Objective

To determine the extent of implementation of the three recommendations included in our initial audit report, New NY Broadband Program (Report 2020-S-19).

About the Program

Broadband is a critical aspect of economic growth and job creation, and increasingly an essential part of how we conduct everyday life. Across all industries, broadband has reimagined how we provide education and health care, manage energy, and ensure public safety, as well as how information is stored, accessed, and shared. The COVID-19 pandemic further changed how we use the Internet for work, medical care, school, and socializing. Further, many businesses engage with customers, suppliers, and services online, with online sales making up about 16% of total retail sales. The pandemic exposed that high-speed broadband remains unavailable or too costly for many New Yorkers. The New NY Broadband Program (Program)—launched in 2015 and managed by the Broadband Program Office (BPO), a division of Empire State Development (ESD)—focused on closing the digital divide in the State. The Program was designed to ensure that every New Yorker had access to high-speed broadband. The Program included $500 million in State funds and secured additional private and federal matching investments of $235 million, bringing the total investment to $735 million. In total, BPO made 53 awards to 33 ISPs to provide broadband to 255,994 housing units, which represents approximately 3% of New York’s 8.1 million housing units.

In January 2022, the Executive announced the ConnectALL Initiative (ConnectALL) with additional funding upward of $1 billion to provide affordable broadband to those who remained unserved or underserved in the State. ConnectALL is part of the National Telecommunications and Information Administration’s (NTIA) federally funded Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment Program, which allocated $664 million to New York State. The funds are to be used primarily to provide fiber optic infrastructure to locations where no broadband service is available. As of July 2024, New York’s ConnectALL grantees were awarded more than $70 million to provide over 800 miles of public broadband infrastructure for connecting more than 25,000 homes and businesses to high-speed broadband.

The objective of our initial audit, issued on July 1, 2022, was to determine whether ESD had effectively monitored and managed the Program and whether the Program had achieved its overall goals. The audit found BPO effectively monitored and managed the Program; however, the Program did not achieve its overall goal of providing statewide broadband availability. In March 2021, BPO officials stated there were more than 14,000 households that were unserved or underserved. Also, 31% of the connected households were using satellite technology, which has a maximum download speed of 25 megabits per second. Additionally, while BPO asserted that 98.95% of the State had broadband availability, the audit found this figure to be overstated because it was based, in part, on Federal Communications Commission data that was not based on specific location availability.

Key Findings

ESD officials have made progress in addressing the problems identified in the initial audit report. Of the initial report’s three recommendations, one was implemented, one was partially implemented, and one is no longer applicable.

Key Recommendation

ESD officials are requested, but not required, to provide information about any actions planned to address the unresolved issues discussed in this follow-up within 30 days of the report’s issuance.