281.
(a) The commission shall develop, implement, and administer the California Advanced Services Fund program to encourage deployment of 21st-century-ready communications services to all Californians that will promote economic growth, job creation, and the substantial social benefits of advanced information and communications technologies, consistent with this section and with the statements of intent in Section 2 of the Internet For for All Now Act (Chapter 851 of the Statutes of 2017).(b) (1) (A) The goal of the program is, no later than December 31, 2024, to approve funding for infrastructure projects that will provide high-capacity, future-proof infrastructure, based on current engineering and scientific information available at the time of the California Advanced Services Fund program application application, to no less than 98 percent of California households in each consortia region, as identified by the commission on or before January 1, 2017. The commission shall be responsible for achieving the goals of the program.
(B) For purposes of this section, the following definitions apply:
(i) “Area” means a census block or aggregation of adjacent census blocks, or a geographic area identified in a shapefile published by the commission.
(ii) “Future-proof infrastructure” means data networks that, once built, do not require new construction that involves significant public works in order to deliver higher speeds that mirror advancements in network equipment. A future-proof infrastructure shall have sufficient capacity to deliver to end users 100 mbps downstream, 100 mbps upstream, and a latency averaging at or less than 20 milliseconds to allow real-time interactive applications.
(iii) “Open access project” means a wholesale network operation that serves multiple service providers whole resell broadband access services.
(iv) “Shapefile” means a file format for storing, depicting, and analyzing geospatial data depicting broadband coverage and that consists of several component files, such as a Main file (.shp), an Index file (.shx), and a dBASE table (.dbf).
(v) (I) Except as provided in
subclause (II), “unserved area” means an area for which at least 90 percent of the population has no facility-based broadband provider offering at least one tier of broadband service at speeds of at least 25 megabits per second (mbps) downstream, 25 mbps upstream, and a latency that is sufficiently low to allow real-time interactive applications.
(II) For projects funded, in whole or in part, from moneys received from the federal Rural Digital Opportunity Fund, “unserved area” means an area in which no facility-based broadband provider offers broadband service at speeds consistent with the standards established by the Federal Communications Commission pursuant to In the Matter of Rural Digital Opportunity Fund, WC Docket No. 19-126, Report and Order, FCC 20-5 (adopted January 30, 2020, and released February 7,
2020), or as it may be later modified by the Federal Communications Commission.
(vi) “Unserved high-poverty area” means an unserved area in a census tract with a poverty rate of at least 20 percent, as measured by the most recent five-year data series available from the American Community Survey of the United States Census Bureau as of December 31, 2020.
(2) In approving infrastructure projects, the commission shall do all of the following:
(A) Approve projects with a goal of providing high-capacity, future-proof infrastructure to households that are in unserved areas or unserved high-poverty areas by an existing facility-based broadband provider.
(B) (i) Prioritize projects in unserved areas and unserved high-poverty areas where internet connectivity is available only at speeds at or below 6 mbps downstream and 1 mbps upstream or areas with no internet connectivity.
(ii) This subparagraph does not prohibit the commission from approving funding for projects outside of the areas specified in clause (i).
(C) Ensure that no awardee receives a grant pursuant to this section for an infrastructure project for which the awardee has already received the full cost of the project from a federal grant.
(D)Ensure that all approved projects can be completed with existing
program resources without increasing the surcharge on telephone consumers.
(c) The commission shall establish the following accounts within the fund:
(1) The Broadband Infrastructure Grant Account.
(2) The Rural and Urban Regional Broadband Consortia Grant Account.
(3) The Broadband Public Housing Account.
(4) The Broadband Adoption Account.
(d) (1) The commission shall transfer the moneys received by the commission from the surcharge imposed to fund the accounts to the Controller for deposit
in the California Advanced Services Fund. Moneys collected shall be deposited in the following amounts in the following accounts:
(A) Three hundred million dollars ($300,000,000) into the Broadband Infrastructure Grant Account.
(B) Ten million dollars ($10,000,000) into the Rural and Urban Regional Broadband Consortia Grant Account.
(C) Twenty million dollars ($20,000,000) into the Broadband Adoption Account.
(2) All interest earned on moneys in the fund shall be deposited in the fund.
