How ‘Buy American’ could ruin broadband stimulus plans
05/15/2009
Should the government require broadband buildouts funded by economic stimulus grants to use only goods produced in the United States? Is such a stipulation even realistic in a global economy in which tech companies have offshored much of their manufacturing for decades? Those are the questions facing the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, the agency tasked with allocating about $4 billion in grants to further broadband’s reach in the United States as part of the 2009 American Reinvestment and Recovery Act.
The bill contains a “Buy American” clause that, if enforced by NTIA, would exclude most America-based vendors from helping cities, states, nonprofits and other entities install new infrastructure for high-speed Internet and data access. And if U.S. giants that manufacture many components overseas, such as Motorola Inc. (MOT), Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO) and Alcatel-Lucent (ALU), can’t participate, who can...?
Should the government require broadband buildouts funded by economic stimulus grants to use only goods produced in the United States? Is such a stipulation even realistic in a global economy in which tech companies have offshored much of their manufacturing for decades? Those are the questions facing the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, the agency tasked with allocating about $4 billion in grants to further broadband’s reach in the United States as part of the 2009 American Reinvestment and Recovery Act.
The bill contains a “Buy American” clause that, if enforced by NTIA, would exclude most America-based vendors from helping cities, states, nonprofits and other entities install new infrastructure for high-speed Internet and data access. And if U.S. giants that manufacture many components overseas, such as Motorola Inc. (MOT), Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO) and Alcatel-Lucent (ALU), can’t participate, who can...?
posted by Connect Ohio at
11:59 AM
<< Home