ONE OF THE YES AND WELCOME TO
THE FIRST HEARING OF THE
ASSEMBLY BUDGET SUBCOMITTEE
SEVEN ON ACCOUNTABILITY AND
OVERSIGHT. TO ENSURE MEMBERS OF
THE MEDIA AND PUBLIC HAVE ACCESS
TO OUR PROCEEDINGS. TODAY THIS
HEARING WILL BE STREAMED ON THE
ASSEMBLY'S WEBSITE AND MEMBERS
OF THE PUBLIC CAN PROVIDE
TESTIMONY IN PERSON HERE IN ROOM
100. PRESERVE THE SAFETY OF
EVERYONE HERE AND TO ENSURE THE
PUBLIC'S ACCESS TO THE
DISCUSSION. PLEASE FOLLOW THE
DIRECTIONS OF OUR SERGEANTS. IF
ANY MEMBER OF THE PUBLIC IN THE
ROOM WOULD LIKE TO TESTIFY
DURING PUBLIC COMMENT, I WILL
ASK YOU TO APPROACH THE
MICROPHONE AT THE APPROPRIATE
TIME. ALL WITNESS TESTIMONY AND
PUBLIC COMMENT WILL BE IN
PERSON. THERE WILL BE NÓ PHONE
TESTIMONY OPTION FOR THIS
HEARING. I WANT TO ACKNOWLEDGE
THAT THE ASSEMBLY HAS
EXPERIENCED SEVERAL DISRUPTIONS
TO THIS COMMITTEE AND FLOOR
PROCEEDINGS IN THE PAST FEW
YEARS. WE WOULD LIKE TO ENSURE
THAT ALL VOICES ARE HEARD,
HOWEVER, CONDUCT THAT DISRUPTS,
DISTURBS OR OTHERWISE IMPEDES
THE ORDERLY CONDUCT OF THIS
HEARING WILL BE PROHIBITED.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR COOPER
OPERATION. AND BEFORE WE GET
INTO THE SUBSTANCE OF TODAY'S
HEARING, I WANT TO THANK SPEAKER
ROBERT REVS FOR HIS LEADERSHIP
TO BRING A RENOWNED FOCUS ON
ACCOUNTABILITY TO THE ASSEMBLY
AND THE BUDGET PROCESS. TODAY IS
THE FIRST HEARING OF THE NEW
BUDGET SUBCOMITTEE SEVEN ON
ACCOUNTABILITY AND OVERSIGHT.
LEGISLATIVE OVERSIGHT IS ALWAYS
A CRITICAL PART OF OUR JOBS AS
LEGISLATORS. BUT IT'S ESPECIALLY
IMPORTANT TO CONDUCT PRUDENT
OVERSIGHT WITHIN THE CONTEXT OF
THE STATE BUDGET. AND MORE THAN
EVER WHEN WE FACED A BUDGET
CHALLENGE AS WE DO THIS YEAR.
THIS NEW COMMITTEE WILL HOLD A
SERIES OF HEARINGS TO
COMPREHENSIVELY EVALUATE THE
STATE'S BIGGEST INVESTMENTS
AIMED AT IMPROVING THE QUALITY
OF LIFE FOR ALL CALIFORNIANS. I
LOOK FORWARD TO THE WORK AHEAD
AS WE DEVELOP A BUDGET THAT
DELIVERS FOR THE STATE THROUGH A
PRAGMATIC AND RESPONSIBLE
ALLOCATION OF PUBLIC RESOURCES.
CALIFORNIA IS IN YEAR THREE OF A
HISTORIC $6 BILLION BROADBAND
FOR ALL INFRASTRUCTURE
INVESTMENT TO CONNECT ALL
CALIFORNIANS TO HIGH SPEED
INTERNET. ON TOP OF THE 6
BILLION CALIFORNIA IS EXPECTED
TO RECEIVE AN ADDITIONAL 1.8
BILLION IN FEDERAL FUNDS FOR
LAST MILE BROADBAND PROJECTS
UNDER THE BEAT PROGRAM. WE
CANNOT WAIT UNTIL THE END OF
THIS HISTORIC INVESTMENT TO
DETERMINE IF WE GOT IT RIGHT. WE
MUST HAVE ONGOING RIGOROUS
OVERSIGHT TO ENSURE THAT WE ARE
ON TRACK. AND TO MAKE COURSE
CORRECTIONS IF NECESSARY. THUS,
TODAY WE WELCOME TESTIMONY FROM
THE PUC AND THE èC Dð Tð TO
REPORT ON HOW MANY CALIFORNIANS
HAVE UNSERVED LOCATIONS. HAVE
BECOME CONNECTED TO BROADBAND
SERVICES SO FAR THROUGH THE $6
BILLION INVESTMENT. AND BY WHAT
DATE WE WILL ACHIEVE THE GOAL OF
CONNECTING ALL UNSERVED
CALIFORNIANS. FINALLY BEFORE WE
HEAR FROM WITNESSES. I WANT TO
ACKNOWLEDGE THAT ACHIEVING
BROADBAND FOR ALL REQUIRES
PROGRAMS TO ADDRESS BROADBAND
ADOPTION, INCLUDING
AFFORDABILITY OF SERVICE,
DIGITAL LITERACY AND ACCESS TO A
DEVICE. SEPARATE PROGRAMS AND
FUNDING STREAMS ADDRESS
BROADBAND ADOPTION. DAYS
HEARING, HOWEVER, THIS FOCUS ON
BROADBAND INFRASTRUCTURE THE
PHYSICAL FACILITIES THAT PROVIDE
ACCESS TO SERVICE IN THE FIRST
PLACE. THE BROADBAND
INFRASTRUCTURE THAT IS BEING
BUILT WITH A $6 BILLION
INVESTMENT. I LOOK FORWARD TO
TODAY'S CONVERSATION TO PROMOTE
ACCOUNTABILITY AND ENSURE THAT
CALIFORNIA IS ON TRACK TO
ACHIEVE BROADBAND FOR ALL. BY
DESIGN. THE WITNESS. OPENING
TESTIMONY FOR THE HEARING WILL
BE MINIMAL SO THAT COMMITTEE
MEMBERS CAN IMMEDIATELY JUMP
INTO ASKING QUESTIONS ABOUT ANY
CONCERNS WITH THE IMPLEMENTATION
OF THE STATEWIDE BROADBAND
NETWORK. THANK YOU. I'D LIKE TO
INTRODUCE AND WELCOME OUR
WITNESS FOR TODAY'S HEARING.
THEY HAVE BEEN ASKED TO KEEP
THEIR PRESENTATIONS BRIEF SO
THAT WE CAN ASK QUESTIONS.
MAKING PRESENTATIONS THIS
MORNING. WE HAVE BRIAN METZER
WITH THE LEGISLATIVE ANALYST
OFFICE WHO WILL PRESENT HIM
FIRST AND WILL PROVIDE AN
OVERVIEW OF CALIFORNIA'S
BROADBAND INVESTMENTS. FOLLOWING
THE L A Ó PRESENTATION FROM THE
CALIFORNIA PUBLIC UTILITIES
COMMISSION WILL BE RACHEL
PETERSON, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR.
AND MARIA ELLIS, DEPUTY DIRECTOR
FOR BROADBAND. THEY WILL DISCUSS
THE LAST MILE BROADBAND
INFRASTRUCTURE PROGRAM. THE
CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT OF
TECHNOLOGY TO DISCUSS THE
STATEWIDE MIDDLE MILE NETWORK.
WE WILL HAVE LEANNE BAILEY
CUMMINS. STATE CHIEF INFORMATION
OFFICER. AND DIRECTOR, AND MARK
MONROE, DEPUTY DIRECTOR FOR THE
MIDDLE MON BROADBAND INITIATIVE.
WELCOME TO YOU ALL AND THANK YOU
FOR JOINING US TODAY, SO LET'S
GET STARTED. UH, MR METZGER, WE
LOOK FORWARD TO YOUR OVERVIEW OF
CALIFORNIA'S BROADBAND
INVESTMENT. GOOD MORNING CHAIR
VALENCIA AND SUB COMMITTEE
MEMBERS, BRIAN METZGER WITH THE
LEGISLATIVE ANALYST'S OFFICE.
OUR OFFICE WAS ASKED BY THE
SUBCOMITTEE STAFF TO PROVIDE A
BRIEF OVERVIEW AND STATUS UPDATE
ON THE MAJOR FEDERAL AND STATE
BROADBAND PROGRAMS AND PROJECTS.
