NARUC Group Seeks Gov't Support for Areas Under 25/3 Mbps
Prioritize broadband support in areas with less than 25 Mbps download and 3 Mbps uploads, a NARUC broadband task force recommended Friday. At its final virtual meeting, the group unanimously adopted that and other amended recommendations that will be drafted into proposed resolutions for the Telecom Committee to consider at NARUC’s July 18-21 meeting. Another edit responded to ISP concerns about not enough appreciation for that sector (see 2106020077).
Panel Chair Chris Nelson praised focus on unserved areas in the amended recommendations. “This is a pretty bold statement on behalf of NARUC, if ultimately adopted, of where we need to go in order to eliminate the broadband availability gap,” said the South Dakota Public Utilities Commission chairman (R). With Congress and President Joe Biden “talking about putting real money into this,” state commissioners’ “job is to make sure that we work with those policymakers to funnel the money to the places that actually need it.” NARUC Telecom Committee Chair Karen Charles Peterson predicted her committee will clear the “reasonable and respectful” recommendations.
An earlier draft didn’t define unserved or say such areas should be prioritized. Nelson suggested an amendment Friday to recommend prioritizing broadband in unserved areas with less than 10/1 Mbps “while understanding that improvements must be made over time in underserved areas” with less than 100/10 Mbps. Massachusetts' Peterson and task force Vice Chair Crystal Rhoades (D) suggested replacing 10/1 Mbps with 25/3, the federal definition. Peterson said 25/3 would be more forward-looking given IoT’s growth. And 25/3 Mbps is “prudent,” said Nebraska Commissioner Rhoades, because policymakers should avoid overly expanding what areas are eligible to receive funds, since that could encourage companies to first upgrade areas with higher speeds and continue to ignore less well-served areas.
Members rejected a different edit proposed by Nelson to a recommendation that state legislators look for ways to remove barriers to utilities providing broadband in unserved and underserved areas. Nelson suggested scaling that back to say NARUC should provide expertise to state legislatures “as needed,” and broadening it to include reducing barriers for all kinds of broadband providers.
That new language sounds too passive, said the Puerto Rico Public Service Regulatory Board Commissioner Alexandra Fernandez-Navarro. “We need to be more proactive.” Rhoades called Nelson’s amendment a “radical deviation” from the recommendation’s original intent and said it might conflict with Nebraska and some other state laws. Nelson agreed to mostly keep the original language. The panel agreed to his suggestion to recommend that NARUC only “consider” crafting a model statute.
The panel unanimously agreed by voice to other changes proposed by Nelson. One added an acknowledgement, to a draft recommendation to support nontraditional providers, that “traditional telecommunications providers will continue to provide the vast majority of broadband internet access services.” Another accepted change added anchor institutions to groups that should participate in broadband adoption efforts. And the panel agreed to a change to encourage new broadband funding to be funneled through existing programs where possible.
“Increasing the number and types of service providers, including non-traditional providers such as cooperatives, municipal utilities, and investor owned utilities, may increase both service availability and adoption in unserved and underserved areas,” said a companion report adopted at the meeting. “State commissions are well positioned to support decisions regarding broadband deployment and adoption both directly and as members of state and federal boards and task forces.”
NCTA appreciates the two amended recommendations “focusing on the unserved and acknowledging the success of traditional ISPs that provide the majority of broadband service across the country,” a spokesperson emailed.