Providing public school students with mobile hotspot devices.

The proposed bill would require the Department of Information Technology and Telecommunications (DOITT), in consultation with the Department of Education (DOE), to purchase and distribute mobile hotspot devices to all New York City public school students. The COVID-19 pandemic and the introduction of remote learning shined a light on the inequity of all students’ ability to connect to the internet at home to facilitate their remote learning. This bill would ensure all students can continue to receive the free public education they are entitled to under the law even when physical school buildings are closed for any part of the academic year.