WE WERE ALSO ASKED TO REVIEW THE
CURRENT BROADBAND SPENDING PLAN
AS OF THE 2023 24 BUDGET ACT, AS
WELL AS THE PROPOSED SPENDING
PLAN IN THE GOVERNOR'S 2425
BUDGET. WE HAVE PREPARED A
HANDOUT IN ADVANCE OF THE
HEARING THAT WAS PROVIDED TO
MEMBERS OF THE SUB COMMITTEE AND
WILL BE USED TO GUIDE OUR
REMARKS TODAY. ON PETER'S TWO
AND THREE OF THE HANDOUT. WE
DESCRIBE THE THREE KEY STATE
BROADBAND PROGRAMS AND PROJECTS
FUNDED BY THE SPENDING PLAN. THE
FIRST IS A STATE WIDE OPEN
ACCESS MIDDLE MILE NETWORK THAT
IS DEPLOYED PRIMARILY ALONG THE
STATE'S HIGHWAYS AND OTHER
RIGHTS OF WAY THROUGH
CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS, AS WELL
AS LEASES AND PURCHASES OF
EXISTING MIDDLE MILE
INFRASTRUCTURE. SECOND LAST MILE
PROJECT GRANTS THROUGH THE
CALIFORNIA ADVANCED SERVICES
FUND PROGRAM ACCOUNTS AND THE
FEDERAL FUNDING ACCOUNT PROGRAM
THAT WAS CREATED AS PART OF THE
INITIAL AGREEMENT IN 2021. AND
THIRD, THE LONE LOSS RESERVE
FUND THAT HELPS LOCAL GOVERNMENT
ENTITIES, NONPROFIT
ORGANIZATIONS AND TRIBES OBTAIN
FINANCING FOR LAST MILE PROJECTS
THROUGH, FOR EXAMPLE, CREDIT
ENHANCEMENT. ON PAGE FOUR OF THE
HANDOUT. WE PROVIDE THE CURRENT
SPENDING PLAN BY PROGRAM OR
PROJECT AS WELL AS BY FISCAL
YEAR AND FUNDING SOURCE. AS YOU
CAN SEE, THE TOTAL FUNDING
AMOUNT FOR THE CURRENT SPENDING
PLAN IS $6.6 BILLION, OF WHICH
THREE 0.9 BILLION IS
APPROPRIATED FOR THE MIDDLE MILE
NETWORK 2 BILLION FOR LAST MILE
PROJECT GRANTS AND 750 MILLION
FOR THE LOAN LOSS RESERVE FUND.
THE REMAINDER IS FEDERAL FUNDS
THAT ARE EITHER PROVIDED BY THE
AMERICAN RESCUE PLAN OR THE
INFRASTRUCTURE INVESTMENT AND
JOBS ACT. ON PAGE FIVE OF THE
HANDOUT. WE SUMMARIZE THE
PROPOSED CHANGES TO THE CURRENT
SPENDING PLAN THAT ARE IN THE
GOVERNOR'S BUDGET. THESE CHANGES
INCLUDE 1.5 BILLION IN
ADDITIONAL GENERAL FUND FOR THE
MIDDLE MILE NETWORK. A DELAY OF
100 MILLION GENERAL FUND IN LAST
MILE PROJECT GRANTS FROM 2425 TO
2627. AND A REDUCTION OF 250
MILLION GENERAL FUND FROM THE
LONE LOSS RESERVE FUND, OF WHICH
150 MILLION WOULD BE REDUCED IN
THE BUDGET YEAR AND 100 MILLION
IN 2526. THERE IS ALSO PROPOSED
BUDGET BILL LANGUAGE THAT WOULD
ALLOW THE ADMINISTRATION TO
INCREASE THE AMOUNT APPROPRIATED
FOR THE MIDDLE MILE NETWORK BY
AN ADDITIONAL 500 MILLION
GENERAL FUND IN 2425. ON PAGE
SIX OF THE HANDOUT. WE PROVIDE
THE SPENDING PLAN BY PROGRAM OR
PROJECT AS OF THE GOVERNOR'S
BUDGET. UM, JUST TO BE BRIEF.
IT'S ABOUT 7.9 BILLION. UH, 5.4
BILLION FOR THE MIDDLE MOUND
NETWORK 2 BILLION FOR LAST MILE
PROJECTS AND 500 MILLION FOR THE
LOAN LOSS RESERVE FUND. ON PAGES
SEVEN AND EIGHT OF THE HANDOUT.
WE PROVIDE A BRIEF STATUS UPDATE
ON EACH OF THE BROADBAND
PROGRAMS AND PROJECTS IN THE
STATE. FOR THE MIDDLE MILE
NETWORK. THE CURRENT ESTIMATED
LENGTH OF THE NETWORK IS 10,513
MILES. MORE THAN THREE QUARTERS
OF THAT LENGTH, IS EXPECTED TO
BE LEASES OR STAND ALONE COW
TRANS CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS.
FUNDING HAS BEEN ENCUMBERED FOR
AT LEAST 6500 MILES OF THE
NETWORK. AND WE SAY AT LEAST
BECAUSE ABOUT 500 MILLION IN
FEDERAL FUNDS HAS BEEN
ENCUMBERED FOR THESE
CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS, BUT WE DO
NOT HAVE ENOUGH INFORMATION
ABOUT THESE PROJECTS OTHER THAN
THE AGREEMENT TYPES TO BE ABLE
TO SAY HOW MANY MILES THAT
REPRESENTS. FURTHERMORE THE
NUMBER AND LENGTH OF THESE
PROJECTS COULD CHANGE AS èC Dð
Tð AND èC PU èC REVIEW LAST
MILE PROJECT GRANT APPLICATIONS
AND PROPOSALS ARE SUBMITTED IN
RESPONSE TO èC Dð Tð S¼ REQUEST
FOR INNOVATIVE IDEAS,
SOLICITATION. FOR THE LAST MILE
PROJECT GRANTS. èC PU èC IS IN
THE PROCESS OF REVIEWING NEARLY
500 F FA GRANT APPLICATIONS
REQUESTING ABOUT $4.5 BILLION IN
FUNDING, ALONG WITH ANY
OBJECTIONS FILED AGAINST THOSE
APPLICATIONS. AND FOR THE LONE
LOSS RESERVE FUND. THE FIRST
APPLICATION ROUND IS EXPECTED TO
OPEN IN MARCH WITH FIRST AWARDS
SOMETIME IN THE FIRST HALF OF
2425. ON PAGES NINE AND 10 OF
THE HANDOUT. WE PROVIDE AN
OVERVIEW OF THE THREE FEDERAL
INFRASTRUCTURE INVESTMENT AND
JOBS ACT PROGRAMS THAT ARE KEY
TO THE STATE'S OWN PROJECTS AND
PROGRAMS. THE FIRST OF THESE IS
THE BROADBAND EQUITY ACCESS AND
DEPLOYMENT OR BEAT PROGRAM. WE
WERE ASKED BY A SUB COMMITTEE
STAFF TO PROVIDE SOME ADDITIONAL
INFORMATION ABOUT THIS PROGRAM.
UH, THE FIRST POINT IS THAT
THERE ARE A SERIES OF DOCUMENTS
THAT ARE REQUIRED BY THE FEDERAL
GOVERNMENT TO SUBMIT, UH, THAT
THE STATE HAS TO SUBMIT TO
ACCESS ITS ALLOCATION OF THESE
FUNDS. THIS INCLUDES A FIVE YEAR
ACTION PLAN, AN INITIAL PROPOSAL
AND A FINAL PROPOSAL. THE STATE
MUST ALSO CONDUCT A CHALLENGE
PROCESS IN WHICH A NUMBER OF
ENTITIES CAN CHALLENGE THE
CURRENT DETERMINATION AS TO
WHETHER A HOUSEHOLD OR OTHER
LOCATION IS UNSERVED OR
UNDERSERVED. AND FINALLY, THE
STATE MUST ADMINISTER,
ADMINISTER A COMPETITIVE GRANT
PROCESS IN WHICH APPLICANTS CAN
REQUEST BEAT PROGRAM FUNDING FOR
PRIMARILY LAST MILE PROJECT
GRANTS. THE SECOND POINT IS DID
THERE ARE DIGITAL EQUITY ACT
PROGRAMS, AT LEAST TWO OF WHICH
ARE EXPECTED TO HELP THE STATE
IMPLEMENT ITS DIGITAL EQUITY
PLAN? THESE ARE THE DIGITAL
EQUITY PLANNING GRANT PROGRAM,
UM, FROM WHICH THE STATE HAS
ALREADY RECEIVED SOME FUNDS AND
THE DIGITAL EQUITY CAPACITY
GRANT PROGRAM. AND FINALLY,
THERE IS A THIRD PROGRAM, THE
ENABLING MIDDLE MILE BROADBAND
INFRASTRUCTURE PROGRAM THAT
PROVIDES STATES WITH ADDITIONAL
MIDDLE MILE INFRASTRUCTURE
FUNDING. ON PAGES, 11 AND 12. WE
PROVIDE A BRIEF STATUS UPDATE ON
THESE PROGRAMS FOR THE BEAT
PROGRAM. THE STATE RECEIVED
NOTIFICATION IN JUNE OF LAST
YEAR THAT IT WOULD RECEIVE 1.86
BILLION IN BEAT PROGRAM FUNDS.
