Community Broadband Act of 2007
Encyclopedia
The Community Broadband Act was a bill (proposed law)
that was never enacted into legislation by the U.S. Senate,110th Congress The act was intended to promote affordable broadband
access by allowing municipal governments to provide telecommunications capability and services.
Supporters of the bill believed it would have encouraged widespread broadband development in the United States by overturning existing state bans on public broadband deployments and eliminating existing barriers to broadband development.
Acquiring municipal broadband
for some communities is problematic because the laws of certain states prohibit local municipalities from installing their own broadband networks and private sector companies are unable to provide the electric services needed for broadband. As a result, many rural and remote communities are left with without broadband services. Some municipalities may find broadband service, but it may be limited to already available commercial options, which may fall short of community need.
The Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation on October 30, 2007 estimated enacting the community broadband bill would have no significant impact on the federal budget. Because the act would preempt laws in 15 states that presently ban the provision of broadband services by public entities, including municipalities, it would, however, impose mandate
s on some state and local governments. In accordance with the act, public providers would be required to publish notice of their intent to offer broadband services. Public providers would also be required to provide details about the types of broadband services they intend to offer in addition to allowing private bids for those services.
Since the preemption laws and private bidding requirements would be considered intergovernmental mandates as defined by the UMRA
, the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation determined that the cost the mandates could not exceed the threshold established by UMRA and adjusted yearly for inflation. In 2007 the UMRA threshold was $66 million USD.
in June 2004 initiated a goal for universal and affordable broadband access for every American by 2007. However the United States is still far behind in reaching this goal. The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development conducted a study ranking the U.S. in 12th place worldwide in the percentage of people with broadband connections. The majority of nations in the top ranks showed to have successfully combined private-public partnerships to provide broadband access for citizens and businesses alike.
who introduced the legislation for the community broadband bill. Noting the importance of broadband services and how they are essential to providing important educational and economic opportunities, especially for rural areas. By providing public-private broadband service partnerships the bill would make it easier for municipalities, cities, and towns across the nation to offer broadband access to their residents.
There are also telecommunication companies supportive of universal community broadband placements such as Earthlink. Believing partnerships between governments and private companies can provide low-cost, high-speed citywide service that offers many advantages to residents, visitors and taxpayers. EarthLink Municipal Networks, a subsidiary created to design and implement wireless broadband services, with the country's biggest municipal ISP contracts, covering Philadelphia and Anaheim, Calif. The partnership with Earthlink is a prime example of how affordable broadband service is being provided to low-income neighborhoods that otherwise would get passed over by private companies.
Major organizations included in the Community Broadband Coalition letter in support of The Community Broadband Act:
Bill (proposed law)
A bill is a proposed law under consideration by a legislature. A bill does not become law until it is passed by the legislature and, in most cases, approved by the executive. Once a bill has been enacted into law, it is called an act or a statute....
that was never enacted into legislation by the U.S. Senate,110th Congress The act was intended to promote affordable broadband
Broadband
The term broadband refers to a telecommunications signal or device of greater bandwidth, in some sense, than another standard or usual signal or device . Different criteria for "broad" have been applied in different contexts and at different times...
access by allowing municipal governments to provide telecommunications capability and services.
Supporters of the bill believed it would have encouraged widespread broadband development in the United States by overturning existing state bans on public broadband deployments and eliminating existing barriers to broadband development.
Acquiring municipal broadband
Municipal broadband
Municipal broadband deployments are broadband Internet access services provided either fully or partially by local governments. Common connection technologies include unlicensed wireless , licensed wireless , and fiber-optic...
for some communities is problematic because the laws of certain states prohibit local municipalities from installing their own broadband networks and private sector companies are unable to provide the electric services needed for broadband. As a result, many rural and remote communities are left with without broadband services. Some municipalities may find broadband service, but it may be limited to already available commercial options, which may fall short of community need.
