Senate Committee on Indian Affairs to Host Hearing on Internet Access in Native Communities

Native News Network Staff in Native Currents. Discussion »

Internet Infrastructure

WASHINGTON - According to the Federal Communications Commission, there is minimal access to broadband in Indian Country. The best evidence indicates that the broadband deployment rate on Tribal lands is less than 10 percent, and anecdotal evidence suggests that actual usage rates may be as low as 5 to 8 percent, compared to 65 percent nationwide.

On Thursday, October 6, the US Senate Committee on Indian Affairs is holding a hearing called "Internet Infrastructure in Native Communities: Equal Access to E-Commerce, Jobs and the Global Marketplace." Testimony will be presented before the hearing to discuss current Internet usage in Indian Country and how to increase services to American Indians and Alaska Natives.

The hearing will be webcast live on Thursday afternoon, though this LINK »

WHEN:     Thursday, October 6

TIME:     2:15 pm edt

WHERE:   Dirksen Senate Office Building, Room 628

Witnesses:

The Honorable Robert Odawi Porter, President, Seneca Nation of Indians, Irving, New York

Mr. Geoffrey Blackwell, Chief, Office of Native Affairs and Policy, Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau, Federal Communications Commission, Washington DC

Dr. Howard Hays, M.D., M.S.P.H., Acting Chief Information Officer, Indian Health Service, US Department of Health and Human Services, Washington DC

Mr. Lance Morgan, President and Chief Executive Officer, Ho-Chunk, Inc, Winnebago, Nebraska

Ms. Margo Gray-Proctor, Board Chair, The National Center of American Indian Enterprise Development, Mesa, Arizona

Mr. Michael J. Pollock, Managing Director, Spectrum Gaming Group, Linwood, New Jersey

Mr. Carl H. Marrs, Chief Executive Officer, Old Harbor Native Corporation, Anchorage, Alaska

Ms. Robin Danner, President and CEO, Council for Native Hawaiian Advancement, Honolulu, Hawaii

posted October 5, 2011 6:00 am edt