BILL NUMBER: AB 1012 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN SENATE SEPTEMBER 4, 2009
AMENDED IN SENATE AUGUST 17, 2009
AMENDED IN SENATE JUNE 25, 2009
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MAY 5, 2009
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member V. Manuel Perez
(Coauthors: Assembly Members Fuentes, Galgiani, and Nielsen)
FEBRUARY 27, 2009
An act to add Section 11546.1 to the Government Code, relating to
broadband services, and declaring the urgency thereof, to take effect
immediately.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 1012, as amended, V. Manuel Perez. Broadband communications.
Existing law establishes, until January 1, 2013, the office of the
State Chief Information Officer, within the Governor's cabinet, with
the State Chief Information Officer having specified duties in
creating and managing the technology policy of the state.
This bill would require the State Chief Information Officer to
establish a strategy to maximize federal funding opportunities
pursuant to the federal American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of
2009 (Recovery Act) and the federal Broadband Data
Improvement Act that are directed for broadband-related activities,
programs, or projects. The bill would require the State Chief
Information Officer, no later than 30 days after the effective date
of this bill, to develop the strategy and require that the strategy
include specific information for purposes of broadband development
and deployment in the state and the obtaining of federal funding for
those purposes. The State Chief Information Officer would be required
to submit the strategy to the relevant policy and fiscal committees
in each house of the Legislature within 30 days of the preparation of
the strategy. The bill would require the State Chief
Information Officer to administer, expend, and distribute
broadband-related funding received under the Recovery Act in a manner
consistent with federal law and specified policy goals.
The bill would require the Public Utilities Commission, as the
designated recipient for a grant under the federal State Broadband
Data and Development Grant Program of the Broadband Data Improvement
Act, to administer and expend funding received under that program in
a manner consistent with federal and state law.
This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as
an urgency statute.
Vote: 2/3. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: no.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. The Legislature finds and declares all of the
following:
(a) In October 2006, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger commissioned
through Executive Order S-23-06, the California Broadband Task Force
to "remove barriers to broadband access, identify opportunities for
increased broadband adoption, and enable the reaction and development
of new advance communication technologies." After more than a year
of work, the task force issued a report titled "The State of
Connectivity: Building Innovation Through Broadband" that maps
current broadband availability and speed, makes recommendations to
achieve universal broadband access and increased usage, and a
timeframe in which to meet these critical goals. While the report
shows terrific progress for the state, there is still more work to be
done, because nearly 2,000 communities are still unable to access
high-speed Internet, only one-half of Californians have access to
broadband at speeds greater than 10 megabits per second (Mbps), and
even though availability rates are at 96 percent, just over one-half
of California households use broadband.
(b) In 2008 the Legislature created the California Advanced
Services Fund in order to spur deployment of broadband infrastructure
in both rural and urban unserved and underserved areas within the
state, and encouraged a statewide policy to promote broadband
throughout the state.
(c) On February 17, 2009, the federal American Recovery and
Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-5; hereafter the Recovery
Act) was signed into law by President Barack Obama. The act requires
the Federal Communications Commission to develop a National Broadband
Plan, and contains two new funding programs: (1) the Broadband
Technology Opportunities Program under the National
Telecommunications and Information Administration and (2) the Rural
Development Broadband Program under the United States Department of
Agriculture's Office of Rural Development, Rural Utilities
Services Service .
(d) The Recovery Act authorizes $4.7 billion for the National
Telecommunications and Information Administration for the Broadband
Technology Opportunities Program, and appropriates $2.5 billion to
Rural Utilities Service to extend loans, loan and grant combinations,
and grants to projects where at least 75 percent of a Rural
Utilities Service funded area is in a rural area that lacks
sufficient access to high-speed broadband service in order to
facilitate rural economic development. Funding for each program must
be awarded by September 30, 2010. Up to $350 million is authorized
under the Recovery Act to fund the State Broadband Data and
Development Grant Program authorized by the Broadband Data
Improvement Act of 2008 (Title I of Public Law 110-385)
110-385; hereafter the Broadband Data Improvement Act)
.
