Public Act 103-0483

SB0851 Enrolled LRB103 03309 RPS 48315 b

AN ACT concerning State government.

Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,

represented in the General Assembly:

Section 5. The Broadband Advisory Council Act is amended

by changing Section 20 and by adding Section 30 as follows:

(220 ILCS 80/20)

Sec. 20. Powers and duties of the Council generally.

(a) The Council shall:

(1) explore any and all ways to expand the

availability to end-user customers of broadband services

using available technologies, including, but not limited

to, wireline, wireless, fixed wireless, and satellite

applications;

(2) identify barriers to broadband adoption among the

residents and small businesses of Illinois;

(3) research ways to eliminate barriers to adoption

through measures such as: digital literacy programs;

programs to assist older citizens in using broadband

Internet access; programs to facilitate adoption by

disabled citizens; and programs to encourage collaborative

efforts among public universities, community colleges,

libraries, public housing, and other institutions;

(4) assess the availability of broadband for

low-income households compared to the availability of

broadband for other households;

(5) explore the potential for increased use of

broadband service for the purposes of education, career

readiness, workforce preparation, and alternative career

training;

(6) explore the potential for increased use of

broadband services to facilitate aging in place;

(7) explore ways for encouraging State and municipal

agencies, including public housing authorities, to expand

the use of broadband services for the purpose of better

serving the public, including audio and video streaming,

voice-over Internet protocol, teleconferencing, and

wireless networking;

(8) cooperate and assist in the expansion of

electronic instruction and distance education services;

and

(9) as the Federal Communications Commission updates

the benchmark downstream data rates and upstream data

rates, publish the revised data rates in the Illinois

Register within 60 days after the federal update; and .

(10) evaluate the expansion of the Illinois Century

Network to Illinois public schools, public libraries, and

State-owned correctional institutions or facilities,

including issuing recommendations for increasing agency

staffing, infrastructure development, price modeling, and

providing download speeds of at least one gigabyte per

second and upload speeds of at least one gigabyte per

second.

(b) In addition to the powers set forth elsewhere in this

Act, the Council is hereby granted the powers necessary to

carry out the purpose and intent of this Act, as enumerated in

this Section, including, but not limited to:

(1) promoting awareness of public facilities that have

community broadband access that can be used for distance

education and workforce development; and

(2) advising on deployment of e-government portals

such that all public bodies and political subdivisions

have websites and encourage one-stop government access and

that all public entities stream audio and video of all

public meetings.

(c) The Council shall also:

(1) monitor the broadband-based development efforts of

other states in areas such as business, education, aging

in place, and health;

(2)receive input provided on a voluntary basis from

all Illinois broadband stakeholders and advise the

Governor and the General Assembly on policies related to

broadband in Illinois, provided that no stakeholders shall

be required to publicly disclose competitively sensitive

information or information that could compromise network

security or undermine the efficacy of reasonable network

management practices, and that any such information

voluntarily disclosed shall be protected from public

disclosure; and

(3) serve as the broadband advocate to State agencies

and other State entities to communicate the broadband

needs of citizens and organizations that do not have

access to broadband service or to broadband service

adequate for their needs.

(d) The Council shall exercise its powers and authority to

(1) advise and make recommendations to the General Assembly

and the Governor on bringing broadband service to unserved and

underserved rural and urban areas and improving broadband

service statewide, (2) advise and make recommendations to the

General Assembly and the Governor on facilitating broadband

adoption by all citizens, and (3) propose statutory changes

that may enhance and expand broadband in the State.

(e) The Council shall report to the General Assembly on or

before January 1 of each year. The report to the General

Assembly shall be filed with the Clerk of the House of

Representatives and the Secretary of the Senate in electronic

form only, in the manner that the Clerk and the Secretary shall

direct. The report shall include the action that was taken by

the Council during the previous year in carrying out the

provisions of this Act. The Council shall also make any other

reports as may be required by the General Assembly or the

Governor.

(Source: P.A. 100-833, eff. 1-1-19.)

(220 ILCS 80/30 new)

Sec. 30. Illinois Century Network Study.

(a) The Council shall study the feasibility of connecting

all Illinois public schools, public libraries, and State-owned

correctional facilities to the Illinois Century Network by

January 1, 2030. The purpose and scope of the study is limited

to connecting all public schools, public libraries, and

State-owned correctional facilities to the Illinois Century

Network, with a goal to give all public schools, public

libraries, and State-owned correctional institutions or

facilities access to reliable, gigabit-level broadband service

by January 1, 2030. The Office of Broadband within the

Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity shall support

and assist the Council in the development of the study.

(b) The feasibility study required under subsection (a)

shall explore:

(1) efforts among other states and units of local

government to connect public schools, public libraries,

and correctional facilities to a public broadband service;

(2) the current state of broadband service connection

for all public schools, public libraries, and State-owned

correctional facilities, including connection speeds, type

of technology, and whether the network is serviced by the

Illinois Century Network currently;

(3) models for expanding the Illinois Century Network

solely for the purpose of connecting all Illinois public

schools, public libraries, and State-owned correctional

facilities;

(4) the resources necessary to expand the Illinois

Century Network across the State of Illinois to all

Illinois public schools, public libraries, and State-owned

correctional facilities;

(5) the benefits of the Illinois Century Network in

Illinois public schools, public libraries, and State-owned

correctional facilities;

(6) potential sources of funding for the expansion of

the Illinois Century Network to Illinois public schools,

public libraries, and State-owned correctional facilities;

(7) additional staff and contracting needs that would

be necessary to expand the Illinois Century Network to all

Illinois public schools, public libraries, and State-owned

correctional facilities;

(8) options for partnering with units of local

government in Illinois that have taken steps toward

offering public broadband service for the purpose of

connecting all Illinois public schools, public libraries,

and State-owned correctional facilities to the Illinois

Century Network; and

(9) any other factors that are necessary for the

exploration of the feasibility of expanding the Illinois

Century Network to all Illinois public schools, public

libraries, and State-owned correctional facilities.

The feasibility study shall offer recommendations based on

the results of the study and shall offer options for the

expansion of the Illinois Century Network, including a

timeline, staffing needs, financial resources needed, and

suggested rates for broadband service.

(c) The Council shall issue a report on its findings,

recommendations, options for expansion, and any recommended

legislation to the General Assembly by January 1, 2024.

Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon

becoming law.