“Mr. Chairman, I have an amendment at the desk. I am offering this amendment today to ensure that Congress acts affirmatively to prohibit the denial of services on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, or income.

“Unfortunately, the underlying text fails to prevent discrimination. Rather than protecting local governments and ensuring their residents receive equitable treatment, this legislation would allow new entrants to deny services to poor, underserved or minority communities altogether.

“Redlining, the practice of building, upgrading and providing telecommunications services more rapidly in affluent neighborhoods than in low income neighborhoods has historically been a problem.  Causes of redlining include race, age, gender and national origin.

“Let’s consider when Ameritech (now owned by AT&T) built out its cable service in Michigan in the 1990s.

“I’d like to point out specifically the donut shape of the community of Inkster. Inkster is a community approximately 6 square miles in size which lies in the middle of Canton Township.  While the community of Canton Township all received access, no one in Inkster did.

“The median household income in Inkster in 2000 was $35,950. In Canton Township, it is double that – more than $70,000. This is not just about income though. It is about race and national origin. Canton Township is predominantly white. Inkster is a predominantly minority community.

“Sixty-seven percent of Inkster is African American, more than three percent is Asian and nearly two percent is Latino. Unfortunately, situations like the one faced by the community in Inkster continue today.

“According to 2003 U.S.Census data, just 37 percent of Latinos have internet access, compared with 65 percent of non-Hispanic whites.

“And just 14.2 percent of African Americans and 12.6 percent of Latinos live in broadband households, compared to 25.7 percent of whites.

“In fact, a 2003 study by the Pew Charitable Trust found that those least likely to have broadband Internet access at home are the poor, older, less educated, and Latinos and African-Americans.

“While Latinos are the fastest growing demographic of on-line users, only one in eight Latino households has access to broadband services.  

“And as recent as last year, Verizon launched new internet services in 55 communities, which all happen to have an average median household income twice the national median.

“Only 4.5 percent of the population of these communities was African American, and 12 percent Latino. Eighty-one percent were white.

“Several barriers to access exist in low income and inner city neighborhoods, like those I represent in East Los Angeles.

“These include poor quality telecommunications plans or inside wiring in multiple tenant buildings, high subscription prices for advanced services, lower computer ownership rates and a lack of marketing to low-income populations by providers.

“These exist DESPITE the fact that some of the poorest, minority or otherwise underserved areas in large cities are located near advanced cable and telecommunications facilities deployed in order to serve adjacent business and industrial areas.

“I believe that these barriers may continue to exist unless effective action is taken to prevent them from occurring.

“In a recent filing at the Federal Communications Commission, more than 30 organizations agreed. Redlining remains a threat. But a company which claims it is not redlining should not mind that the activity is prohibited.

“My amendment is a commonsense approach to preventing more of our communities, like those I represent, from being locked out of the technological revolution.

“I strongly believe that America’s poor, minority and otherwise underserved communities should never be made to settle for 100% of nothing, which is what is currently in this bill.

“I urge my colleagues to oppose discrimination and support my amendment.”