Washington state should make its own broadband map because the FCC map “still has issues” despite improvement from the past edition, said the state broadband office’s director, Mark Vasconi, at a Senate Environment, Energy and Technology Committee hearing on HB-1746. The House-passed bill would require the state map by July 1, 2024. With as much as $1 billion possibly coming into the state over the next five years, it's “essential that we know where the infrastructure is and who is being served,” Vasconi said at Friday's livestreamed hearing. The Washington Public Utility Districts Association likes that the bill will allow the broadband office to contract with private entities to physically investigate and verify broadband availability on the ground, said lobbyist Scott Richards. On Thursday, the House voted 95-0 to pass HB-1711, which provides a sales and use tax exemption for internet and telecom infrastructure projects involving a federally recognized tribe. It now goes to the Senate. In Georgia, the legislature passed a broadband mapping bill Thursday. The House voted 167-0 for SB-193. It previously passed in the Senate and next will go to Gov. Brian Kemp (R).

Iowa could be the sixth state with a privacy law. The House voted 97-0 Wednesday to pass SF-262, after the Senate supported the bill in a 47-0 vote earlier this month. It still needs a signature from Gov. Kim Reynolds (R) to become law. The bill would include enforcement exclusively by the state AG, grant businesses a right to cure and take effect Jan. 1, 2025. Iowa’s bill “rivals Utah as the most business-friendly legislation to pass to date,” Husch Blackwell privacy lawyer David Stauss blogged. Also Wednesday, Colorado’s attorney general office released a final draft of Colorado Privacy Act rules. The office said it filed the rules with the Colorado secretary of state. The office also posted a redline version. “The finalized regulations track the draft rules,” Ballard Spahr posted.

A Vermont House panel opted for a straight extension to the state’s Section 248(a) telecom siting process, at a meeting Thursday. The Environment and Energy Committee voted 9-0 for H-110, enough to pass the bill, but kept the roll open to allow another member to vote later. The bill would extend the sunset on the 2007-established infrastructure siting process by three years until July 1, 2026, while making no changes to the process. The Vermont Public Utility Commission and the wireless industry raised concerns about possible additional limits proposed in H-70, which also would have extended the process’ July 1 sunset by three years (see 2303140063). Noting the PUC concerns, Rep. Avram Patt (D) said passing the extension was most urgent and legislators could take more time to consider changes. The committee could come back to H-70 later this year or next year, he said.

The California Public Utilities Commission approved an overlay for Los Angeles area codes 213 and 323, as part of a unanimous vote on the CPUC’s consent agenda Thursday. The new code is expected to be implemented in nine months, said the proposed decision in docket A.22-08-009 (see 2302100033). In the same vote, the CPUC approved about $2.1 million in local agency technical assistance grants for four applicants (Resolution T-17781). The CPUC awarded $3.2 million last January and $5.76 million in December through the same program (see 2301130040).

The Kentucky House passed a bill to ban TikTok, in a 96-3 vote Wednesday. The House amended SB-20 so it must return to the Senate for concurrence. The Senate passed an older version of the bill unanimously last month. The House amendment added exemptions for public postsecondary education institutions and executive branch agencies that determine using TikTok is necessary for law enforcement activities, civil investigations or enforcement activities, or research on security practices or threats, “so long as the agency takes appropriate steps to obtain the necessary access without endangering the agency's network, or any other network owned, operated, or otherwise under the control of state government.”

A Minnesota 988 surcharge on telecom bills is a must, said state Sen. Melissa Wiklund (D) and a mental health advocate, at a Minnesota Senate Health and Human Services hearing livestreamed Thursday. Wiklund’s bill SF-2588 would allow a 988 surcharge of 12-25 cents monthly. Short-term federal funding is helping the mental health and suicide hotline, said the senator. "However, this is not ongoing funding, and there is a need to create a stable and sustainable funding model to support the 988 suicide and crisis lifeline in Minnesota long term.” Wiklund noted she's talking to telecom industry lobbyists about ensuring accountability for how 988 fee revenue is used, like there is for 911 fee revenue. Mental Health Minnesota Executive Director Shannah Mulvihill said federal funding is "temporary and still not enough,” and Minnesota “can’t depend” on the state’s current budget surplus. "The broad allowable use of these fees reflects reality," she said. "The 988 service fees in this bill will help establish an equitable system to address mental health emergencies and parallel services including 988 call centers." The fee will start at 12 cents if the bill becomes law, said Mulvihill, answering a question by Sen. Paul Utke (R). But Sen. Jim Abeler (R) said it seems like fees always seem to end up at the maximum allowed. And Abeler isn’t sure Minnesotans expect higher fees when the state has a $19 billion surplus, he said.

New York Sen. Kevin Parker (D) expects “nominal” cost to industry from his bill to require telecom companies to report on the quality of copper-wire services, the Telecom Committee chairman said at the panel’s Thursday meeting. Companies may not want to report it, said Parker, but they have the information. The committee cleared S-5343 for a floor vote despite two Republican members’ opposition. The panel also advanced with two nays a bill (S-5272) to require telecom industry reporting on franchise fees, consumer complaints and denials of requests for service. Publishing those “shall illuminate the bad faith of certain cable companies … and place a proper check on their practices,” Parker wrote in a sponsor memo. S-5272 will go to the Finance Committee.

Pennsylvania Sen. Gene Yaw (R) supports a regional hearing on a service quality complaint by state consumer and small business advocates (see 2301310016). Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission administrative law judges plan a prehearing conference April 11. About 300 customer complaints to state representatives describe “serious and persistent service problems experienced with Frontier’s telephone and broadband service availability … and raise fundamental safety concerns for the affected customers,” Yaw wrote to the commission Wednesday. “Without access to these basic communication services, these Pennsylvanians have been unable to correspond via phone or computer with family members, physicians, and emergency services, etc. This is not acceptable by any standard.”

The Arizona Corporation Commission will wait to change or repeal state USF, said a 5-0 decision released Thursday in docket T-00000A-20-0336. Staff recommended last month waiting for a Frontier Communications rate case coming Aug. 30 (see 2302070057).

The West Virginia Public Service Commission should approve a 911 pact between Frontier Communications and the state’s Morgan County, the company and county said Thursday. To resolve the county’s complaint, Frontier agreed to “various acts regarding redundant or diverse 9-1-1 circuits or their alternatives between the Berkeley Springs and Paw Paw exchanges,” said the joint petition in docket 22-0686-T-C.