Groups Urge Approval of Calif. Law Allowing Wireless Grants

Six groups representing the national wireless industry said wireless should play a part in broadband deployments in California and wireless broadband providers should be able to apply for California Advanced Services Fund (CASF) federal funding account (FFA) grants. They urged the state to “resume consideration of AB 1065 which would expressly allow wireless-based solutions to compete for state funds,” in a letter to House and Senate appropriators. The legislation cleared the Senate Communications Committee last month and is in the Appropriations Committee’s suspense file, a category reserved for bills deemed to be costly (see 2307260076). “Our organizations share the state’s goal of bringing high-speed, reliable broadband service to every American,” the letter said: “However, realizing this goal will require a flexible, all-of-the-above approach to ensure that connectivity can be delivered quickly, efficiently, and broadly. Accordingly, we urge you to reject calls to only fund a single broadband technology and instead craft flexible rules that allow a variety of solutions to compete and afford the most options to communities on the wrong side of the digital divide.” The letter was signed by the Wireless Infrastructure Association, the Competitive Carriers Association, CTIA, NATE, the Rural Wireless Association and the Wireless ISP Association.