THE STATE THEN SUBMITTED ITS
FIVE YEAR ACTION PLAN AND ITS
INITIAL PROPOSAL BY THE END OF
2020 THREE. THE STATE IS WAITING
FOR THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT TO
APPROVE ITS INITIAL PROPOSAL,
WHICH WAS SUBMITTED AS TWO
VOLUMES PURSUANT TO FEDERAL
GUIDANCE. THE APPROVAL OF THE
FIRST VOLUME EXPECTED SOON WILL
ALLOW THE STATE TO CONDUCT THE
CHALLENGE PROCESS THAT'S
REQUIRED AND THE APPROVAL OF THE
SECOND VOLUME THAT IS EXPECTED
IN MAY OR SO, UH, WILL MAKE
AVAILABLE TO THE STATE AT LEAST
20% OF THAT 1.86 BILLION, WHICH
IS ABOUT 375 MILLION. THE STATE
DID REQUEST UP TO 100% HOWEVER,
OF ITS ALLOCATION AS PART OF THE
INITIAL PROPOSAL, SO THERE COULD
BE EVEN MORE FUNDING THAN THAT
INITIAL 20. SOME OF THAT FUNDING
WOULD BE CONDITIONED, HOWEVER,
ON THE SUBMISSION OF A FINAL
PROPOSAL. UH, FOR THE DIGITAL
EQUITY ACT, PROGRA MMES. THE
STATE'S FINALIZING ITS DIGITAL
EQUITY PLAN. UM AND THE GRANT
PROGRAM RULES AND TIMELINES ARE
STILL IN DEVELOPMENT. SO NOT
MUCH TO SAY THERE. AND ON THE
ENABLING MIDDLE MILE BROADBAND
INFRASTRUCTURE PROGRAM. THE
STATE WAS AWARDED $73 MILLION,
WHICH IS REFLECTED IN THE
SPENDING PLANS THAT WERE
PROVIDED IN THE HANDOUT. UM ON
PAGES, 13 AND 14. WE PROVIDE
UPDATED TIMELINES FOR EACH OF
THE PROGRAMS. I WON'T GO OVER
THESE IN DETAIL. UM BUT KEY
DATES TO REMEMBER ARE THE
INCUMBRANCE DEADLINE FOR THE
AMERICAN RESCUE PLAN FUNDING,
WHICH IS AT THE END OF 2024 AND
THE EXPENDITURE DEADLINE THAT IS
AT THE END OF 2026 HAPPY TO TAKE
QUESTIONS NOW OR AFTER èC Dð,
Tð S¼ AND èC P èC S¼
PRESENTATIONS. THANK YOU FOR
YOUR EFFICIENCY AND IN
PRESENTING THE INFORMATION AND
WE'RE GOING TO MOVE ON TO THE
èC. P C'S PRESENTATION. UH,
MISS PETERSON AND MISS ELLIS.
GOOD MORNING. UH, PLEASE BEGIN.
GOOD MORNING CHAIR OF VALENCIA
AND HONORABLE MEMBERS OF THE
COMMITTEE. MY NAME IS RACHEL
PETERSON. I AM THE EXECUTIVE
DIRECTOR OF THE CALIFORNIA
PUBLIC UTILITIES COMMISSION.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR THE
OPPORTUNITY TO BE HERE WITH YOU
THIS MORNING TO GIVE AN UPDATE
ON CALIFORNIA'S SIGNATURE AND
HISTORIC BROADBAND FOR ALL
INITIATIVE. I'M VERY PLEASED TO
BE HERE WITH OUR PARTNER,
DIRECTOR BAILEY CRIMMINS OF THE
CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT OF
TECHNOLOGY, WHOSE MIDDLE MILE
BROADBAND INITIATIVE IS A
CRUCIAL COMPONENT OF
CALIFORNIA'S BROADBAND EFFORTS.
I'M GOING TO GIVE AN OVERVIEW OF
THE èC P èC S¼ PORTION OF THE
BROADBAND FOR ALL PORTFOLIO IF I
BELIEVE YOU HAVE OUR SLIDES AS A
HAND OUT AND IF YOU LOOK AT
SLIDE TWO THANK YOU. UM WE'LL
COVER OUR LAST MILE INITIATIVES.
CALIFORNIA ADVANCED SERVICES
FUND AND THE BROADBAND EQUITY
AND ACCESS I ALWAYS, UH, GET
THIS TITLE, INCORRECT BROADBAND
EQUITY ACCESS AND DEPLOYMENT
PROGRAM. AS WELL AS DISCUSS THE
UNSERVED POPULATIONS AS DEFINED
BY THOSE PROGRAMS AT YOUR
REQUEST. AND I'M JOINED BY MY
COLLEAGUE MARIA ELLIS, DEPUTY
DIRECTOR FOR BROAD MAN AT THE
èC P èC, WHO'S GOING TO
PROVIDE MORE DETAIL AFTER MY
OPENING REMARKS. WITH THE
ADOPTION OF SB 156 IN 2021,
CALIFORNIA BOLSTERED ITS
COMMITMENT TO PROVIDING ACCESS
TO HIGH QUALITY, AFFORDABLE,
HIGH SPEED INTERNET FOR ALL OF
OUR COMMUNITIES, CALIFORNIA
COMBINES STATE AND ONE TIME
FEDERAL FUNDING IN ORDER TO
INVEST ABOUT $2 BILLION IN LAST
MILE NETWORKS IN EVERY COUNTY
THROUGHOUT THE STATE. IN
ADDITION, CALIFORNIA EXPANDED
LAST MILE PROGRAM ELIGIBILITY TO
INCLUDE LOCAL GOVERNMENT
ENTITIES AND TRIBAL GOVERNMENTS
AND SPECIAL DISTRICTS IN ORDER
TO ENABLE A NEW DIVERSITY OF
BROADBAND PROVIDERS STATEWIDE.
TODAY WE ARE 2.5 YEARS INTO THAT
JOURNEY, AND I'M VERY PLEASED TO
GIVE A REPORT ON OUR PROGRESS.
BETWEEN OCTOBER 2021 AND
FEBRUARY 2024. THE èC P èC
DISTRIBUTED 50 MILLION IN LOCAL
TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE GRANTS TO
CITIES, COUNTIES AND TRIBES
ACROSS THE STATE. THE RECIPIENTS
USED THOSE GRANTS TO PREPARE THE
TECHNICAL AND ENGINEERING
GROUNDWORK FOR LAST MILE PROJECT
APPLICATIONS. OUR TECHNICAL
ASSISTANCE GRANTS WERE AWARDED
IN, UH UH, IN THE AMOUNTS OF
ABOUT 500,000 TO PLACES LIKE
FORT BRAGG AND OAKLAND. FRESNO
AND THE GATEWAY CITIES. GRANTS
OF ABOUT 150,000 WERE PROVIDED
TO TRIBAL NATIONS LIKE THE U
TRIBE AND THE SANTA INEZ BAND OF
CHUMASH INDIANS. THESE GRANTS
ARE PUTTING THESE JURISDICTIONS
IN A POSITION TO APPLY FOR
FURTHER STATE AND FEDERAL
FUNDING. THOSE ARE VERY
IMPORTANT FIRST TECHNICAL PIECE
OF THE BROADBAND INITIATIVE ROLL
OUT. IN JUNE 2023. THE CPUC
OPENED OUR FEDERAL FUNDING
ACCOUNT GRANTS PORTAL FOR
APPLICATIONS BY OCTOBER 2020
THREE. WE RECEIVED 484
APPLICATIONS SEEKING OVER 4.6
BILLION IN GRANTS. THE
APPLICATIONS ARE FROM EVERY
COUNTY IN THE STATE AND INCLUDE
BOTH TRADITIONAL SERVICE
PROVIDERS, AS WELL AS NEW
SERVICE PROVIDERS IN THE FORM OF
LOCAL GOVERNMENTS, TRIBES AND
NEW SPECIAL DISTRICTS. ABOUT
THREE QUARTERS OF THE TECHNICAL
GRANT TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE GRANT
RECIPIENTS, INCLUDING ALL THOSE
APPLICATIONS I JUST MENTIONED
HAVE NOW APPLIED FOR FEDERAL
FUNDING ACCOUNT GRANTS. WE'RE
HANDLING THE DUE PROCESS PORTION
OF THE GRANT APPLICATIONS NOW.
