BUFFALO (WBEN) - The State Legislature is concerned about equitable access to high speed internet, especially in some of the state's more rural regions.
The "Comprehensive Broadband Connectivity Act" passed the state Assembly on Tuesday, and the hope for legislators is that it will pass in the Senate at some point this week.
State Assemblyman Angelo Morinello joined WBEN live on Wednesday morning to discuss a variety of topics, and he commented on the hope to increase broadband access for residents.
"We passed a bill that calls for a study, and it's a mapping," said Morinello. "We want to know where there is broadband and where there isn't so that we can address the issues."
Charter-Spectrum and New York State have their fair share of documented problems, and Morinello says the company has dropped the ball.
"They made promises, and the only they kept up was pricing," he said. "They were supposed to have certain things in place; they were attacked by the state, and all of the sudden there was a settlement, and there's still no broadband in most rural areas."
Of course, the issue of broadband equity was only exacerbated by the pandemic, and as many school districts plan to implement some sort of online model to their curriculum come the fall, the issue couldn't be more timely.
"During the pandemic, many students were prohibited from working from home - many of them, their parents had to drive them to sit in front of libraries," Morinello continued. "I think this is a very important study because it will now map where we have to target and focus to offset what the cable companies are claiming."