Congress·In Committee·H.R. 8147

Prioritizing Rural Broadband Affordability Act

Rural Broadband: Adding Affordability to Grant Rules

22 days ago·View on Congress.gov·Read full text

This bill is currently in the early stages of the legislative process and is being reviewed by two House committees. It is actively moving through the system, but no future votes or hearings have been scheduled yet.

Legislative Progress

House

Senate

President

Law

Unlikely to pass

While broadband is a popular topic for both parties, most bills introduced in the House do not make it through the committee process to become law.

Key Points

This bill changes how the Department of Agriculture awards grants for high-speed internet in rural areas. It requires the government to consider whether internet service is affordable, not just whether it is physically available.
Under current rules, a town might not get help if a provider technically offers service there, even if the price is too high for most families. This bill would allow those areas to be labeled as unserved so they can qualify for federal funding.
The change aims to help rural families who are stuck with expensive internet options or no options at all. By focusing on cost, the bill tries to make sure that new taxpayer-funded networks are actually usable for the people they are meant to serve.
If the bill becomes law, the new rules would start one year later. This gives the government time to set standards for what counts as an affordable monthly bill in different rural communities.

Impact Analysis

Govbase has not yet run an impact analysis on this legislation.

Milestones

2 milestones2 actions

Mar 27, 2026House

Referred to the Committee on Agriculture, and in addition to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.

Sent to a congressional committee for expert review. The committee decides whether this bill moves forward.

Mar 27, 2026

Introduced in House

The bill was officially filed and given a number. It now enters the legislative queue.

Votes

No votes have been recorded for this legislation yet.

News

No related news coverage found for this legislation yet.

Source Information

Document Type

Congressional Bill

Official Title

Prioritizing Rural Broadband Affordability Act

Bill NumberHR 8147

Congress119th Congress

ChamberHouse of Representatives

Latest ActionReferred to the Committee on Agriculture, and in addition to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.