THIS ALLOWS FOR OBJECTIONS BY
PROVIDERS OR OTHERS WHO ASSERT
THAT AN AREA IS ALREADY SERVED.
AND IT ALLOWS FOR A REBUTTAL BY
THE APPLICANT. WE'RE ON TRACK TO
BEGIN AWARDING FUNDS LATER THIS
YEAR, WHICH IS CONSISTENT WITH
THE TIMELINE SET OUT IN S¼ B
156. WE'VE ALSO BEEN LEVERAGING
OUR OTHER SIGNATURE GRANT
PROGRAM, THE CALIFORNIA ADVANCED
SERVICES FUND, WHICH WITHIN S¼ B
156, WAS BOTH EXPANDED AND
EXTENDED. THE PROGRAM PROVIDES
GRANTS TO BRING HIGH QUALITY
ACCESSIBLE, AFFORDABLE INTERNET
ACCESS TO UNSERVED COMMUNITIES
ACROSS THE STATE. FOR EXAMPLE,
ON FEBRUARY 15TH AT THE
COMMISSION'S BUSINESS MEETING,
THE COMMISSIONERS APPROVED OVER
6.5 MILLION FOR TWO HIGH SPEED
BROADBAND PROJECTS UNDER èC, A
S¼ F. THE FIRST WILL FUND THE
DEPLOYMENT OF A FIXED WIRELESS
NETWORK TO BRING HIGH SPEED
INTERNET SERVICE TO UNSERVED
HOUSEHOLDS IN FOUR MOBILE HOME
PARKS IN LOS ANGELES, ORANGE,
RIVERSIDE AND SAN DIEGO
COUNTIES. THE SECOND WILL
CONSTRUCT A FIXED WIRELESS
HYBRID MIDDLE MILE AND LAST MILE
HIGH BROADBAND NETWORK. TO BRING
SERVICE TO UNSERVED HOUSEHOLDS
IN SAN MATEO, SANTA CLARA, SANTA
CRUZ AND MONTEREY COUNTIES. OUR
TEAM HAS BEEN HIGHLY ACTIVE IN
SECURING EVEN MORE FEDERAL
DOLLARS FOR CALIFORNIA AS WELL.
WHEN THE FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS.
FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS
COMMISSION'S MAP WAS FIRST
ISSUED THAT WAS PROPOSED TO BE
USED TO ALLOCATE BEAD FUNDING.
CALIFORNIA WAS PROJECTED TO
RECEIVE AS LITTLE AS 900
MILLION. OUR TEAM USED DATA AND
ANALYSIS TO DEMONSTRATE TO THE
FCC THE EXTENT OF THE NEEDS IN
CALIFORNIA'S UNDERSERVED
COMMUNITIES, AND AS A RESULT, WE
BROUGHT MORE THAN DOUBLE THAT
HOME TO CALIFORNIA FOR A TOTAL
OF 1.86 BILLION IN BED THAT WILL
BE PROVIDED TO OUR STATE LATER
THIS YEAR. WE'VE ALSO SEEN THAT
OUR TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE GRANT
MAKING HAS HAD A MULTIPLIER
EFFECT WITH RESPECT TO FEDERAL
DOLLARS. THE TECHNICAL
ASSISTANCE TO CALIFORNIA TRIBES
FROM OUR TRIBAL TECHNICAL
ASSISTANCE PROGRAM HAS LED
DIRECTLY TO THEM, SECURING
APPROXIMATELY 250 MILLION IN
BROADBAND FUNDING FROM FEDERAL
PROGRAMS SUCH AS THOSE RUN BY
THE DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. I
AM VERY PROUD OF THE PROGRESS
THAT THE èC P èC HAS MADE ON
BROADBAND FOR ALL AND LAST MILE
NETWORKS THAT ARE POISED TO
SERVE THE UNSERVED AND THE
UNDERSERVED IN CALIFORNIA. OUR
GRANT MAKING IS ALREADY ACTING
AS AN ECONOMIC CATALYST IN RURAL
, TRIBAL AND URBAN COMMUNITIES
ACROSS THE STATE. THE NEW
NETWORKS THAT ARE BEING RUN BY
SMALL PROVIDERS. MIDS MID SIZE
PROVIDERS, LOCAL GOVERNMENTS,
TRIBES AND NEW SPECIAL DISTRICTS
ARE CONNECTING KIDS AND YOUNG
PEOPLE TO EDUCATION. THE NEW
NETWORKS ARE DELIVERING OUR
CONNECTING AND DELIVERING SENIOR
CITIZENS CONNECTING THEM TO
THEIR HEALTH CARE SYSTEMS AND
THEIR DOCTORS. THEY'RE BRINGING
IMPROVED SERVICES TO RURAL
COMMUNITIES THAT WILL UNLOCK
THEIR ENTREPRENEURIALISM PROVIDE
A PLAT PLATFORM FOR ECONOMIC
DEVELOPMENT AND PROVIDE THAT
CRUCIAL CONNECTIVITY DURING
EMERGENCIES AND NATURAL
DISASTERS. WE DO HAVE A LOT MORE
WORK TO DO. SPEAKING FOR THE èC
PU èC. I AM PROUD THAT OUR
AGENCY HAS A LEADING ROLE WITHIN
CALIFORNIA'S TRANSFORMATIVE
BROADBAND FOR ALL INITIATIVE.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR THE
OPPORTUNITY TO BE HERE THIS
MORNING AND I'LL PASS TO MY
COLLEAGUE MARIA ELLIS. WONDERFUL
I WOULD APPRECIATE JUST BRIEF
COMMENTS SO WE CAN MOVE ON TO
THE NEXT PRESENTATION. THANK
YOU. I WILL ENDEAVOR TO CUT THIS
DOWN HERE AND THERE AS WE GO
THROUGH, UM, THANK YOU, CHAIR
VALENCIA AND MEMBERS OF THE
COMMIT SUB COMMITTEE AND MY NAME
IS MARIA ELLIS AND I'M, THE
DEPUTY DIRECTOR AT THE
CALIFORNIA PUBLIC UTILITIES
COMMISSION AND THE
COMMUNICATIONS DIVISION. UH,
THANK YOU FOR HAVING US HERE.
CAN YOU PLEASE BRING THE MIC A
LITTLE BIT CLOSER SO WE CAN
HEAR. THANK YOU. IS THAT BETTER?
AND I WILL TRY TO SHORTEN THESE.
UM UH I'LL START WITH THE LOCAL
AGENCY TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE AS
UH, DIRECTOR EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR,
UM PETERSON MENTIONED WE HAD $50
MILLION THAT WAS ALLOCATED, UM,
FROM THE FEDERAL FUNDING ACCOUNT
TO FUND TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE. 5
MILLION OF THAT WAS SET ASIDE
FOR TRIBAL ENTITIES AND TRIBAL
NATIONS TO ALSO PARTICIPATE IN
THE PROGRAM. UM THE INCREDIBLE
DEMAND FOR THIS PROGRAM, COUPLED
WITH THE FACT THAT ROUGHLY AS AS
RACHEL MENTIONED THREE FOURTHS
OF LATTER RECIPIENTS. ALSO
SUBMITTED UP, UH, PARTICIPATED
IN APPLICATIONS VALIDATES THE,
UH, THE INTENTIONS OF S¼ B 156
TO PROVIDE POTENTIAL NEW
ENTRANTS IN LOCAL GOVERNMENT,
THE TOOLS AND RESOURCES NEEDED
TO MEET THE NEEDS OF THEIR
COMMUNITIES. WE AWARDED 106
GRANTS. UM AT, UH, THAT WAS TO
NINE TRIBES IN 97 LOCAL
AGENCIES, INCLUDING 42 CITIES.
45 COUNTIES AND, UH, SEVERAL
JOINT POWER AUTHORITIES, PAPUA
TITIES AND UTILITIES AND SCHOOL
DISTRICTS. UM, FOR THE FEDERAL
FUNDING ACCOUNT. UH, WE AS YOU
KNOW, WE'VE, UH THE FEDERAL
FUNDING ACCOUNT WAS, UH REALLY
IMPLEMENTS. UM PART OF WHAT THE,
UH, THE RULE THE FINAL RULE FOR
TREASURY IN TERMS OF HOW IT'S
DEFINING, UM WHAT IS RELIABLE WI
LINE SERVICE AND THE WHAT WE'RE
TRYING TO ACCOMPLISH WITH THAT
PROGRAM. UM THE ALLOCATION. UH,
THE DECISION FROM THE COMMISSION
, UH, SET OUT A NUANCED
ALLOCATION FOR HOW THE $2
BILLION ACCOUNT WOULD BE
INVESTED ACROSS THE STATE AND
THAT, UM, THAT IS MAINTAINED
EVEN WITH THE PROPOSED, UH, WITH
A PROPOSED, UH, DELAYING OF
FUNDING. WE WILL MAINTAIN THAT
ALLOCATION. UH, FORMULA, WHICH
IS THAT EACH COUNTY WILL BE
STARTING WITH $5 MILLION AND
THEN THE REMAINDER OF THE
ALLOCATION WILL BE DIVIDED BY UH
BY THE EACH COUNTY'S
PROPORTIONATE, UH, NUMBER OF
UNSERVED LOCATIONS. WE UH AS
MENTIONED WE HAD NEARLY 500
APPLICATIONS THAT WERE SUBMITTED
IN, UH, BY DECEMBER, UH, BY
PARDON ME LATE SEPTEMBER, UH,
LAST YEAR, AND THEN WE OPENED UP
THE REQUIRED OBJECTION. PERIOD
FOR THESE APPLICATIONS WERE
RECEIVED NEARLY 1000 OBJECTIONS
AND ALMOST AS MANY REBUTTALS.