Bill
Specific provisions of the bill:- Prevent State governments from enforcing or adopting laws that would prohibit municipalities from providing broadband services
- Encourage the development of public-private partnerships to spread the use of broadband services
- Initiate notice requirements about broadband deployment to ensure the public has adequate information available to evaluate options
- Give private providers the opportunity to provide alternative broadband services
- Ensure public and private providers of broadband services are treated equally with respect to the laws, guidelines and policies that apply to all providers of broadband services
Economic Impact
The onset of free or low-cost municipal broadband access to citizens in competition with commercial broadband services would have economic implications.The Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation on October 30, 2007 estimated enacting the community broadband bill would have no significant impact on the federal budget. Because the act would preempt laws in 15 states that presently ban the provision of broadband services by public entities, including municipalities, it would, however, impose mandate
Mandate (criminal law)
A criminal court may impose a "mandate" on a person accused of a crime consisting of an obligation to engage in certain conditions or activities in exchange for suspension or reduction in penalty; such as, conditions of probation, conditional discharges, or other conditional sentences...
s on some state and local governments. In accordance with the act, public providers would be required to publish notice of their intent to offer broadband services. Public providers would also be required to provide details about the types of broadband services they intend to offer in addition to allowing private bids for those services.
Since the preemption laws and private bidding requirements would be considered intergovernmental mandates as defined by the UMRA
Unfunded mandate
In United States law and politics, unfunded mandates are regulations or conditions for receiving grants that impose costs on state or local governments or private entities for which they are not reimbursed by the federal government....
, the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation determined that the cost the mandates could not exceed the threshold established by UMRA and adjusted yearly for inflation. In 2007 the UMRA threshold was $66 million USD.
Bush Administration
Although broadband access is national problem, it must be addressed on the local level. Acknowledging the importance of broadband in the increasingly competitive global economy, President BushGeorge W. Bush
George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
in June 2004 initiated a goal for universal and affordable broadband access for every American by 2007. However the United States is still far behind in reaching this goal. The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development conducted a study ranking the U.S. in 12th place worldwide in the percentage of people with broadband connections. The majority of nations in the top ranks showed to have successfully combined private-public partnerships to provide broadband access for citizens and businesses alike.
Proposal
On July 27, 2007 it was Senator Frank LautenbergFrank Lautenberg
Frank Raleigh Lautenberg is the senior United States Senator from New Jersey and a member of the Democratic Party. Previously, he was the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Automatic Data Processing, Inc.-Early life, career, and family:...
who introduced the legislation for the community broadband bill. Noting the importance of broadband services and how they are essential to providing important educational and economic opportunities, especially for rural areas. By providing public-private broadband service partnerships the bill would make it easier for municipalities, cities, and towns across the nation to offer broadband access to their residents.
Telecommunications Industry
Despite the advocacy for public-private broadband partnerships and service there are many telecommunication firms seeking to bar the enactment of a community broadband act. Citing government-backed networks would compete unfairly with private companies. Also requiring heavy taxpayer subsidization that would minimize net benefits to local residents. Douglas Boone, chief executive of Premier Communications when speaking with U.S. Telecom Association said “setting up a government-owned network is like having city hall opening a chain of grocery stores or gas stations." Government-backed broadband might also lead to stifled innovation inhibiting technological advancement.There are also telecommunication companies supportive of universal community broadband placements such as Earthlink. Believing partnerships between governments and private companies can provide low-cost, high-speed citywide service that offers many advantages to residents, visitors and taxpayers. EarthLink Municipal Networks, a subsidiary created to design and implement wireless broadband services, with the country's biggest municipal ISP contracts, covering Philadelphia and Anaheim, Calif. The partnership with Earthlink is a prime example of how affordable broadband service is being provided to low-income neighborhoods that otherwise would get passed over by private companies.
Community Broadband Coalition
On September 21, 2007 the Community Broadband Coalition formed by trade associations, public interest organizations, and private companies with an interest to enhance the availability of broadband services throughout the country submitted a congressional letter in support of the bill. The letter urged other senators to cosponsor the bipartisan ,pointing out the benefits of adopting community broadband networks.- Increased economic development and jobs enhancing market competition
- Improved and accelerated delivery of e-government services
- Universal, affordable Internet access for all Americans.
Major organizations included in the Community Broadband Coalition letter in support of The Community Broadband Act:
- ACUTAACUTAACUTA is a nonprofit association whose core purpose is to support higher education communications technology professionals in contributing to the achievement of the strategic mission of their institutions...
- American Association of Law LibrariesAmerican Association of Law LibrariesThe American Association of Law Libraries "is a nonprofit educational organization with over 5,000 members nationwide. AALL's mission is to promote and enhance the value of law libraries to the legal and public communities, to foster the profession of law librarianship, and to provide leadership in...
- American Library AssociationAmerican Library AssociationThe American Library Association is a non-profit organization based in the United States that promotes libraries and library education internationally. It is the oldest and largest library association in the world, with more than 62,000 members....
