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Broadband SALE Act
12/15/2023, 3:54 PM
Summary of Bill HR 1178
The legislation proposes that the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) conduct a spectrum inventory to identify unused or underutilized spectrum licenses that could be made available for sale. These licenses would then be auctioned off to broadband providers, who would be required to use the spectrum to expand their broadband networks in areas that currently lack access to high-speed internet.
The Broadband SALE Act is seen as a way to address the digital divide in the United States, where many rural and underserved communities lack access to reliable broadband internet. By making more spectrum available for sale to broadband providers, the bill aims to encourage investment in expanding broadband infrastructure and increasing access to high-speed internet in these areas. Overall, the Broadband SALE Act is a bipartisan effort to improve access to broadband internet in underserved communities and bridge the digital divide in the United States. It is currently being considered by Congress and has garnered support from both Democrats and Republicans.
Congressional Summary of HR 1178
Broadband Stock Acquisition in Local Exchanges Act or the Broadband SALE Act
This bill allows an exclusion from gross income, for income tax purposes, of gain from the sale or exchange of the entire interest in a wholly-owned rural incumbent local exchange carrier. A rural incumbent local exchange carrier is a carrier that serves (1) an area where it was required to provide communications services by a specified date to any customer regardless of cost, and (2) an area other than an urbanized area with not fewer than 50,000 people and a core where there are not fewer than 1,000 people per square mile. The bill requires recapture of tax for income from the sale or exchange of stock in a carrier not held for at least one year.
The bill allows an investment tax credit for 30% of expenditures to purchase, maintain, or improve property to provide voice telephone service or broadband internet access in rural empowerment zones.
