Rep. Houchin introduces broadband bill to help rural farmers

(WASHINGTON, D.C.) – Local Congresswoman Erin Houchin has introduced a bill to ensure broadband access in rural areas. 

The Data BRIDGE Act is a bipartisan bill that will direct federal broadband funding to agricultural areas. 

Rep. Houchin says the bill will help farmers who depend on reliable broadband to stay competitive in the modern economy. 

“The Data BRIDGE Act is a commonsense, low-cost solution that ensures federal broadband investments actually reach the areas where work happens,” Rep. Houchin said. 

“I have fought for years to expand rural broadband in Indiana, and this bill is another important step toward closing the connectivity gap for our farm families and rural communities,” she added. 

The FCC’s current broadband map primarily focuses on serviceable locations like homes and businesses but often misses the surrounding cropland and production acreage where farming takes place. 

This undercount skews funding decisions and limits the ability to deploy broadband needed for precision agriculture and other modern farming technologies. 

Precision agriculture relies on high-speed connectivity across entire farms to power modern tractors, planters, sensors, and irrigation systems that help farmers boost yields and farm more efficiently.