(3) (A) The commission may collect a sum not to exceed three hundred thirty million dollars ($330,000,000) for a sum total of moneys collected by imposing the surcharge described in paragraph (1). The commission may collect the sum beginning with the calendar year starting on January 1, 2018, and continuing through the 2022 calendar year, in an amount not to exceed sixty-six million dollars ($66,000,000) per
year.
(B) This section shall not authorize the commission to collect a sum in excess of the three hundred thirty million dollars ($330,000,000) authorized to be collected pursuant to this paragraph.
(e) All moneys in the California Advanced Services Fund shall be available, upon appropriation by the Legislature, to the commission for the program administered by the commission pursuant to this section, including the costs incurred by the commission in developing, implementing, and administering the program and the fund.
(f) (1) The commission shall award grants from the Broadband Infrastructure Grant Account
on a technology-neutral basis, including both wireline and wireless technology.
(2) The commission shall consult with regional consortia, stakeholders, local governments, existing facility-based broadband providers, and consumers regarding unserved areas and cost-effective strategies to achieve the broadband access goal through public workshops conducted at least annually no later than April 30 of each year through year 2024.
(3) The commission shall identify unserved rural and urban areas and delineate the areas in the annual report prepared pursuant to Section 914.7.
(4) (A) (i) The commission shall annually offer an existing facility-based broadband provider the opportunity to
demonstrate that it will deploy broadband or upgrade existing facilities to a delineated unserved area within 90 days.
(ii) Except as provided in clause (iii), the commission shall not approve funding for a project to deploy broadband to a delineated unserved area if the existing facility-based broadband provider demonstrates to the commission, in response to the commission’s annual offer, that it will deploy broadband or upgrade existing broadband service throughout the project area.
(iii) If the existing facility-based broadband provider is unable to complete the deployment of broadband within the delineated unserved area within 90 days, the provider shall provide the commission with information to demonstrate what progress has been made or challenges faced in completing the
deployment. If the commission finds that the provider is making progress towards the completion of the deployment, the commission shall extend the time to complete the project beyond the 90 days. If the commission finds that the provider is not making progress towards completing the deployment, the delineated unserved area shall be eligible for funding pursuant to this subdivision.
(B) (i) Except for information specified in clause (ii), information submitted to the commission that includes the provider’s plans for future broadband deployment shall not be publicly disclosed.
(ii) The commission may publicly disclose information regarding the area designated for a broadband deployment, the number of households or locations to be served, and the estimated
date by which the deployment will be completed.
(C) An existing facility-based broadband provider may, but is not required to, apply for funding from the Broadband Infrastructure Grant Account to make an upgrade pursuant to this
subdivision if it can demonstrate that they are financially incapable of self-financing the necessary upgrades.
(5) Projects eligible for grant awards shall meet both of the following requirements:
(A) The project deploys infrastructure capable of providing broadband access at speeds of a minimum of 25 mbps downstream and
25 mbps upstream, and a latency that is sufficiently low to allow real-time interactive applications to unserved areas and unserved high-poverty areas.
(B) (i) All or a significant portion of the project deploys last-mile infrastructure to
unserved areas and unserved high-poverty areas. For a project that includes funding for middle-mile infrastructure, the commission shall verify that the proposed middle-mile infrastructure is indispensable for accessing the last-mile infrastructure.
(ii) A project that deploys middle-mile infrastructure shall not be eligible for grant funding unless it is an open access project. For purposes of this clause, “project” does not include a project where the grant awardee is a tribal government or a not-for-profit corporation that is a recipient of grants or loans from the Rural Utilities Service of the United States Department of Agriculture.
(6) (A) In approving a project, the commission shall require, consistent with subparagraph (B),
wholesale access for other wireless services to ensure they obtain capacity from the approved project.
(B) The commission shall determine the extent to which a last-mile provider receiving funds is required to provide wholesale access to other wireline providers, taking into consideration the financial challenges of serving unserved areas and unserved high-poverty areas, the ability for the applicant to recover its investment costs, and whether wholesale access is necessary to provide affordable services to households and businesses.
(C) (i) The commission shall oversee rates charged by an approved open access project to ensure that the rates are just and reasonable.
(ii) An open access
project shall not sell its own broadband service.
(7) An entity that is not a telephone corporation shall be eligible to apply to participate in the program administered by the commission pursuant to this section to provide access to broadband to an unserved area, if the entity otherwise meets the eligibility requirements and complies with program requirements established by the commission.
