Colorado awarded $22.8 million in broadband grants to 15 projects meant to connect 4,267 additional homes in 11 counties, the state broadband office said Tuesday. The Colorado Broadband Deployment Board funded 10 projects through the America Rescue Plan Act and five though the state’s high-cost support mechanism.

The California Public Utilities Commission may update USF contribution at its Oct. 6 meeting. Commissioners will consider assessing state public purpose program (PPP) fees “based on the number of active access lines a carrier operates,” said a Friday proposed decision in docket R.21-03-002. Customers would see one consolidated surcharge on monthly bills instead of six separate PPP fees, it said. Low-income LifeLine customers and incarcerated people wouldn’t have to pay surcharges, it said. Wireless companies and consumer groups last year panned a CPUC staff recommendation to shift to a flat, per-line surcharge (see 2112010014).

Pacific Gas and Electric may not change its policy for providing electricity to wireless providers until further order from the California Public Utilities Commission, ruled Administrative Law Judge Jacob Rambo. However, in the ruling posted Tuesday in docket C.22-08-002, the ALJ denied complainant Dish Networks’ request for a temporary restraining order. Rambo referred the matter to the commission’s alternative dispute resolution program and scheduled a telephonic prehearing conference Sept. 13 at 1 p.m. The Wireless Infrastructure Association supported Dish’s complaint last month (see 2208250047). PG&E opposed Dish’s complaint and emergency motion last week. “PG&E’s requirements conform to both the letter and spirit of Rule 16, its governing tariff,” which “establishes the rule and expectation that PG&E will provide a single service extension to a cellular tower site,” said the power company. “PG&E had previously exercised more discretion in providing exceptions to the single service expectation. Complainant may be disappointed that PG&E will not afford as much discretion in the future, though that disappointment does not translate to a violation of law.”

T-Mobile South asked the FCC for approval to stop being an eligible telecommunications carrier in Florida, effective Dec. 31. The FCC “is the only forum that can provide the requested relief, as the Florida Public Service Commission has concluded that state law divested it of jurisdiction over ETC designations and relinquishments for commercial mobile radio service providers like T-Mobile,” said a filing posted Friday in docket 09-197: “Because T-Mobile meets all applicable requirements for ETC relinquishment, the Commission should expeditiously grant the petition.” T-Mobile Northeast similarly sought to give up ETC status in Virginia.

North Carolina awarded more than $206 million in additional Growing Rural Economies with Access to Technology (GREAT) program support, Gov. Roy Cooper (D) announced Wednesday. It's the state's largest round of GREAT funding to date, targeting nearly 85,000 households and more than 2,400 businesses in 69 counties (see 2208020008). Among the providers receiving a grant from the state's Department of Information Technology were Lumos, Frontier, Connect Holding, Charter, Focus Broadband and Cloudwyze. The department said it received 305 applications during this round and awards are "contingent on final executed grant agreements with broadband provider partners." Cooper announced the new funding during an event attended by Lumos, which will receive more than $7 million to serve more than 2,600 households and businesses.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) may sign at least three more tech and telecom bills as the state legislature wraps up its legislative session this week. SB-717, the Broadband Access Point Investment Acceleration Study Act, passed unanimously. It would direct the Office of Planning and Research to report by 2024 about the challenges of broadband development on public and private land, particularly for low-income and tribal communities. AB-1262, which would limit personal data collection for makers of connected TVs and smart speaker devices, passed unanimously. AB-32, which would make COVID-19-related telehealth accessibility permanent, also passed unanimously.

A California Public Utilities Commission administrative law judge sought comment Wednesday on a report on network outages and the information the FCC requires in its automated reporting management information system. Comments are due Oct. 3, replies Oct. 17. A network report said “between 2010 and 2017, both outages and service restoration time for outages lasting longer than 24 hours increased for both AT&T and Frontier,” said ALJ Thomas Glegola in rulemaking 22-03-016: “AT&T and Frontier are not always maintaining networks to withstand environmental and weather-related conditions. Networks are not robust, and both … have cut back on preventative maintenance expenditures.” Glegola asked for comment on the network exam conclusions and challenges in implementing proposed recommendations. “Which sources of information should the Commission use in assessing the ability of a service provider to offer high-quality [wireline], wireless service, and/or interconnected VoIP service?” the report asks. “Which sources of information should the Commission use related to outages?” How should the CPUC “implement data collection and reporting of financial and operational transactions by a service provider provisioning and/or offering [wireline], wireless service, and/or interconnected VoIP service?” Glegola asks: “What should the Commission staff and/or its potential contractor do with the financial and operational data reported to the Commission? How often should this reporting occur (e.g., semi-annually, annually, every two years, etc.)? At which level of granularity (e.g., state, county, city, zip code, wire center, etc.) should this financial and operational data be reported? What challenges exist in collecting and reporting financial and operational data? How can these challenges be overcome?” The order became effective Wednesday.

Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear (D) announced $20 million in grants to ISPs to pay for utility pole replacement. The money must be used to expand high-speed internet access in unserved areas. “By reimbursing a portion of utility pole replacement costs needed to support high-speed internet expansion, we can help bring that internet service to more individuals, businesses and communities across Kentucky,” said Beshear. The application window opens Thursday.

Frontier agreed to invest $42.5 million to upgrade existing DSL internet service to fiber and to end a “hidden” $6.99 monthly “Internet Infrastructure Surcharge,” to settle an investigation in Connecticut, the state’s attorney general said Wednesday. Frontier also agreed to make a $1 million payment to the state and put up $200,000 for credits and refunds to consumers who filed complaints starting in 2019. “Frontier failed Connecticut consumers,” said AG William Tong (D): “Their DSL internet quality was slow and unreliable, and their customer service was unacceptable. They tacked on hidden fees, charged families for returned equipment, and kept charging customers even after services had been cancelled. That ends now.” The settlement will mean faster connections for “40,000 households most harmed by the company’s sub-par DSL service,” Tong said. Frontier didn’t comment Wednesday.

Several bills regulating social media are headed to California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s desk, as expected (see 2208300053), after the California Assembly wrapped up its legislative session Tuesday. AB-587, which would establish new transparency requirements for social media platforms’ content moderation practices, passed 66-0. AB-2273, which would require social media companies with child users to follow “age-appropriate” design principles, passed 75-0. AB-2879, which would subject platforms to civil liability if they don’t follow new reporting requirements for cyberbullying, passed 67-1. SB-1008, which would eliminate all telecom fees for prisoners in county jails and state prisons, passed 56-16. SB-1018, which would require platforms to report specifics about how their algorithms rank content, passed 51-21. SB-884, which would require the CPUC to establish an electric undergrounding program that requires telecom providers to put non-wireless infrastructure underground and pay proportionate costs, passed 67-0. “It’s long past time for tech companies to provide real transparency into how they are shaping our public discourse," California Assemblymember Jesse Gabriel (D), author of AB-587, said in a statement. "The public and policymakers deserve to know when social media companies are amplifying certain voices and silencing others." Newsom (D) should sign the appropriate-design legislation, AB-2273, said Parents Television and Media Council President Tim Winter in a statement, calling it an important, common-sense “step to ensure that tech companies design their products with children’s safety in mind.” The Computer & Communications Industry Association cited “several problematic bills” on content moderation, data privacy and algorithms, singling out “heavy compliance requirements” under AB-587 and AB-2273. “These bills would create significant and potentially costly compliance requirements that may unintentionally stifle innovation and competition,” said CCIA State Policy Director Khara Boender. “The measures require study, as they may raise constitutional concerns and conflict with federal law.”