(e) In fulfilling the state's role, pursuant to the Notice of
Funds Availability and solicitation of applications for the Broadband
Technology Opportunities Program and Broadband Initiatives Program,
the Chief Information Officer, on behalf of the Governor, is required
to submit to the appropriate federal entities a prioritization of
recommended state projects, along with an explanation of why the
selected proposals meet the greatest needs of the state. In
furthering the state's role, the Governor, in a letter dated July 21,
2009, designated the Public Utilities Commission as the single
entity in California to receive a grant under Section 106(i)(2) of
the Broadband Data Improvement Act.
(f) As funding awarded pursuant to the above-described federal
programs is expected to be allocated through a series of requests for
proposals prior to the conclusion of the program on September 30,
2010, it is incumbent on the state to have a comprehensive and
multiphased strategy to assist California applicants in obtaining
these funds.
SEC. 2. Section 11546.1 is added to the Government Code, to read:
11546.1. (a) The State Chief Information Officer, in addition to
serving on the Governor's California Federal Stimulus Task Force,
shall establish a strategy to maximize federal funding opportunities
pursuant to the federal American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of
2009 (Public Law 111-5) and the Broadband Data Improvement Act (Title
1 of Public Law 110-385) that are directed for broadband-related
activities, programs, or projects. These broadband-related
activities, programs, and projects include the State Broadband Data
and Development Grant Program, the Broadband Initiatives Program
(BIP), and the Broadband Technologies Opportunities Program (BTOP).
(b) The State Chief Information Officer, no later than 30 days
after the effective date of this section, utilizing any information
in the Notice of Funds Availability and solicitation of applications
for each program, shall develop the strategy, which shall include all
of the following:
(1) Specific actions that should be taken to maximize both the
amount of federal broadband-related funding to the state and the
number of California applicants.
(2) Specific actions needed to facilitate broadband deployment in
California's rural areas, facilitate deployment of broadband
infrastructure in unserved and underserved areas, enhance broadband
capacity at public computer centers, and promote sustainable
broadband adoption projects.
(3) A specific process for prioritizing state projects for BTOP
and BIP funding and appropriate sources used to determine how
individual selected proposals meet the greatest needs of the state.
(4) Identification of the specific roles of the State Chief
Information Officer, the Public Utilities Commission, the California
Broadband Task Force Emerging Technology Fund
, and any other state entity that is necessary to carry out
the specific actions recommended in the strategy.
(5) Identification of the specific state resources, if any, that
may be utilized to leverage federal funds.
(6) A description of the state's role, if any, in the development
of the federal Broadband Plan.
(7) Identification of other key public and private community
development partners and their respective roles and areas of
expertise, necessary statutory or regulatory changes, and needed
resources to accomplish the strategy.
(8) Identification of key tasks, timelines, and monitoring
processes.
(c) The State Chief Information Officer shall submit the strategy
developed pursuant to this section to the relevant policy and fiscal
committees of each house of the Legislature within 30 days of the
preparation of the strategy.
(d) To the extent permitted by law, the State Chief Information
Officer shall consult with the Office of Planning and Research to
provide guidance to applicants and to help expedite permits required
for the deployment of broadband infrastructure projects and the
meeting of deadlines pursuant to the Notice of Funds Availability and
solicitation of applications for the BTOP and the BIP funding in the
federal American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.
(e) The State Chief Information Officer , in consultation
with the Public Utilities Commission, shall administer, expend,
and distribute broadband-related funding, received under the federal
American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 and the
State Broadband Data and Development Grant Program, in a
, in a manner consistent with federal law and the goals of
the California Broadband Task Force, the California Advanced
Services Fund, established pursuant to Section 281 of the Public
Utilities Code, and the California Emerging Technology Fund, a
nonprofit public benefit corporation established pursuant to Public
Utilities Commission Decision 05-11-028.
(f) The Public Utilities Commission, as the designated recipient
for a grant under the federal State Broadband Data and Development
Grant Program, shall administer and expend funding received under
that program in a manner consistent with federal and state law.
SEC. 3. This act is an urgency statute necessary for the immediate
preservation of the public peace, health, or safety within the
meaning of Article IV of the Constitution and shall go into immediate
effect. The facts constituting the necessity are:
In order to develop a strategy, at the earliest possible time, for
providing broadband access to unserved and underserved areas in the
state, it is necessary that this act take effect immediately.