THESE ARE AN IMPORTANT. PART OF
THE EVALUATION PROCESS BECAUSE
IT ALLOWS US TO UNDERSTAND AN
APPLICATION HOLISTICALLY, UM AND
ALSO VALIDATE AN AND ENSURE THAT
WE ARE INVESTING OUR MONIES IN
THE MOST EFFECTIVE WAY POSSIBLE
BY NOT INVESTING IN AREAS THAT
ARE ALREADY SERVED, UM, AT THE
REQUIRED SPEED. WE WILL CONTINUE
TO REVIEW THOSE APPLICATIONS ON
A COUNTY BY COUNTY BASIS, AND
WE'VE AND SCORE THEM, ACCORDING
TO THE POTENTIAL PROGRAM RULES.
UM UH, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I
WANNA HIGHLIGHT IS THAT THE
APPLICATIONS WILL RECEIVE
PRIORITY BASED ON THE
AFFORDABILITY COMMITMENTS.
EQUITY CONSIDERATIONS MATCHING
FUNDS PROVIDED LOCAL SUPPORT AND
CONNECTION TO THE STATEWIDE
MIDDLE MILE. THESE ARE ALL
FACTORS THAT WILL BE CONSIDERED
IN HOW TO PRIORITIZE
APPLICATION. THE LAST TRANCHE.
UH, THE FIRST TRANCHE. EXCUSE ME
. THE FIRST TRANCHE OF
RECOMMENDATIONS ON THESE
APPLICATIONS WILL START COMING
OUT IN PAR WITH THE DECISION.
UH, AND IT IN JUNE. MOVING ON TO
THE LOAN LOSS RESERVE PROGRAM.
THIS PROGRAM AIMS TO AS AS
RACHEL MENTIONED TO HELP. UH
CERTAIN KINDS OF ENTITIES,
INCLUDING LOCAL GOVERNMENTS,
TRIBES AND NONPROFITS FINANCE
THE EXPENSIVE COSTS OF DEPLOYING
, UM OF DEPLOYING THESE, UH,
THESE KINDS OF NETWORKS. AND,
UH, WE ARE ON TRACK. WE HOWEVER
HAPPY TO REPORT WE'RE ON TRACK
TO OPEN THAT, UH, NEXT MONTH.
UH, MORE DETAILS ARE TO COME
ABOUT THAT. BUT THAT WINDOW WILL
BE OPEN FOR ABOUT A MONTH FOR
FINANCING. AND THEN WE WILL, UH,
HAVE DECISIONS ON THOSE AWARDS
IN Q TWO OR Q THREE OF THIS
YEAR. UM. AND THEN ONE OF THE
THINGS I. I ALSO WANT TO
HIGHLIGHT. SO THOUGH I JUST
TALKED VERY BRIEFLY ABOUT THIS
THREE PROGRAMS. THE OTHER THING
I WANNA MENTION, IS THAT PART OF
WHAT WE'VE CREATED UNDER S¼ B
156 IS A CASEWORKER UNIT, A
BROADBAND CASE WORKER UNIT AND,
UM, BECAUSE THIS IS SUCH AN
IMPORTANT INVESTMENT AND ONE OF
THE GOALS OF THIS THIS PROGRAM,
AND THIS PACKAGE WAS TO, UH,
FACILITATE NEW ENTRANTS INTO
THIS MARKET. BUT AS TRIBES AND
LOCAL GOVERNMENTS AND OTHERS UM
THIS CASE WORKER TEAM HAS BEEN
REALLY INVALUABLE. AND THEY HAVE
BEEN HELPING. UH, THESE KINDS OF
ENTITIES. UH, I UNDERSTAND HOW
TO ENTER THIS MARKET, HELPING
THEM UNDERSTAND HOW TO DEVELOP
THEIR APPLICATIONS. THEY'VE HAD,
UH OVER 400 MEETINGS TO DATE
JUST WITH DIFFERENT KINDS OF
ENTITIES AND HELPING THEM AND
PROVIDING THAT TECHNICAL
ASSISTANCE. I WON'T GO TOO MUCH
INTO THE CALIFORNIA ADVANCED
SERVICES FUND. JUST TO SAY THAT
THIS IS A, UM SURCHARGE. UH,
SURCHARGE FUNDED PROGRAM. THAT'S
ONE OF SIX PROGRAMS THAT IS
FUNDED OUR PUBLIC PURPOSE
PROGRAMS AT THE COMMISSION.
THERE ARE 66 PROGRAMS UNDERNEATH
THE CALIFORNIA ADVANCED SERVICES
FUND, DOING A VARIETY OF THINGS,
INCLUDING ALL THE èC TO
INFRASTRUCTURE TO ADOPTION
ACCOUNTS TO CONSORTIA. UM THE
ONE THING I DO WANNA MENTION IS
THAT SINCE THE INCEPTION, UM THE
èC PU èC AUTHORIZED THE èC S¼
F PROGRAM IN 2007 AND ADOPTED
RULES FOR THE FIRST PROGRAM IN
2008 ELLIS. I DO APOLOGIZE FOR
INTERRUPTING, UM, WOULD LOVE TO
JUST STICK TO THE SUBSTANCE OF
THE HEARING, WHICH IS THE
INFRASTRUCTURE COMPONENT REALLY
APPRECIATE THE BACKGROUND ON, UH
THE PROGRAMS AND DIFFERENT
FUNDING SOURCES. BUT LET'S JUST
FOCUS ON INFRASTRUCTURE. AND IF
YOU HAVE ANYTHING TO ADD
REGARDING THE INFRASTRUCTURE AND
HOW WE'RE DOING ON THAT, THAT
WOULD BE APPRECIATED. THANK YOU.
WHAT I WAS GONNA MENTION IS THAT
WE'VE INVESTED ABOUT $400
MILLION IN DIFFERENT KINDS OF
PROGRAMS FROM THAT ACCOUNT. UM,
SINCE 2008 UM LET'S SEE. MOVING
ON TO, UH, WOULD YOU LIKE ME TO
COVER THE BEAT PROGRAM? A
BROADBAND EQUITY AND ACCESS
DEPLOYMENT PROGRAM. OR WOULD YOU
LIKE ME TO MOVE ON? LET'S DO
THAT, PLEASE. AND THE BEAT
PROGRAM AS, UH, IS FUNDED FROM
THE IIJ A, UM I'M GONNA MOVE ON
SKIP ON TO THE TIMELINE. I THINK
THAT'S PROBABLY MORE RELEVANT.
UM SO WE RECENTLY SUBMITTED AS,
UH AS ELIO, UH, PROVIDED THREE
IMPORTANT DOCUMENTS THAT ARE
VERY IMPORTANT TO CONTINUING THE
PROGRESS ON THIS PROGRAM. UH,
FIRST, THE FIVE YEAR ACTION PLAN
AND THEN THE INITIAL PROPOSAL,
WHICH IS FED INTO TWO VOLUMES,
AND THAT IS IMPORTANT FOR A
COUPLE OF REASONS. IT IS THE
VOLUME IT IS VOLUME TWO. WE
SUBMITTED THOSE IN DECEMBER ON
TIME. AND UH AND IT IS THE
APPROVAL OF VOLUME TWO THAT
STARTS THE CLOCK WITH THE
FEDERAL GOVERNMENT. UM THAT SAYS
YOU HAVE 365 DAYS AS A STATE TO
BOTH RUN THE CHALLENGE TO RUN
THE CHALLENGE PROCESS. TO OPEN A
SOLICITATION SELECT SUB GRANTEES
PROPOSED SUB GRANTEES AND ROLL
ALL THAT UP INTO A FINAL
PROPOSAL THAT MUST BE SUBMITTED
TO THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT WITHIN
THREE 165 DAYS. UM THE AWARDS
THAT ARE THE PROPOSED AWARDEES
THAT ARE INCLUDED IN THAT PLAN
ARE ONLY PROVISIONAL. UM, THAT
THE N Tð. I MUST APPROVE THE
FINAL PROPOSAL BEFORE THOSE
FUNDS CAN ACTUALLY TRANSMITTED
TO APPLICANT. WE UH LOVE TO BE
ABLE TO PROVIDE A MORE CONCRETE
TIMELINE FOR WHEN THIS WILL
HAPPEN. BUT THIS IS A FEDERALLY
DRIVEN TIMELINE AND WE DON'T
KNOW MUCH IN TERMS OF WHERE
WE'RE, UH, WE HAVEN'T YET
RECEIVED APPROVAL OF VOLUME ONE
AND WHAT WE BELIEVE THAT WE
THESE ARE HAPPENING.
