S. 323 · Where this bill is now
In committee
Introduced in the Senate, Jan 29, 2025
What this bill does
In plain words · AI-written from the official summaryStreamlines federal broadband planning and approvals
This bill asks the National Telecommunications and Information Administration to create a national strategy that coordinates all federal broadband programs and makes it easier for companies to build internet infrastructure on federal land. The administration would also have to set spending limits for programs that favor certain broadband technologies, and federal agencies would need to speed up their reviews of applications for broadband projects—currently they have 270 days to decide, and this bill requires them to track when they're falling behind.
How it affects you
If you live in an area where broadband companies want to expand service, this bill could help projects move faster by reducing delays in federal approval. People in rural or underserved areas may eventually benefit from more coordinated federal efforts to bring internet access, though this bill focuses on the government's internal processes rather than directly funding new internet service.
Read the official summary (Introduced in Senate, Jan 29, 2025)
Proper Leadership to Align Networks for Broadband Act or the PLAN for Broadband Act
This bill requires the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) to develop and implement a national strategy to improve the coordination and management of federal broadband programs and agency consideration of applications to build or maintain broadband infrastructure on federal property.
The NTIA must also develop and publish for public comment a plan for the implementation of the national strategy. Among other requirements, the implementation plan must establish, for federal broadband programs that are not technologically neutral (i.e., programs that involve a preference for certain broadband technologies), a ceiling on the amount of funding that may be awarded to support the provision of broadband service to a single location.
The bill also requires executive branch agencies to identify and address factors that contribute to delays in their review of applications for easements, rights-of-way, or leases related to communications infrastructure projects on federal property. (Under current law, agencies are generally required to act on such applications within 270 days.) Agencies must also establish methods to alert employees when the agency is at risk of failing to meet the 270-day deadline with respect to a particular application.
Finally, the bill lowers the cost threshold for certain broadband infrastructure projects to qualify as covered projects under the Fixing America's Surface Transportation (FAST) Act from $200 million to $5 million. Such projects qualify for expedited federal environmental review.
Written by AI (Claude) using only the official summary by the Congressional Research Service, the Library of Congress’s nonpartisan research staff. It can miss nuance, so check the official summary and the bill text for details.
1st SessionS. 323
A BILL
PLAN for Broadband Act
Sponsor: Sen. Roger F. Wicker (R-MS) · Introduced Jan 29, 2025 · Science, Technology, Communications · 2 versions of the text
Sources: Congress.gov actions and votes · bill text from GovInfo · latest official action Jun 1, 2026: “By Senator Cruz from Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation filed written report. Report No. 119-123. Minority views filed.”