - September 08, 2009 11:25 am Merit Stimulus Blog Merit Stimulus Blog 8.24.09 By Gregory Monroe - August 24, 2009 10:36 am Merit Stimulus Blog Merit Stimulus Blog 8.17.09 By Gregory Monroe - August 17, 2009 12:09 pm Merit Network Blog Members in the News 8.14 By Brian Warkoczeski - August 14, 2009 9:14 am Professional Learning MJTS Call for Presentations By Brian Warkoczeski - August 06, 2009 12:53 pm Merit Stimulus Blog Members in the News 7.24 By Brian Warkoczeski - July 24, 2009 12:47 pm Merit Stimulus Blog Merit Stimulus Blog 7.21.09 By Gregory Monroe - July 21, 2009 11:29 am Merit Network Blog Members in the News 7.16 By Brian Warkoczeski - July 16, 2009 11:05 am Merit Stimulus Blog Merit Stimulus Blog 7.13.09 By Gregory Monroe - July 13, 2009 11:06 am Merit Stimulus Blog Merit Stimulus Blog 7.7.09 By Gregory Monroe - July 07, 2009 11:19 am Merit Stimulus Blog Merit Stimulus Blog 7.2.09 By Gregory Monroe - July 02, 2009 11:55 am Merit Network Blog Members in the News 6.30 By Brian Warkoczeski - June 30, 2009 4:20 pm Merit Network Blog NANOG46 Videos Available By Brian Warkoczeski - June 25, 2009 9:31 am Merit Stimulus Blog Merit Stimulus Blog 6.23.09 By Gregory Monroe - June 23, 2009 11:54 am Professional Learning Archived Merit Member Conference videos now available By Brian Warkoczeski - June 17, 2009 9:43 am Merit Stimulus Blog Merit Stimulus Blog 6.15.09 By Gregory Monroe - June 15, 2009 11:41 am Professional Learning Merit Member Conference Concludes By Brian Warkoczeski - June 12, 2009 3:57 pm Professional Learning Day Two of Merit Member Conference Begins By Brian Warkoczeski - June 12, 2009 10:32 am Professional Learning Dale Dougherty Brings Ingenuity to Merit Member Conference By Brian Warkoczeski - June 11, 2009 2:47 pm Professional Learning Merit Member Conference Extra! 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