The Contribution of Us Broadband Infrastructure Subsidy and Investment Programs to GDP Using Input-Output Modeling

38 Pages Posted: 16 Feb 2024

See all articles by Matthew Sprintson

Matthew Sprintson

Yale University; George Mason University

Edward Oughton

George Mason University; University of Oxford

Multiple version iconThere are 3 versions of this paper

Abstract

More than one-fifth of the US population does not subscribe to a fixed broadband service despite broadband being a recognized merit good. For example, less than 4% of citizens earning more than US $70k annually do not have broadband, compared to 26% of those earning below US $20k annually. To address this, the Biden Administration has undertaken one of the largest broadband investment programs ever via The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, with the aim of expanding broadband connectivity to all citizens. We examine existing broadband availability, adoption, and need for each US state, and then construct an Input-Output model to explore the potential macroeconomic impacts of broadband spending to Gross Domestic Product (GDP). The findings suggest a macroeconomic contribution to US GDP as high as US $84.8 billion for the Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment program, $55.2 billion for the Affordable Connectivity Program, and $5.99 billion for the Tribal Broadband Connectivity Program. Overall, the broadband allocations could expand US GDP by $146 billion (0.13% of annual US GDP over the next five years). We contribute one of the first economic impact assessments of the US Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to the literature.

Keywords: Infrastructure, Broadband, Universal Broadband, Economic Development

Suggested Citation

Sprintson, Matthew and Oughton, Edward, The Contribution of Us Broadband Infrastructure Subsidy and Investment Programs to GDP Using Input-Output Modeling. Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=4729225 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.4729225

Matthew Sprintson

Yale University ( email )

493 College St
New Haven, CT CT 06520
United States

George Mason University ( email )

4400 University Drive
Fairfax, VA 22030
United States

Edward Oughton (Contact Author)

George Mason University ( email )

4400 University Drive
Fairfax, VA 22030
United States

University of Oxford ( email )

Mansfield Road
Oxford, Oxfordshire OX1 4AU
United Kingdom

Do you have a job opening that you would like to promote on SSRN?

Paper statistics

Downloads
76
Abstract Views
565
Rank
392,748
PlumX Metrics