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The Broadening Online Opportunities through Simple Technologies Act

The bipartisan BOOST Act would allow eligible rural homeowners and primary lessess to claim a refundable consumer tax credit of up to $300 after purchasing a signal booster or hotspot to improve a slow internet connection.

Constituents in our district and across the nation suffer from speeds below the federal minimum standard of 25/3mbps or no internet connection at all. As of October 2019, the US Census Bureau determined that 15 million US households are below the federal minimum standard, with 5.2 million being completely unserved. Current rollout of the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund will take up to ten years to complete, so the BOOST Act provides a short term solution.

This legislation would allow consumers to purchase a mobile hotspot, mobile hotspot booster, satellite booster, or similar device to boost speeds of their wireless internet to better be able to do business, complete homework, and receive telemedicine at home.

The $300 tax credit is technology-neutral so it can be used to purchase the technology that works best for homeowner or lessee, so one homeowner could claim the tax credit after buying a signal booster, while another could use it after purchasing equipment to receive Internet signal from a satellite.

The press release about the introduction of the BOOST Act can be found here.

This map of the United States shows the areas where residents would be eligible to use the tax credit to purchase an internet signal booster.