SEQUENTIALLY VOLUME ONE AND THEN
VOLUME TWO WILL BE APPROVED. SO
WE'RE NOT THERE YET, UH, BUT WE
ANTICIPATE UM, WE FEEL VERY
CERTAIN THAT, UH, APPROVAL FOR
FINAL PROPOSAL IS NOT GOING TO
HAPPEN UNTIL 2025. WITH THAT, I
THINK, UM I'M I'M GONNA CONTINUE
ON TO UNSERVED AND UNSERVED
COMMUNITIES. UH, NUMBERS. YES,
PLEASE. SO UH, I KNOW YOU DON'T
HAVE A SLIDE, UH, IN FRONT OF
YOU, BUT, UH, ON SCREEN, BUT
THERE ARE SLIDES AT THE VERY END
OF OUR PRESENTATION THAT TAUGHT
KIND OF HAVE A BIT OF A
DISTINCTION BETWEEN OUR
PROGRAMS. AND IT REFLECTS THE
DISTINCTIONS BETWEEN THESE
PROGRAM THESE PROGRAMS,
INCLUDING HOW THEY DEFINE, UH,
UNSERVED. EACH PROGRAM IS
GOVERNED BY DISTINCT STATUTORY
REQUIREMENTS WITH SPECIFIC GOALS
AND ELIGIBILITY AND PROGRAM
REQUIREMENTS. FOR EXAMPLE, THE
FEDERAL FUNDING ACCOUNT, WHICH
USES THE AMERICAN USES AMERICAN
RESCUE ACT FUNDS, IS BASED ON
RULES IMPLEMENTED BY THE
COMMISSION BASED ON THE FINAL
TREASURY RULE. UM, AND THAT
DEFINED WHAT RELIABLE WIRE LINE
TECHNOLOGY. UH, BROADBAND WOULD
BE THIS NARROW DEFINITION. UM OF
SERVE OF WHAT AN UNSERVED
LOCATION IS LEADS TO A LARGER
NUMBER OF UNSERVED AS REFLECTED
IN OUR NUMBERS IN THAT SLIDE.
YES I'VE STATUTORILY HAS TWO
KINDS OF DEFINITIONS FOR
UNSERVED ONE BEING A PRIORITY
UNSERVED. WHICH IS AT SPEEDS. UM
UH, LESS, UH THAN 10 1 OR AT
MAXIMUM SPEEDS OF 10, 1 OR LESS,
OR UM, AND JUST STANDARD UNSER,
WHICH IS 25 3, AND THAT WAS, UH,
A CHANGE THAT HAPPENED THROUGH
S¼ B 156. THE NT, UH DEFINES
UNSERVED FOR BEAT USING
DIFFERENT CONNECTION AND LATENCY
. UH UH, LATE LATENCY SPEEDS AND
USES ALSO A RANGE OF
TECHNOLOGIES THAT ARE ELIGIBLE
FOR FUNDING. EACH OF THOSE
THINGS REALLY CONTRIBUTES TO THE
DIFFERENCE IN NUMBERS OF THE
PROGRAMS, BUT EACH PROGRAM SETS
A SPECIFIC ECOSYSTEM OR A SPHERE
OF YOU WILL OF LOCATIONS THAT IT
SEEKS TO TARGET. UM.
ADDITIONALLY èC S¼ FF FA AND
BEAT EACH HAVE CHALLENGE OR
OBJECTION PROCESSES, THEY COULD
BE SLIGHTLY DIFFERENT FOR BOTH F
FA AND èC A S¼ F. THOSE
PROCESSES HAPPEN AND YOU CAN
CHALLENGE THE OR OBJECT TO AN
APPLICATION. WHEREAS WITH AND
WITH THE N Tð I A. YOU FIRST
CHALLENGED THE GEOGRAPHY OF THE
MAP BEFORE YOU TAKE
APPLICATIONS. UM IN IMPLEMENTING
THESE PROGRAMS. WE ARE WORKING
TO OPTIMIZE FUNDING TO ENSURE
THAT RESOURCES ARE EFFECTIVELY,
UH, USED TO PROVIDE THE BEST
POSSIBLE INFRASTRUCTURE, UM, TO
THE REMAINING UNSERVED LOCATIONS
, AND THAT'S PART OF THAT
CHALLENGE, PROCESS AND OBJECTION
PROCESS IS TO MAKE SURE THAT
WE'RE NOT DOUBLE FUNDING OR
MAXIMIZING THE AMOUNT OF, UH,
FUNDING THAT WE HAVE AVAILABLE
TO THE STATE. WITH THAT I AM
GOING TO TURN IT BACK TO THE.
THANK YOU CHAIR. THAT'S OUR
CONCLUSION ON THE èC PU èC S¼
PORTION OF THE LAST MILE, UM,
NETWORKS THAT ARE BEING FUNDED
THROUGH THE BROAD BROADBAND FOR
ALL I'M VERY HAPPY TO. I'M VERY
HAPPY TO EITHER TAKE QUESTIONS
AT YOUR PLEASURE CHAIR, OR, UH,
PASS STRAIGHT TO OUR COLLEAGUES,
UM DIRECTOR BAILEY CRIMMINS AT
THE CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT OF
TECHNOLOGY. THANK YOU. I IF WE
CAN MOVE ON TO THE NEXT
PRESENTATION AND DIRECT I WOULD
REALLY APPRECIATE JUST A CONCISE
PRESENTATION SO WE CAN GET INTO
QUESTIONS. THANK YOU. JUST THE
NUMBERS. THANK YOU TWO MINUTE TO
OPEN A REMARK AND THEN, UH, GO
THROUGH SOME OF THE INFORMATION
YOU GUYS ARE REQUESTING. SO GOOD
MORNING, MR CHAIR AND HONORABLE
MEMBERS OF THE COMMITTEE. THANK
YOU FOR THE OPPORTUNITY OF
SPEAKING WITH YOU TODAY
SPECIFICALLY ABOUT THE BROADBAND
METAL MILE INITIATIVE. I'M
LEANNA BAILEY CRIMMINS STATE
CHIEF INFORMATION OFFICER,
DIRECTOR OF DEPARTMENT OF
TECHNOLOGY ALSO HAVE THE HONOR
OF BEING THE CHAIR FOR THE
MIDDLE MILE ADVISORY COMMITTEE
AND THE CHAIR FOR THE, UH,
CALIFORNIA BROADBAND COUNCIL.
PHIL PRESENTING WITH ME TODAY IS
MR MARK MONROE. HE'S A DEPUTY
DIRECTOR OF THE BROADBAND MIDDLE
MILE INITIATIVE. AS YOU ARE
KEENLY AWARE. ONE IN FIVE
CALIFORNIANS LACK AFFORDABLE
ACCESS TO INTERNET AND THE NEED
FOR BROADBAND FOR ALL PAINFULLY
BECAME OBVIOUS WITH THE PANDEMIC
THAT BROUGHT MAJOR DISRUPTIONS
TO OUR SOCIETY. ACROSS
CALIFORNIA. THOUSANDS OF SCHOOLS
CLOSED AND MILLIONS OF CHILDREN
INCLUDING 600,000 IN THE L, A
UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT ALONE
HAD ONLY ONE OPTION. REMOTE
LEARNING. THE PANDEMIC MADE US
VERY AWARE OF THIS DIGITAL
INEQUALITY. EDUCATORS EXPERIENCE
FIRSTHAND HOW THE LACK OF
BROADBAND IMPACTED THEIR
STUDENTS AND HOW THEY STRUGGLE
WITH DISTANCE LEARNING, AS
REMEMBER TWO GIRLS SITTING IN A
TACO BELL PARKING LOT TRYING TO
REMOTE LEARN BECAUSE THEY HAD NÓ
INTERNET AT HOME. WE ALSO HAVE
SEEN SENIORS THAT ARE UNABLE TO
DRIVE TO DOCTOR'S APPOINTMENTS
AND STRUGGLE BECAUSE THEY DON'T
HAVE BROADBAND ACCESS OR
AFFORDABLE ACCESS TO DEVICES,
WHICH DOESN'T ALLOW THEM TO
PARTICIPATE IN TELEHEALTH. UM
UH, YOU KNOW, SESSIONS. THE
LARGE DIGITAL DIVIDE IS
SOMETHING WE ARE CLEANLY KEENLY
ALL AWARE OF IN JULY. 2021
THANKS TO THE LEADERSHIP OF
GOVERNOR GAVIN NEWSOM AND THE
LEGISLATURE. SENATE BILL 156
DIRECT TO CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT
OF TECHNOLOGY TO CREATE A
STATEWIDE OPEN ACCESS MIDDLE
MILE NETWORK, WHICH IS AN
EQUITABLE HIGH SPEED BROADBAND
SERVICE FOR ALL CALIFORNIANS.
