At the State Capitol in Austin recently, Agriculture Commissioner Todd Staples honored 119 Texans whose families have farmed and ranched the same lands in the Lone Star State for more than 100 years.
These rural entrepreneurs are representative of the hundreds of thousands of Texans in rural communities all across our state, families and businesses that truly represent an integral part of our Texas economy.
Yet, think how much the world has changed in 100 years for these families and their farm and ranching businesses. Cultivating a crop and moving cattle to market today relies far more heavily on technology than they just a decade ago. The need is ever increasing for greater connectivity across rural America.
And, while most Texans enjoy adequate access to the Internet, the sheer size of our state makes access to broadband a struggle still for many rural communities. The Federal Communications Commission’s National Broadband Plan set out the admirable and important goal of bringing high speed Internet to every home, ranch and small business in America.
It’s good timing, too, given recent studies that point to rural communities increasing preference and reliance on wireless devices to communicate, educate, access health care and do business.
A Georgetown University Center for Business and Public Policy study released in late October found that Texas ranked second in states with wireless-only homes. In the study, 32.5 percent of Texas households are wireless-only, a full 7.5 points higher than the rest of the nation. Arkansas, Mississippi, North Dakota and Idaho were the other states – with heavily rural populations -that also topped the study’s list and bucked the national average.
That’s why it’s welcome news to see Texas Speaker Joe Straus recently instruct the House Committee on Technology to “Study the impact of the Federal Broadband expansion programs in Texas” and to evaluate the Federal Communications National Broadband Plan.
Speaker Straus should be applauded for his foresight into addressing the needs of Texans outside the major metropolitan areas of the Lone Star State and efforts in the public and private sector to better connect these communities and businesses to the digital world.
After all, a broadband connection to every home will make a tremendous difference for students in small towns to get access to educational material or allow a farmer to get the latest commodity prices. And in rural Texas, the ability to get a medical diagnosis quickly via telemedicine and broadband applications means greatly expanded health care access to a population that’s been traditionally underserved.
Small business owners in small town Texas want to compete in a global marketplace. A manufacturer in Paris, Texas should be able to market internationally, just like an omega-business in Paris France. And a doctor in London, Texas should be able interact wirelessly and seamlessly with a specialist in London, England so that a very ill patient doesn’t have to endure hours of needless travel for quality care.
The Legislature’s Interim Study on Rural Broadband brings to light the need for more growth in access to high speed Internet to undeserved parts of our state. With more than a third of rural households in Texas now wireless-only, there is a burning desire to compete in the international market place.
High speed Internet is a powerful force and improving access to faster broadband connectivity means transforming wide-open spaces in Texas to rural economic hubs, able to grow, compete and prosper on a grander scale.
The following is a statement by the Speaker on all the Interim Studies he has created:
Speaker Outlines Priorities for the House and creates an Interim Study on Rural Broadband Access
By Speaker Joe Straus
I issued the interim charges for the Texas House of Representatives. House committees will conduct comprehensive studies of the issues outlined in the interim charges during the 15 months between now and the next legislative session. The findings will ultimately form the foundation of legislation to be considered during the 83rd Legislative session in 2013.
Members of the Texas House are dedicated public servants whose jobs extend well beyond the 140 days the Legislature is in session every two years. During the next year, Members will look at ways to strengthen our state’s economy, improve our transportation infrastructure, improve wildfire response, address our water challenges, enhance public and higher education, and work toward a stronger and more prosperous future for all Texans. During a time of ongoing budget challenges, I am also especially interested in greater transparency, accountability and efficiency in our state budget, and greater effectiveness in state services such as reducing wait times for drivers’ licenses.
The interim charges are developed in two ways: Members of the Legislature submit priorities for study, and the Speaker includes his own priorities for review. Each of the House’s standing committees will study specific areas. The charges also include areas of special focus driven by pressing current events such as the ongoing drought and its impact on the state water plan, which will be reviewed by the House Committee on Natural Resources.
In a letter introducing the charges to the members, I wrote: “From our growing population to the severe drought that is plaguing our state, Texas is in a period of significant change. We are responsible for handling these changes in a way that makes our state government more efficient and responsive to the evolving needs of our changing communities.”
In addition to charges for each of the standing committees of the Texas House, I also identified two comprehensive charges that every substantive committee is to consider during the interim. These charges focus on economic growth by (1) improving the state’s manufacturing capability; and (2) finding ways to increase transparency, accountability and efficiency in state government. Each committee is to submit a final report no later than December 1, 2012. For a full list of the 82nd interim charges, please visit the House of Representatives website.
Thank you as always for your interest and commitment to the future of Texas.