(8) The commission shall provide each applicant, and any party challenging an application, the opportunity to demonstrate actual levels of broadband service in the project area, which the commission shall consider in reviewing the application.
(9) A local governmental agency may be eligible for an infrastructure grant only if the
infrastructure project is for an unserved
area or unserved high-poverty area.
(10) The commission shall establish a service list of interested parties to be notified of any California Advanced Services Fund applications. Any application and any amendment to an application for project funding shall be served to those on the service list and posted on the commission’s internet website at least 30 days before publishing the corresponding draft resolution.
(11) A grant awarded pursuant to this subdivision may include funding for the following costs consistent with paragraph (5):
(A) Costs directly related to the deployment of infrastructure.
(B) Costs to lease access to property or for internet
backhaul services for a period not to exceed five years.
(C) Cost Costs incurred by an existing facility-based broadband provider to upgrade its existing facilities to provide for
interconnection if the existing facility-based broadband provider can demonstrate to the commission that it is financially infeasible for it to upgrade without grant support.
(12) The commission may award grants to fund all or a portion of the project. The commission shall determine, on a case-by-case basis, the level of funding to be provided for a project and shall consider factors that include, but are not limited to, the location and accessibility of the area, the existence of communication facilities that may be upgraded to deploy broadband, and whether the project makes a significant contribution to achievement of the program goal.
(13) The commission may require each infrastructure grant applicant to indicate steps taken to first obtain any available funding
from the Connect America Fund program or similar federal public programs that fund broadband infrastructure. This paragraph does not authorize the commission to reject a grant application on the basis that an applicant failed to seek project funding from the Connect America Fund program or another similar federal public program.
(g) (1) Moneys in the Rural and Urban Regional Broadband Consortia Grant Account shall be available for grants to eligible consortia to facilitate deployment of broadband services by assisting infrastructure applicants in the project development or grant application process. An eligible consortium may include, as specified by the commission, representatives of organizations, including, but not limited to, local and regional government, public safety, elementary and secondary education, health care,
libraries, postsecondary education, community-based organizations, tourism, parks and recreation, agricultural, business, workforce organizations, and air pollution control or air quality management districts, and is not required to have as its lead fiscal agent an entity with a certificate of public convenience and necessity.
(2) Each consortium shall conduct an annual audit of its expenditures for programs funded pursuant to this subdivision and shall submit to the commission an annual report that includes both of the following:
(A) A description of activities completed during the prior year, how each activity promotes the deployment of broadband services, and the cost associated with each activity.
(B) The
number of project applications assisted.
(h) (1) All remaining moneys in the Broadband Infrastructure Revolving Loan Account that are unencumbered as of January 1, 2018, shall be transferred to the Broadband Infrastructure Grant Account.
(2) All repayments of loans funded by the former Broadband Infrastructure Revolving Loan Account shall be deposited into the Broadband Infrastructure Grant Account.
(i) (1) For purposes of this subdivision, the following terms have the following meanings:
(A) “Publicly subsidized” means either that the housing development receives financial assistance from the United States Department
of Housing and Urban Development pursuant to an annual contribution contract or is financed with low-income housing tax credits, tax-exempt mortgage revenue bonds, general obligation bonds, or local, state, or federal loans or grants and the rents of the occupants, who are lower income households, do not exceed those prescribed by deed restrictions or regulatory agreements pursuant to the terms of the financing or financial assistance.
(B) “Publicly supported community” means a publicly subsidized multifamily housing development that is wholly owned by either of the following:
(i) A public housing agency that has been chartered by the state, or by any city or county in the state, and has been determined to be an eligible public housing agency by the United States Department
of Housing and Urban Development.
(ii) An incorporated nonprofit organization as described in Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code (26 U.S.C. Sec. 501(c)(3)) that is exempt from taxation under Section 501(a) of that code (26 U.S.C. Sec. 501(a)), and that has received public funding to subsidize the construction or maintenance of housing occupied by residents whose annual income qualifies as “low” or “very low” income according to federal poverty guidelines.
(2) Moneys in the Broadband Public Housing Account shall be available for the commission to award grants and loans pursuant to this subdivision to an eligible publicly supported community if that entity otherwise meets eligibility requirements and complies with program requirements established by the commission.
