NET Act
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The NET Act would require the Federal Communications Commission to include, in its existing biennial reports to Congress, an assessment of how the availability of telecommunications network equipment may have affected broadband deployment — adding supply chain visibility to a report Congress already receives every two years.
What this bill would do
What it would do
The bill would amend Section 13(b) of the Communications Act of 1934 to add a new assessment requirement to the FCC's biennial state-of-the-communications-marketplace report. Specifically, the FCC would have to evaluate, to the extent data is available, how the availability of network equipment may have impacted the deployment of advanced telecommunications capability (broadband) during each two-year reporting period. The bill makes conforming amendments to renumber existing paragraphs in the same section.
The bill includes a rule of construction clarifying that the new requirement would not compel broadband providers to submit any more information to the FCC than they were already required to provide under the Communications Act before enactment. In other words, the FCC could only assess what data it already has access to — it gains no new subpoena or data-collection authority over providers.
Key provisions
- 1Would add a new paragraph to Section 13(b) of the Communications Act requiring the FCC to assess how network equipment availability may have impacted broadband deployment during each biennial reporting period.
- 2Would include a rule of construction ensuring that no broadband provider is required to submit more information to the FCC than was already required before enactment.
- 3Would make technical and conforming amendments to renumber existing paragraphs in Section 13 of the Communications Act and correct internal cross-references.
Who would be affected
The Federal Communications Commission, which would be responsible for conducting and publishing the new assessment. Members of Congress and the public, who receive the biennial report, would gain structured information on supply chain impacts. Broadband and telecommunications providers are explicitly shielded from any new data-submission obligations by the bill's rule of construction.
Why it matters
If enacted, Congress and the public would receive a regular, formal record of whether equipment supply shortages — such as those seen during global chip and hardware crunches — are slowing broadband expansion. The assessment could inform future oversight or funding decisions, though the bill itself creates no new enforcement mechanism or remedy for supply chain problems it identifies.
What would change
Changes to existing law
Amends Communications Act of 1934, Section 13 (47 U.S.C. § 163) (Sec. 2(a))
Inserts a new paragraph requiring the FCC to assess network equipment availability's impact on broadband deployment in its biennial marketplace report.
Agencies directed to act
Funding and costs
Congressional Budget Office estimate
CBO estimates the NET Act would cost the FCC less than $500,000 over the 2026–2030 period, with no effect on direct spending, revenues, or the deficit.
S. 503, the NET Act, would require the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to include an assessment of network equipment availability in its biennial report on the communications marketplace. CBO estimates that implementing the bill would cost the FCC less than $500,000 over the 2026–2030 period; because the FCC is authorized to collect fees sufficient to offset its appropriated regulatory costs, the net budgetary impact would be negligible. The bill has no effect on direct (mandatory) spending or revenues, and would not increase the deficit in any scoring window. It contains no intergovernmental mandates, but does impose a private-sector mandate on entities that pay FCC fees — CBO estimates that mandate's incremental cost would be small and well below UMRA's annual private-sector threshold of $206 million.
How implementation would work
The FCC would incorporate the network equipment availability assessment into its existing biennial Section 13 report on the state of the communications marketplace, which is already submitted to Congress and published publicly. No new rulemaking appears to be required; the FCC would work with data it already possesses or receives voluntarily. The rule of construction bars the agency from using this provision to demand new disclosures from providers, effectively capping the assessment's depth to currently available data.
Legislative status & sources
Latest action
Held at the desk.
Official CRS summary
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This bill requires the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to report biennially on the impact of network equipment availability on the deployment of advanced telecommunications capabilities (i.e., broadband). This assessment must be included in the FCC’s reports on the state of the communications marketplace, which are submitted to Congress and published publicly every other year.
Legislative subjects
Congressional oversight; Government studies and investigations; Science, Technology, Communications; Supply chain; Telephone and wireless communication
Committee report
S. Rept. 119-66