Three telecom infrastructure bills passed the Montana Senate and moved to the House Tuesday. Senators voted 46-4 for SB-521 allowing applicants seeking to use the right-of-way to seek exceptions to paying fair market value. Applicants could propose “an alternative … by offering a comparable in-kind contribution,” said the amended bill. The bill would define fair market value as $100 a mile for each year. Senators voted 35-15 for SB-529, which would add rural wireless infrastructure to a list of broadband services eligible for a five-year tax abatement. Also, it would remove a clause saying fiber or coaxial cable using federal funds can’t get the abatement. Senators voted 50-0 for SB-531, which would update state rules and definitions for NTIA’s broadband equity, access and deployment program.
Maryland Gov. Wes Moore (D) unveiled about $92 million in broadband awards through the state’s Connect Maryland program Wednesday. The state estimated the 35 grants to ISPs and localities will connect about 14,500 households and businesses. Winners included Choptank Electric Cooperative ($16 million), Quantum Telecommunications ($15.3 million), Comcast ($14.5 million), Harford County/ThinkBig Networks ($12.3 million), Verizon ($11.1 million) and Shentel Cable ($9.4 million).
The Hawaii Senate unanimously passed a bill Monday to repeal some reporting requirements for broadband service providers. SB-396 would repeal Hawaii Revised Statutes Chapter 440J, which required wireline and cable companies to file broadband availability data and prices at the census-block level (see 2303010010). The House passed the similar HB-371 last month. In Texas, state senators supported reducing the state’s data breach notification deadline to 30 days from 60 days. The Senate voted 31-0 to send SB-768 to the House. The bill would cover data breaches involving at least 250 Texas residents. In Washington state, two telecom bills are headed to the floor. The Senate Ways and Means Committee on Monday cleared the House-passed HB-1746, which would require a state broadband map by July 1, 2024 (see 2303240061), and HB-1134 on 988 implementation.
The California Public Utilities Commission shouldn’t relieve AT&T of carrier of last resort and other obligations until it completes a proceeding to establish service-quality standards for non-wireline telephone services, Rural County Representatives of California said Monday. AT&T cited VoIP alternatives in its request for relief. “Until the Commission equitably measures and treats new and evolving telephone and broadband services, it is premature to force existing customers to abruptly relinquish their current services for known inferior options, especially higher-priced ones, when they do not provide equivalent protections of plain old telephone service (POTS),” RCRC said in docket A.23-03-003.
New York state broadband policy should increase focus on competition, said Greenlight Networks in comments Monday at the New York Public Service Commission. “Increased competition brings lower prices, higher quality, better reliability, and more innovation,” the fiber ISP said in a proceeding on mapping broadband availability. Most locations in about 70% of New York counties have only one company offering broadband ISP, it said. The PSC should update pole attachment rules, which currently "are exacerbating the problem," Greenlight added.
Texas began accepting grant applications for a $120 million first round of the state’s Bringing Online Opportunities to Texas (Boot) program, Comptroller Glenn Hegar (R) said Monday. Applications are due May 5. “Expanding broadband access will require collaboration and partnerships between local governments and private entities, across counties and among residents,” Hegar said.
A Maryland telemarketing bill passed the state Senate with amendments Friday. Senators voted 46-0 for HB-37, which is modeled on Florida and Oklahoma telemarketing laws that go beyond the federal Telephone Consumer Protection Act (see 2303100078). The House earlier passed the bill 134-0 but now must concur with the Senate changes.
T-Mobile appealed to the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals after a district court refused to stop California from switching to a connections-based method for state USF contribution. The carrier notified the U.S. District Court for Northern California about the appeal Monday. U.S. Magistrate Judge Laurel Beeler late Friday denied the motion of T-Mobile and its subsidiaries for a preliminary injunction that sought to block the California Public Utilities Commission's change to a $1.11 monthly per-line fee from the previous revenue-based mechanism. "The new rule is different from the FCC rule, but the plaintiffs did not establish that it is inconsistent and preempted,” said Beeler's order in case 3:23-cv-00483. The CPUC order took effect Saturday." The CPUC didn’t comment on T-Mobile’s appeal. The carrier didn’t comment on the court decision.
The West Virginia Public Service Commission approved a settlement between Frontier Communications and the state’s Morgan County to resolve the county’s complaint about 911 service. Commissioners agreed Wednesday with staff’s recommendation to adopt the pact as the resolution to case 22-0686-T-C (see 2303240063).
New Jersey Assembly members supported an inquiry into social media effects on adolescents. The Assembly voted 71-0 Thursday for SB-715 to set up a study commission. The Senate earlier voted 37-0 but must vote again to concur with Assembly amendments. The Arkansas legislature sent the governor a bill (SB-66) Thursday that would create liability for publishing pornography online without performing “reasonable age verification” of the user. The Texas Senate voted 30-1 Wednesday to pass SB-1602 to amend the state’s litigated social media censorship law. It would require that any action under the law against social media platforms be brought in a Texas court and “the law of this state applies to the action.” In Iowa, a House Ways and Means subcommittee voted 2-1 Thursday to advance HB-526, which would ban social media platforms from allowing children under 18 to open accounts. The California Senate Judiciary Committee voted 10-0 Tuesday to pass along SB-60 to the Appropriations Committee. The bill would require social media platforms to remove posts on illegal drug sales.