The Wisconsin legislature passed a broadband bill that would narrow what areas may receive grants but not limit by speed what projects could get money. The Assembly voted 60-36 Wednesday after the Senate voted 20-12 last week for SB-365. It would direct the Public Service Commission to focus its broadband grant program on unserved areas where no provider has service with 100 Mbps download and 20 Mbps upload speeds, though a Senate amendment removed language to restrict grants to projects not capable of 100/20 Mbps, according to a summary. The Senate amendment also removed a prohibition of awarding grants to projects that don’t include at least 40% matching funds, and it deleted a proposed mechanism for the PSC to collect broadband data from ISP grantees to develop and maintain a state map. SB-365 still needs the governor’s signature. Also Wednesday, Arizona lawmakers supported making a state broadband office. The House voted 46-13 Wednesday to send HB-2678 to the Senate. The House Commerce Committee unanimously cleared the bill last week (see 2202160015). The Iowa House voted 93-4 for HB-2296 requiring municipalities to provide nondiscriminatory access to right of way and municipally owned conduit to install broadband infrastructure. It goes to the Senate.
Adam Bender
Adam Bender, Senior Editor, is the state and local telecommunications reporter for Communications Daily, where he also has covered Congress and the Federal Communications Commission. He has won awards for his Warren Communications News reporting from the Society of Professional Journalists, Specialized Information Publishers Association and the Society for Advancing Business Editing and Writing. Bender studied print journalism at American University and is the author of dystopian science-fiction novels. You can follow Bender at WatchAdam.blog and @WatchAdam on Twitter.
The Wisconsin Assembly voted 59-37 Wednesday to send a comprehensive privacy bill (AB-957) to the Senate. In Florida, the House Judiciary Committee voted 13-4 to send HB-9 to the House floor despite Democrats voting no due to business concerns. The panel supported an amendment by sponsor Rep. Fiona McFarland (R) that would take a tiered approach to the bill’s private right of action (PRA). An industry-backed Utah privacy bill also advanced Wednesday.
Seeking to spur broadband installation in unserved areas, a Florida panel cleared a proposed pole replacement fund at a livestreamed Tuesday hearing. The Senate Transportation, Tourism and Economic Development Appropriations Subcommittee voted 11-0 for related bills SB-1800 and SB-1802 with amendments to remove language specifying how they will be funded. As amended, the bill would structure but not pay for a program whereby the state could remove existing poles and replace them with new ones to support broadband in areas lacking service, said sponsor Sen. Jim Boyd (R). The state could use federal funding, including from the infrastructure law once it arrives, he said. The bill is one piece of a bigger puzzle to spread broadband, said Sen. Loranne Ausley (D), co-chair of progressive NewDEAL Forum’s Broadband Task Force. However, Ausley said she's concerned the state broadband office is already understaffed. Boyd said the office should be able to find contractors or add employees once federal funding becomes available.
A Washington state bill to establish a blockchain study group cleared the House Community and Economic Development committee at a livestreamed Tuesday meeting. The committee voted 11-2 for SB-5544 with an amendment changing aspects of the proposed work group, including membership and stated purposes. Authors of the House and Senate versions of the bill proposed the changes, said Chair Cindy Ryu (D). Voting no, Rep. Vicki Kraft (R) said she’s worried about the state getting too far ahead of the rest of the country, with the proposed work group possibly leading to state laws that will be federally preempted. Rep. Rob Chase (R), the other no vote, said, “I don’t like voting for something I don’t really understand.” SB-5544 earlier passed the Senate but will need to return due to the House changes. Also, the committee heard testimony on SB-5715 to update the state broadband definition to 100 Mbps download and 20 Mbps upload, from 25/3 Mbps now. "Some of us would want it to be even faster than that," Ryu said: "Baby steps first." The committee is scheduled to vote Wednesday on SB-5715, which unanimously passed the Senate last week (see 2202160019).
Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison (D) supported digital right-to-repair legislation Tuesday. The Minnesota House Judiciary Finance and Civil Law Committee heard testimony on HF-1156 at a livestreamed hearing. Manufacturers limiting how and by whom a consumer-owned product may be repaired “makes affording your life that much tougher,” said Ellison in prerecorded testimony: HF-1156 would make "repair markets competitive.” It wouldn’t harm manufacturers, protecting their ability to preserve trade secrets, the AG said. If after receiving a complaint, the AG office decided a company wasn’t complying with the law, it would give the company a chance to voluntarily resolve the issue before using litigation as a “last resort,” Ellison said. TechNet sees safety, security and privacy problems with the bill, said Executive Director-Midwest Tyler Diers: It could interfere with manufacturers’ existing contracts with authorized service providers. Multiple committee Republicans raised enforcement concerns in questions to sponsor Rep. Peter Fischer of the Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party. Fischer said his bill would give consumers more choice, reduce e-waste and promote local tech repair shops.
LTD Broadband “will be seeking reconsideration” of the South Dakota Public Utilities Commission's denial of the company designation as an eligible telecom carrier, CEO Corey Hauer emailed us Tuesday. LTD suffered another blow to its Rural Digital Opportunity Fund (RDOF) ambitions when South Dakota commissioners voted 2-1 Friday to deny the ETC status it needed to get about $46.6 million in 10-year RDOF support in the state. LTD didn’t meet its burden to show approval is in the public interest, said Commissioner Kristie Feigen (R) at the recorded hearing. States must protect scarce USF resources through ETC authority, said Chairman Chris Nelson (R): LTD lacks experience and doesn’t seem to understand true buildout costs. “There is a very low likelihood that the applicant has the ability to provide services throughout the designated area within a reasonable timeframe.” Supporting the company’s application, Commissioner Gary Hanson (R) said he worries commission denial would be “judicial activism” courts could rebuke. “I don’t believe the PUC has ever denied an ETC status.” The commission’s job is to assess if LTD should qualify as an ETC for federal USF support, not for RDOF, even though the decision will determine if the company gets RDOF support, he said. “This does not translate into giving us the privilege to use the RDOF regulations to determine qualification for ETC status.” Also, Hanson asked, “Who will step up to provide these services if LTD does not get a shot?” If the company fails, infrastructure it builds can be sold to others at a discounted price, he said. The California PUC denied an LTD application needed to get about $187.5 million in RDOF in support in December (see 2112160064). The company sought rehearing last month (see 2201200015). LTD sued the Iowa Utilities Board earlier that month for denying ETC status needed to get about $23.2 million (see 2112070065). The Iowa District Court for Polk County earlier this month scheduled April 15 oral argument. LTD’s brief is due Friday, said its attorney, Bret Dublinske of Fredrikson & Byron.
A federal judge mulled Thursday whether Maryland’s digital ad tax is in fact a penalty on big tech. At virtual oral argument, U.S. District Judge Lydia Kay Griggsby in Baltimore weighed jurisdictional issues on the challenge by U.S. Chamber of Commerce, NetChoice Internet Association and Computer & Communications Industry Association (CCIA) (case 21-cv-00410).
A proposed Connecticut privacy law is “probably one of the most important consumer protection bills that we'll be dealing with this year,” said Connecticut Senate President Martin Looney (D) at a livestreamed news conference Thursday. Sen. James Maroney (D) unveiled the Colorado-like SB-6, as expected, with a hearing March 1 (see 2202160042). It establishes consumers' rights and corporate responsibilities, Maroney said. People don’t realize how their data is being used, so SB-6 will let them know what’s being tracked and give them power to opt out, he said. Sen. Bob Duff (D) said he’s confident the legislature will pass and Gov. Ned Lamont (D) will sign SB-6. With congressional inaction and a “paralyzed” FCC, he said, “states can call the shots” in the tech space.
Ohio lawmakers skipped a planned vote on a privacy bill Wednesday, but comprehensive measures continued to advance in other legislatures. Oklahoma and Indiana committees teed up privacy bills for floor votes.
NTIA could require states to include public utilities commissions as they decide how to use federal infrastructure funds, said Doug Kinkoph, associate administrator, NTIA Office of Internet Connectivity and Growth, at NARUC’s partially virtual conference Tuesday. Earlier in the day, the NARUC Telecom Committee axed overbuilding language from a proposed resolution about the coming billions of dollars.