èC Dð Tð IS RESPONSIBLE FOR A
KEY ELEMENT OF THE BROADBAND FOR
ALL INITIATIVE. WE OVERSEE AND
DEVELOP AND OPERATE THE STATE
WIDE OPEN ACCESS MIDDLE MILE
BROADBAND NETWORK. PEOPLE
SOMETIMES ASK WHAT THE
DIFFERENCE BETWEEN MIDDLE MILE
AND LAST MILE MY RESPONSE IS
WHEN BUILDING AN END TO END
NETWORK IS A THREE STEP
ITERATIVE PROCESS. NOT
SEQUENTIAL. BUT ITERATIVE VERSUS
YOU HAVE TO BUILD THE MIDDLE
MILE, WHICH IS A DIGITAL HIGHWAY
, WHICH HAS ON RAMPS ABOUT EVERY
2400 TO 2500. CONNECTION POINTS.
THE SECOND STEP IS TO TAKE THAT
MIDDLE MILE THAT DIGITAL
INFRASTRUCTURE AND
OPERATIONALIZE IT SO TAKING
ELECTRONICS AND CONNECTING IT TO
BROADBAND SERVICES, ALSO KNOWN
AS THE INTERNET, AND THE THIRD
STEP IS CONNECTING LAST MILE
COMMUNITIES TO COMMUNITY AND
BROADBAND PROVIDERS WHO ARE THE
ONES THAT DIRECTLY PROVIDE
SERVICES TO BUSINESSES, ANCHOR
INSTITUTIONS AND HOUSEHOLDS. AS
WE PROGRESS TOWARDS THE
NETWORK'S PLANNED DECEMBER 2026
COMPLETION DATE. WE ARE PLEASED
TO REPORT SIGNIFICANT
ACCOMPLISHMENTS, INCLUDING
SIGNING CONTRACTS TO CONSTRUCT,
LEASE AND PURCHASE APPROXIMATELY
80 3% OF THE PLAN NETWORK. IN
PARTNERSHIP WITH CALTRANS AND
GOLDEN STATE. NET èC Dð Tð HAS
MADE SIGNIFICANT PROGRESS IN
PLANNING AND CONSTRUCTING THIS
NETWORK, INCLUDING SECURING
PARTNERSHIPS WITH TRIBAL
ENTITIES. LOCAL GOVERNMENTS. WE
JUST RECENTLY DID A LETTER OF
INTENT WITH L, A COUNTY BUREAU
OF CITY LIGHTING FORT BRAGG,
VACAVILLE. THERE'S MANY MORE IN
THE PIPELINE. THE LOCAL
GOVERNMENT LEVEL AND ALSO
PRIVATE PROVIDERS. IN ADDITION,
CALIFORNIA WE LEAD THE WAY
ESPECIALLY WHEN IT COMES TO
REDUCING PERMITTING TIMELINES,
WHICH SEEMS TO BE SOMETIMES
TRYING TO, YOU KNOW, BUREAUCRACY
AND RED TAPE. WE WERE ABLE TO
PARTNER WITH FEDERAL AND STATE
PARTNERS AND ACTUALLY REDUCE IT
FROM 30 MONTHS TO 11 MONTHS,
WHICH IS UNSEEN WHEN IT COMES TO
PERMITTING. OUR MISSION IS TO
CREATE A NETWORK THAT WILL
PROVIDE VITAL SERVICES TO ALL
CALIFORNIANS, AND WE HAVE HEARD
LOUD AND CLEAR FOR CONSTITUENTS
FROM URBAN CENTERS TO RURAL
COMMUNITIES. THERE IS NÓ EQUITY
WITHOUT DIGITAL EQUITY. I CAN
CLOSE MY OPENING REMARKS. I LIKE
TO TURN IT OVER TO MR MARK
MOREAU. WE'LL TALK ABOUT THE
INFRASTRUCTURE ACCOMPLISHMENTS
AND THE B èC P. RIGHT UH, GOOD
MORNING CHAIR AND MEMBERS, UH,
MARK MONROE, DEPUTY DIRECTOR FOR
THE MIDDLE MILE BROADBAND
INITIATIVE HERE AT èC Dð Tð, UM
, HAPPY TO PROVIDE A BRIEF
UPDATE ON THE PROGRESS OF THE
MMB. I PROJECT, UH, AND TO
ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS THE
COMMITTEE MEMBERS HAVE, UH, WE
WERE ASKED TO QUICKLY RUN
THROUGH SOME SLIDES TO SUMMARIZE
THE PROJECT STATUS. I BELIEVE,
UH, THE MEMBERS HAVE BEEN
PROVIDED WITH THAT. FIRST WE
HAVE A TIMELINE FOR THE PROJECT
THAT REFLECTS, UH, THE FACT THAT
, UH, THE S¼ FRF FUNDING. UH,
THE ARPA FUNDING MUST BE UNDER
CONTRACT BY DECEMBER OF 2024.
AND MUST BE LIQUIDATED BY
DECEMBER OF 2026 èC Dð Tð IS
AHEAD OF SCHEDULE. UH, DUE TO
EARLY, UH, EARLY STATE AND
FEDERAL PERMITS, STREAMLINING
EFFORTS, UM, MATERIALS PURCHASES
AND, UH, SIMULTANEOUS BID
SOLICITATIONS FOR BOTH
CONSTRUCTION AND PARTNERSHIPS.
