BILL ANALYSIS
SB 1462
Page 1
Date of Hearing: June 14, 2010
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON UTILITIES AND COMMERCE
Steven Bradford, Chair
SB 1462 (Padilla) - As Amended: June 7, 2010
SENATE VOTE : (vote not relevant)
SUBJECT : Telecommunications.
SUMMARY : Establishes a nine-member California Broadband
Council to promote broadband deployment and adoption throughout
the state. Specifically, this bill :
1)Establishes the California Broadband Council and includes the
following members or their designee:
a) The State Chief Information Officer;
b) The President of the California Public Utilities
Commission (PUC);
c) The Secretary of California Emergency Management;
d) The Superintendent of Public Instruction;
e) The Director of General Services;
f) The Secretary of Business, Transportation and
Housing;
g) The President of the California Emerging Technology
Fund (CETF);
h) A member of the Senate, appointed by the Senate
Committee on Rules; and
i) A member of the Assembly, appointed by the Speaker
of the Assembly.
2)Requires the California Broadband Council to perform the
following duties:
a) Ensure communication among state agencies regarding
California's participation in proceedings related to the
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National Broadband Plan adopted by the Federal
Communications Commission;
b) Ensure that state agencies share all relevant
information in order to maximize California's
opportunities for federal and private funding for
broadband deployment adoption;
c) Ensure that all state agencies are made aware of
actions necessary to fully implement recommendations in
the 2008 Broadband Task Force Report;
d) Identify opportunities for state agencies and state
broadband networks to share facilities, rights-of-way, or
other resources related to broadband deployment and
adoption; and
e) Take any other actions to ensure that state agencies
are coordinating efforts and resources to promote
broadband deployment and adoption.
3)Requires the President of the PUC to call the first meeting to
be held not later than March 1, 2011, and requires the
President to serve as chair of the council for the first
meeting.
4)Requires the members of the council to choose a chair for
subsequent meetings, and permits members to choose a
vice-chair.
5)Requires subsequent meetings to be convened as determined by
the chair of the council and requires meetings to be convened
not less than three times annually.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Requires the PUC to develop and administer the CASF to
encourage deployment of high-quality advanced communications
services to all Californians that will promote economic
growth, job creation, and social benefits, and sunsets January
1, 2013.
2)Establishes the High-Cost Fund-B to provide transfer payments
to telephone corporations that provide local exchange services
in high-cost areas in the state, and provides an operative
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date of January 1, 2006.
3)Requires the PUC to establish the Rural Telecommunications
Infrastructure Grant Program to aid in the establishment of
telecommunications service in areas not currently served by
existing local exchange carriers.
4)The PUC created the California Emerging Technology Fund (CETF)
as a non-profit corporation as a condition of approving the
mergers of SBC-AT&T and Verizon-MCI in 2005, and requires AT&T
and Verizon to contribute a total of $60 million over 5 years
for the purpose of achieving ubiquitous access to broadband
and advanced services in California.
FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown.
COMMENTS : According to the author, this bill will help
California continue its commitment to bring the economic
benefits of high-speed Internet access to all of its citizens.
The author states that this bill will maximize California's
opportunities to receive federal funds under the new National
Broadband Plan, increase coordination of state resources for
broadband networks, and ensure continuation of California's
leadership in broadband deployment and adoption.
Background : In October 2006, the Governor issued an executive
order (S-21-06) and established the California Broadband Task
Force (Task Force) to utilize California's Internet technology
for education, health care, and the other relevant applications.
The Task Force was intended to bring together public and
private stakeholders to remove barriers to broadband access,
identify opportunities for increased broadband adoption, and
enable the creation and deployment of new advanced communication
technologies.
The executive order required the Task Force to provide a
preliminary report to the Governor that identifies
administrative actions that can result in immediate promotion of
broadband access and usage within the state. Within one year of
the date of the executive order, the Task Force was required to
provide a comprehensive report to the Governor and Legislature.
This report was required to make specific recommendations for
how California can take advantage of opportunities for, and
eliminate any related barriers to, broadband access and
adoption.
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The executive order required the Task Force to pay particular
attention to how broadband can be used to substantially benefit
educational institutions, healthcare institutions,
community-based organizations, and governmental institutions.
It also required the Task Force to coordinate statewide and
regional efforts with public and private stakeholders to obtain
and maximize grant and loan funding available for broadband
deployment and development projects in the State.
The executive order designated the Business, Transportation, and
Housing Agency (BTH) as the lead, and required the PUC to
develop a baseline and metrics for measuring broadband usage and
benefits within the state. The remainder of the Task Force was
comprised of California's institutions of higher education and
private-sector stakeholders to encourage public-private
partnerships.
On January 17, 2008, the Task Force published its final report
and found that 96 percent of households have basic broadband
access, placing California as a leader in broadband availability
among all 50 states. The report also revealed that nearly 2,000
communities were still unable to access high-speed internet,
only half of Californians have access to broadband at speeds
greater than 10 Mbps, and even though availability rates are at
96 percent, just over half of California households use
broadband.
The report proposed seven recommendations, which included: (1)
build out high-speed broadband infrastructure to all
Californians, (2) develop model permitting standards and
encourage collaboration among providers, (3) increase the use
and adoption of broadband and computer technology, (4) engage
and reward broadband innovation and research, (5) create a
statewide e-health network, (6) leverage educational
opportunities to increase broadband use, and (7) continue
state-level and statewide leadership
As part of the last recommendation, the report recommended that
the Governor continue to periodically convene the Task Force.
The report states, "The (Task Force) should monitor and provide
feedback on both the recommendations contained in this report
and other broadband initiatives underway in the state." The
report also recommended the creation of a Community Broadband
Leadership Council and smaller leadership councils located in
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unserved and underserved communities and comprised of local
residents who are passionate about broadband and who can
articulate that the level of demand is substantial enough to
warrant investment.
To provide the capital needed to expand broadband technology,
the PUC created the California Emerging Technology Fund (CETF)
as a non-profit corporation as a condition of approving the
mergers of SBC-AT&T and Verizon-MCI in 2005, and requires AT&T
and Verizon to contribute a total of $60 million over 5 years
for the purpose of achieving ubiquitous access to broadband and
advanced services in California.
Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Activities : In March,
the FCC released the nation's first National Broadband Plan,
with wide-ranging recommendations for increasing broadband
deployment and integrating broadband solutions to improve public
safety, health care, education, government services, and civic
engagement. Since release of the Broadband Plan, the FCC has
begun several proceedings that impact broadband efforts in
California, and many more will begin soon.
What would the council do : This bill would require the state
agency representatives and legislative representatives
(including one non-state representative) to meet and ensure
everyone shares information. However, there are no
deliverables. It is not clear who will do what, if any
opportunities are identified or any action items are discussed.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
California Association of Competitive Telecommunications
Companies (CALTEL)
California Center for Rural Policy (CCRP)
California Library Association (CLA) (if amended)
California Resources and Training (CARAT)
California's Independent Telephone Companies (CITC)
Central Coast Broadband Consortium
County of Lake
IP Networks, Inc.
Los Angeles Unified School District Office of Curriculum,
Instruction, School Support (OCISS)
One Economy Corporation
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San Diego Futures Foundation (SDFF)
Opposition
None on file.
Analysis Prepared by : Gina Adams / U. & C. / (916) 319-2083