BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SB 745
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Date of Hearing: August 10, 2016
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
Lorena Gonzalez, Chair
SB 745
(Hueso) - As Amended August 1, 2016
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Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program: NoReimbursable: No
SUMMARY:
This bill makes various changes to the grant programs provided
by the California Advanced Services Fund (CASF) and the program
reporting requirements. Specifically, this bill:
1)Authorizes representatives of workforce organizations and air
pollution control or air quality management districts to be
included as an eligible consortium for funds in the CASF Rural
and Urban Regional Broadband Consortia Grant Account
(Consortia Account).
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2)Requires the California Public Utilities Commission (PUC), in
its review of applications for funds from the CASF Broadband
Public Housing Account (Public Housing Account), to prioritize
unserved housing developments, defined as when at least one
housing unit within the development is not offered broadband
internet service.
3)Extends the date remaining funds from the Public Housing
Account are transferred back to other CASF Accounts from
December 31, 2016, to December 31, 2020.
4)Extends the due date on the PUC annual report to the
Legislature from January 1 of each year to April 1 of each
year, and requires the PUC to provide additional information
including county information and specified details on the
status of each CASF funded project.
FISCAL EFFECT:
The PUC anticipates increased costs of approximately $260,000
(CASF) to present county-by county-data on project progress and
provide detailed information of efforts to leverage non-CASF
funds in annual reports. Staff would also be required to
process the additional applications and conduct administrative
tasks related to grant oversight and reimbursement for
applications from workforce organizations and air quality
districts.
COMMENTS:
1)Purpose. This bill explicitly adds representatives from
workforce organizations and air pollution control or air
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quality management districts as eligible for grants and
prioritizes undeserved housing developments under the CASF.
Additionally, this bill expands the information required in
the PUC's annual report to provide details on efforts to
leverage non-CASF funds and provide county-level expenditure
information.
2)Background. The CASF was established to encourage the
deployment of broadband services to all Californians to
promote economic growth, job creation, and the social benefits
associated with advanced information and communications
technologies. It is funded by a surcharge rate on the revenues
collected by telecommunications carriers from the end-users of
intrastate services.
CASF funding is allocated into four accounts, the
Infrastructure Account, the Consortia Account, the Revolving
Loan Account, and the Public Housing Account. The
Infrastructure Account funds the capital costs of broadband
infrastructure projects in unserved and underserved areas in
California. The Consortia Account provides funding for the
cost of broadband deployment activities, other than the
capital cost of facilities. The Revolving Loan Account
supplements financing for projects also receiving CASF grant
funding. The Public Housing Account supports projects to
deploy local area networks and to increase adoption rates in
publicly supported housing communities.
Currently, the PUC is authorized to collect $315 million for
the CASF through 2020, but not to exceed $25 million per year,
unless the PUC determines that collecting a higher amount in
any year will not result in an increase in the total amount of
all surcharges collected from telephone customers that year.
As of December 2015 the status of each CASF account is as
follows:
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Infrastructure Account: Authorized to collect $270 million
for funding for the capital costs of broadband infrastructure
projects. Fifty-two projects have been approved and 20
projects are still pending/under review. Approximately $121.3
million has been awarded from the account.
Revolving Loan Account: Authorized to collect $5 million to
provide supplemental financing for projects that are also
applying for funds from the Infrastructure Grant Account.
Approximately $627,000 has been awarded from the account.
Consortia Account: Authorizes $15 million to fund the cost of
broadband deployment activities other than the capital cost of
facilities. Approximately $9.3 million has been awarded from
the account.
Public Housing Account: Authorizes $25 million to provide
grants and loans dedicated to broadband access and adoption in
publicly supported housing communities. Ninety-nine projects
have been approved and 271 projects are still pending/under
review. Approximately $2.5 million has been awarded from the
account.
Analysis Prepared by:Jennifer Galehouse / APPR. / (916)
319-2081
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