- American Public Power AssociationAmerican Public Power AssociationThe American Public Power Association is the service organization for the more than 2,000 U.S. community-owned electric utilities that serve more than 46 million Americans....
- Association of Research LibrariesAssociation of Research LibrariesThe Association of Research Libraries is an organization of the leading research libraries in North America. As of October 2006, it comprises 123 libraries at comprehensive, research-intensive institutions in the US and Canada that share similar missions, aspirations, and achievements...
- EDUCAUSEEDUCAUSEEDUCAUSE is a nonprofit association whose mission is "to advance higher education by promoting the intelligent use of information technology." Membership is open to institutions of higher education, corporations serving the higher education information technology market, and other related...
- Free PressFree Press (organization)Free Press is a nonpartisan, nonprofit, national organization working to reform the media in the United States.It was founded in 2002 by media scholar Robert W. McChesney, The Nation contributor John Nichols, and Josh Silver, current CEO of the Democracy Fund, a foundation challenging the influence...
- GoogleGoogleGoogle Inc. is an American multinational public corporation invested in Internet search, cloud computing, and advertising technologies. Google hosts and develops a number of Internet-based services and products, and generates profit primarily from advertising through its AdWords program...
- Intel
- Media Access ProjectMedia Access ProjectThe Media Access Project is a non-profit group that promotes the public’s interest before Congress and the US court system. MAP grew out of a 1960’s lawsuit against the United Church of Christ and was eventually formed in 1972 in order to advance the rights of the public wanting to participate in...
- National Association of CountiesNational Association of CountiesThe National Association of Counties is an organization that represents county governments in the United States.The National Association of Counties is the only national organization that represents county governments in the United States. Founded in 1935, NACo provides essential services to the...
- National Association of Telecommunications Officers and AdvisorsNational Association of Telecommunications Officers and AdvisorsNational Association of Telecommunications Officers and Advisors is an American national trade association based in Alexandria, VA. The stated purpose of the organization is to assist with the communications needs and interests of local governments, and those who advise local governments.The...
(NATOA) - Tropos NetworksTropos NetworksTropos Networks was founded in 2000 and is a United States-based provider of IP broadband mesh network solutions for building utility distribution area networks for the smart grid and smart cities. Tropos systems aggregate communications from utilities for multiple applications with the goal of...
- Utah Telecommunication Open Infrastructure AgencyUtah Telecommunication Open Infrastructure AgencyThe Utah Telecommunication Open Infrastructure Agency is a consortium of 16 Utah cities engaged in deploying and operating a fiber to the premises network to every business and household within its footprint...
(UTOPIA) - XO CommunicationsXO CommunicationsXO Communications is a telecommunications company owned by XO Holdings, Inc...
Cosponsors
United States senators who cosponsored the bill in the 110th United States Congress110th United States Congress
The One Hundred Tenth United States Congress was the meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, between January 3, 2007, and January 3, 2009, during the last two years of the second term of President George W. Bush. It was composed of the Senate and the House of...
- Gordon H. Smith
- John KerryJohn KerryJohn Forbes Kerry is the senior United States Senator from Massachusetts, the 10th most senior U.S. Senator and chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. He was the presidential nominee of the Democratic Party in the 2004 presidential election, but lost to former President George W...
- John McCainJohn McCainJohn Sidney McCain III is the senior United States Senator from Arizona. He was the Republican nominee for president in the 2008 United States election....
- Claire McCaskillClaire McCaskillClaire Conner McCaskill is the senior United States Senator from Missouri and a member of the Democratic Party. She defeated Republican incumbent Jim Talent in the 2006 U.S. Senate election, by a margin of 49.6% to 47.3%. She is the first woman elected to the U.S. Senate from Missouri in her own...
- Olympia SnoweOlympia SnoweOlympia Jean Snowe , née Bouchles, is the senior United States Senator from Maine and a member of the Republican Party. Snowe has become widely known for her ability to influence the outcome of close votes, including whether to end filibusters. She and her fellow Senator from Maine, Susan Collins,...
- Ted StevensTed StevensTheodore Fulton "Ted" Stevens, Sr. was a United States Senator from Alaska, serving from December 24, 1968, until January 3, 2009, and thus the longest-serving Republican senator in history...
- Daniel InouyeDaniel InouyeDaniel Ken "Dan" Inouye is the senior United States Senator from Hawaii, a member of the Democratic Party, and the President pro tempore of the United States Senate making him the highest-ranking Asian American politician in American history. Inouye is the chairman of the United States Senate...
- Russell Feingold