(3) (A) Not more than twenty million dollars ($20,000,000) of the moneys deposited into the Broadband Public Housing Account on or before January 1, 2018, shall be available for grants and loans to a publicly supported community to finance a project to connect a broadband network to that publicly supported community. A publicly supported community may be an eligible applicant only if the publicly supported community can verify to the commission that the publicly supported community has not denied a right of access to any broadband provider that is willing to connect a broadband network to the facility for which the grant or loan is sought and the publicly supported community is unserved.
(B) (i) In its review of applications received
pursuant to subparagraph (A), the commission shall award grants only to unserved housing developments, regardless of when the applicant filed its application.
(ii) For purposes of this subparagraph, a housing development is unserved when at least one housing unit within the housing development is not offered broadband internet service.
(C) Only after all funds available pursuant to this paragraph in the Broadband Public Housing Account have been awarded may a publicly supported community otherwise eligible to submit an application for funding from the Broadband Public Housing Account submit an application for funding for these purposes from the Broadband Infrastructure Grant Account.
(4) (A) Not more than five million dollars ($5,000,000) of the moneys deposited into the Broadband Public Housing Account on or before January 1, 2018, shall be available for grants and loans to a publicly supported community to support programs designed to increase adoption rates for broadband services for residents of that publicly supported community. A publicly supported community may be eligible for funding for a broadband adoption program only if the residential units in the facility to be served have access to broadband services or will have access to broadband services at the time the funding for adoption is implemented.
(B) A publicly supported community may contract with other nonprofit or public agencies to assist in implementation of a broadband adoption program.
(C) Only after all funds available pursuant to this paragraph in the Broadband Public Housing Account have been awarded may a publicly supported community otherwise eligible to submit an application for funding from the Broadband Public Housing Account submit an application for funding for these purposes from the Broadband Adoption Grant Account pursuant to subdivision (j).
(5) To the extent feasible, the commission shall approve projects for funding from the Broadband Public Housing Account in a manner that reflects the statewide distribution of publicly supported communities.
(6) In reviewing a project application under this subdivision, the commission shall consider the availability of
other funding sources for that project, any financial contribution from the broadband service provider to the project, the availability of any other public or private broadband adoption or deployment program, including tax credits and other incentives, and whether the applicant has sought funding from, or participated in, any reasonably available program. The commission may require an applicant to provide match funding, and shall not deny funding for a project solely because the applicant is receiving funding from another source.
(7) Any moneys in the Broadband Public Housing Account that have not been awarded pursuant to this subdivision by December 31, 2020, shall be transferred back to the Broadband Infrastructure Grant Account.
(j) (1) Moneys in
the Broadband Adoption Account shall be available to the commission to award grants to increase publicly available or after school broadband access and digital inclusion, such as grants for digital literacy training programs and public education to communities with limited broadband adoption, including low-income communities, senior communities, and communities facing socioeconomic barriers to broadband adoption.
(2) Eligible applicants are local governments, senior centers, schools, public libraries, nonprofit organizations, and community-based organizations with programs to increase publicly available or after school broadband access and digital inclusion, such as digital literacy training programs.
(3) Payment pursuant to a grant for digital inclusion shall be based on
digital inclusion metrics established by the commission that may include the number of residents trained, the number of residents served, or the actual verification of broadband subscriptions resulting from the program funded by the grant.
(4) The commission shall, in a new or existing proceeding, develop, by June 30, 2018, criteria for awarding grants and a process and methodology for verifying outcomes. The commission shall be prepared to accept applications for grants from the Broadband Adoption Account no later than July 1, 2018.
(5) The commission shall give preference to programs in communities with demonstrated low broadband access, including low-income communities, senior communities, and communities facing socioeconomic barriers to broadband adoption. In the proceeding
specified in paragraph (4), the commission shall determine how best to prioritize projects for funding pursuant to this paragraph.
(6) Moneys awarded pursuant to this subdivision shall not be used to subsidize the costs of providing broadband service to households.
(k) The commission shall post on the homepage of the California Advanced Service Fund on its internet website a list of all pending applications, application challenge deadlines, and notices of amendments to pending applications.
(l) The commission shall notify the appropriate policy committees of the Legislature on the date on which the goal specified in paragraph (1) of subdivision (b) is achieved.