Mercury News Guest Op-Ed
By Josh Becker and Lena Gonzalez
California is the technology capital of the world. Home to the largest and most innovative companies, our state is in many ways a shining example of the power of the digital to shape a more creative and prosperous society.
Yet outside the glitter of Silicon Valley and the state’s major urban hubs, there’s a major divide we must confront: California’s rural communities and their 2.2 million residents are largely shut out of the tech economy and its benefits because they lack access to broadband.
Our state ranks eighth in urban access to 25/3 mbps broadband, but a distant 16th in rural areas. For fiber broadband (100/100) — the fastest and most reliable technology — California ranks 30th in urban access and an abysmal 46th in rural fiber access at just 10.7%. Our neighbors in Oregon have double the percentage of rural residents with fiber broadband. In North Dakota, rural fiber access is eight times higher.
We see the stark consequences of this divide in our state. Sen. Lena Gonzalez represents a district that includes some of the most advanced aerospace companies in the world and is also home to many historically underserved communities in Southeast Los Angeles. Sen. Josh Becker represents a district that includes Silicon Valley, a global hub for technology and innovation that stretches to rural communities on the coast.
These places — roughly just an hour from where firms are receiving billions of investment for cutting-edge tech and aerospace — are stuck with outdated services such as dial-up and DSL or minimally wired broadband that doesn’t allow for remote work, telehealth or virtual learning, let alone the digital entrepreneurship our state prides itself on.