Vermont publishes digital equity plan summaries in 15 languages
The Vermont Community Broadband Board on Monday announced it’s released summaries of its digital equity plan, which details its plans for spending millions in federal funds, in 15 languages, including American Sign Language.
The summary, which distills the state’s occasionally technical, 129-page approved digital equity plan down to four pages, is available for public review in plain language. States were required to submit a plan to the National Telecommunications and Information Administration to receive grant funds from the $2.75 billion Digital Equity Act, one piece of President Joe Biden’s “Internet for All” initiative.
From the State Digital Equity Planning Grant Program, Vermont used just over $518,000 in funding to craft its proposal, and in April, the NTIA announced it had accepted the proposed plans from all 50 states, Washington, D.C. and Puerto Rico. From the Digital Equity Act’s State Capacity Program, which allows states to apply for funds to begin implementing their digital equity plans, Vermont received nearly $5.3 million.
Vermont’s dispersal is relatively little, especially compared to California, which received $70.2 million to make affordable internet service and digital literacy training more accessible.
Vermont’s plan includes a digital equity needs assessment, asset inventory and implementation plan. It serves as the state’s vision and strategy for achieving digital equity, the announcement said, and also lays out goals for the state to achieve widespread internet access through 2034.
While the state’s broadband board is beginning to implement its plan, it said, residents can submit feedback to ensure the plan is as effective as possible. Though the summary is already available in 14 languages, translations of the full plan are available upon request at no charge.
“Vermont’s Digital Equity Plan was built on feedback from Vermonters from different communities and backgrounds,” Britaney Watson, digital equity officer at the Vermont Community Broadband Board, said in the announcement. “Now that the plan is approved, we want everyone to be able to read it and understand it. We’re working to reach the highest level of accessibility to serve all Vermonters.”
