Reports that the US may redirect billions of dollars to Elon Musk’s Starlink by altering a rural broadband deployment program alarmed an internet rights group on Tuesday.
After the Wall Street Journal revealed that the Department of Commerce might provide Musk a windfall by reorganizing a $42.5 billion program started under former President Joe Biden to provide broadband internet connection to rural areas of the nation, proponents of net neutrality Free Press voiced their support.
According to the Journal, which cited people familiar with the matter, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick has informed staff that he intends to drastically expand the portion of funds available to satellite internet providers like Starlink as opposed to companies that use fiber-optic cables to deliver high-speed internet service.
Starlink is a unit of Musk’s SpaceX company.
Musk — the world’s wealthiest person and a top donor to Donald Trump’s 2024 campaign — has status as a “special government employee” and “senior adviser to the president.”
Trump put Musk in charge of the newly created Department of Government Efficiency that has been slashing the ranks of US agencies under the auspices of budget cutting.
“The Trump administration is undermining an essential bipartisan program designed to bring reliable and affordable broadband to tens of millions of Americans — and it’s doing so just to line Elon Musk’s already bulging pockets,” Free Press co-chief Craig Aaron said in a statement.
A request for comment from the Commerce Department was not answered.
According to Free Press, the Federal Communications Commission denied Starlink’s request for around $900 million in subsidies under the Biden administration because it was unable to demonstrate that it could fulfill service criteria.
For broadband internet access, fiber optic cables are thought to be quicker and more dependable than satellites.
In 2021, Biden signed an infrastructure bill that included the Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment Program, which was established by Congress.
Proposals from every US state have been approved, but critics argue the program is moving too slowly.
The bill called on states to prioritize reliable, fast broadband service built to last, according to Free Press.
“The Trump administration is throwing out this sensible approach to favor only providers who are stationed inside the White House,” Aaron said.
“From the FAA to the Defense Department, giving billions to Musk seems to be the Trump administration’s top priority, and now the Commerce Department is getting in on the action,” he added.
Starlink internet service can currently be accessed by anyone in the United States, and the company doesn’t need taxpayer subsidies, Free Press argued.
*
Email *
Website