UH, THIS WILL ALLOW THE
POTENTIAL, UH, EARLY ACTIVATION
OF SOME SEGMENTS OF THE NETWORK
AS EARLY AS 2025 AND 2026. AND
THIS ALSO SHOWS THAT THE FUNDING
REQUESTED IN THE BUDGET. UH èC
Dð Tð ANTICIPATES MEETING. UH,
WW. THAT FINDING THE èC Dð Tð
ANTICIPATES MEETING THE DECEMBER
2026 DEADLINE. WANNA JUMP TO THE
NEXT ONE IN TERMS OF THE
PARTNERSHIPS. UM THE EARLY
SOLICITATIONS, AS I MENTIONED
ALLOWED CALTRANS TO SIGN MASTER
AGREEMENTS FOR CONSTRUCTION OF
APPROXIMATELY 1800 MILES, THE
NETWORK AND CALTRANS IS
CURRENTLY MOVING TO CONSTRUCTION
. UH, IN MORE THAN A DOZEN
LOCATIONS ACROSS THE STATE. UH,
UH, ON A TOTAL OF 100 AND 50
MILES YEAH, SOME EARLY. THE
PARTNERSHIP SOLICITATIONS, UH,
ALSO ALLOWED èC Dð Tð TO SECURE
. UH, 10 PARTNERSHIPS FOR
APPROXIMATELY, UH 60 F 6500
MILES OF LEASES. UH, JOINT
BUILDS AND PURCHASES. UH, FOR
FASTER, UH OR MORE COST
EFFECTIVE DELIVERY OF THE
NETWORK AND CONSTRUCTION ON
THESE SEGMENTS BEGAN. UH, THIS
PAST DECEMBER. UH, AND THIS THIS
INCLUDES, UM UH, ALMOST 3500
MILES OF LEASES. UH, 2600 MILES
OF JOINT BUILD, UH, DEALS AND
435 MILES OF PURCHASES. AND UH,
THESE PARTNERS, UH, ARE
CURRENTLY UNDER CONSTRUCTION IN
FIVE LOCATIONS TOTALING 100 AND
SIX MILES ACROSS THE STATE. UM
UH, I N THE NEXT SLIDE. WE
HAVE, UH, JUST REFERENCES. I N
TERMS OF OUR OUR PROGRESS. UH,
RELATIVE TO THE FUNDING OF THE
$3.5 BILLION APPROPRIATED TO èC
Dð Tð TO DATE FOR THE MMB. I, UH
2.9 BILLION IS ALREADY UNDER
CONTRACT FOR JOINT BUILD AND
LEASE PARTNERSHIPS, EQUIPMENT
PURCHASES AND CALTRANS
CONSTRUCTION AND Kò TRANSPLANTS
TO HAVE, UH, BEGUN CONSTRUCTION
ON AS MUCH AS 464 MILES OF THE
NETWORK BY THE END OF THIS
QUARTER, UH, FROM THE FROM THE
1800 MILES OF MASTER AGREEMENTS.
EXPECTS TO HAVE PRECONSTRUCTION
COMPLETED ON VIRTUALLY ALL
CONSTRUCTED SEGMENTS BY THE END
OF 2024. UH, THE NEXT SLIDE
REFERENCES ARE B èC P èC Dð Tð
HAS REQUESTED $1.5 BILLION OVER
TWO YEARS TO FUND CONSTRUCTION
OR DEVELOPMENT OF THE FINAL 2200
MILES OF THE NETWORK. UH èC Dð
Tð S¼ CURRENT PLAN IS TO
CONTINUE MOVING TO CONSTRUCTION
AS SEGMENTS BECOME READY, UH,
PER CALTRANS ROLL OUT SCHEDULE
FOR THE FULL 4000 MILES,
INCLUDING BOTH THE 1800, THE
MILES THAT ARE FUNDED AND THE
2200 MILES, UH, THAT ARE BEING
FUNDED WITH THE B èC P, UH, TO
MAXIMIZE EVERY DOLLAR SPENT èC
Dð Tð ISSUED A SECOND. UM RF I
SQUARED, UH SHIP SOLICITATION IN
LATE 2023, WITH THE GOAL OF
CONTRACTING FOR ADDITIONAL
PUBLIC PRIVATE PARTNERSHIPS. UH,
SINCE THESE OPPORTUNITIES REDUCE
STATE EXPENSES, UH, BY SPLITTING
THE COST OF CONSTRUCTION, UH,
WITH PRIVATE PARTIES, AND, UH
èC Dð Tð IS CURRENTLY IN THE
PROCESS OF EVALUATING THESE
PROPOSALS. AND THE FINAL SLIDE.
UH, HERE IS JUST A REFLECT, UH,
THE MAP OF THE FULL MMB. I
NETWORK. UH YOU CAN SEE ON A,
UH, THE LIGHT BLUE IS REFLECTED
THE AREAS FOR WHICH, UH F FA
GRANT APPLICATIONS HAVE BEEN
SUBMITTED TO THE PU èC. UM THE
ADMINISTRATION'S PRIORITY
REMAINS, UH, COMPLETION OF THE
ENTIRE NETWORK AND èC Dð Tð IS
CONTINUING TO ANALYZE, UH OR
CONTINUOUS ANALYSIS OF THE OF
THE NETWORK TO DETERMINE WHICH
SEGMENTS, UH, ARE DEVELOPED, UH,
BASED ON THE AMOUNT OF FUNDING
ULTIMATELY PROVIDED BY THE
LEGISLATURE AS WELL AS, UH,
CLOSURE OF ANY NETWORK GAPS,
POTENTIAL INCLUSION OF RF I
SQUARED PROPOSALS RECEIVED AND
THE LOCATION OF, UH, AREAS
RECEIVING F FA GRANTS WITH THAT,
UH, WE'RE HAPPY TO ANSWER ANY
QUESTIONS THE COMMITTEE MEMBERS
MIGHT HAVE WONDERFUL. THANK YOU,
MR MONROE. UH, I'D LIKE TO ASK
TWO. WORK ACCOUNTABILITY
QUESTIONS, THEN I WILL OPEN UP.
UH, THE FLOOR TO MEMBERS. UH,
FIRST QUESTION FOR THE PU èC,
UH, HOW MANY CALIFORNIANS UH,
HOW MANY CæA OF CALIFORNIA'S
UNSERVED LOCATIONS HAVE BECOME
CONNECTED TO BROADBAND SERVICE
THUS FAR WITH A $6 BILLION
INVESTMENT TO DATE TODAY? THANK
YOU CHAIR FOR THAT QUESTION. UM
SO VIA SB 156. WE ARE ON THE
TIMELINE TO DISTRIBUTE THOSE
START DISTRIBUTING THOSE GRANTS
IN JUNE OF THIS YEAR SO THROUGH
STRICTLY THROUGH THAT PROGRAM,
NONE YET, BUT THAT'S BECAUSE WE
HAVE BEEN IN THE PROCESS OF
ISSUING THE TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE
GRANTS OPENING THE GRANTS PORTAL
, UM, ALLOWING FOR THE DUE
PROCESS OF OBJECTIONS AND
REBUTTALS TO OBJECTIONS. AND IN
APPROXIMATELY JUNE OF THIS YEAR,
THE FIRST GRANTS WILL GO OUT THE
DOOR. AT THE SAME TIME, THE
CALIFORNIA ADVANCED SERVICES
FUND HAS BEEN ACTIVE IN
DISTRIBUTING GRANTS. IT'S NOT S¼
B 156, BUT IT'S BEEN ACTIVE IN
DISTRIBUTING GRANTS, AS I
MENTIONED IN MY OPENING
STATEMENT. WONDERFUL. SO THE
ANSWER IS ZERO AS AS OF TODAY.
STRICTLY THROUGH THE S¼ B 156
PROGRAM. CORRECT CHAIR.
WONDERFUL THANK YOU. UH, AND BY
WHAT DATE? WILL WE ACHIEVE THE
GOAL OF CONNECTING ALL UNSERVED
LOCATIONS IN CALIFORNIA? SO WE
ALREADY KNOW THAT EVEN WITH THE
INCREDIBLE IN, UH FEDERAL AND
STATE INVESTMENTS, WE ARE NOT
GOING TO BE ABLE TO SERVE ALL
UNSERVED IN CALIFORNIA. THE NEED
IS SIMPLY TOO GREAT. HOWEVER WE
ARE ON TRACK THROUGH THE
PROGRAMS THAT WE'VE BEEN
DISCUSSING TO SERVE A GOOD
NUMBER OF THOSE. HERE'S A WAY
THAT I THINK ABOUT SB 156 ALONE.
UNDER THE DEFINITIONS, UM FROM
THE FEDERAL FUNDING ACCOUNT.
THERE ARE ABOUT ALMOST 1 MILLION
UNSERVED LOCATIONS IN
CALIFORNIA. UM. FROM THE 484
APPLICATIONS THAT WE HAVE IN THE
DOOR FROM THE GRANTS. UH, THE F
FA GRANT APPLICATIONS. IN SOME
THOSE ARE LOOKING TO SERVE ABOUT
500,000 UNSERVED LOCATIONS, AND
THAT'S ALREADY AN OVERSUBSCRIBED
PROGRAM. AND SO WE WILL. BE
MAKING PROGRESS TOWARDS THOSE 1
MILLION UNSERVED LOCATIONS. BUT
THE TRUTH IS WE THIS IS GOING TO
REQUIRE AN ONGOING INVESTMENT BY
CALIFORNIA. GREAT. THANK YOU.
I'D LIKE TO OPEN UP THE FLOOR.
COMMITTEE MEMBERS. MR PATTERSON.
PLEASE. YEAH. APPRECIATE THE, UH
. I. I WANNA GET DIRECTLY TO
SOME SPECIFIC QUESTIONS WITH
RESPECT TO THE TO THE PU èC IN
REVIEWING YOUR, UH, INITIAL
PROPOSAL VOLUME TWO. UH, THERE
ARE SOME, UH LANGUAGE THAT SAYS.
YOUR MODELING SUGGESTS FUNDS
AVAILABLE THROUGH BEED COULD
POSSIBLY PROVIDE FIBER TO THE
PREMISES. TO A SUBSTANTIAL
PORTION. THAT'S CONCERNING TO ME
BECAUSE BEAD WAS INTENDED TO
PROVIDE UNIVERSAL SERVICE. FIRST
OF ALL WE'RE GONNA HAVE. DO YOU
HAVE ENOUGH MONEY TO ACHIEVE
UNIVERSAL SERVICE? SECONDLY,
WILL YOU USE FIXED WIRELESS AND
OTHER TECHNOLOGIES RATHER THAN
JUST FIBER TO MAKE SURE THAT
HAPPENS? AND CAN YOU COMMIT THAT
RURAL RESIDENCE, PARTICULARLY IN
DISTRICTS LIKE MINE, WHICH IS A
HUGE DISTRICT. WILL NOT BE LEFT
BEHIND. IF YOU RUN OUT OF MONEY.
I, UH THANK YOU, UM, ASSEMBLY
MEMBER PATTERSON FOR THOSE
QUESTIONS. UM THE FIRST IS, AS I
NOTED TO THE CHAIR. CURRENTLY
CALIFORNIA DOES NEED TO CONTINUE
LOOKING AT MAKING FUTURE
INVESTMENTS IN ORDER TO MAKE
SURE THAT WE DELIVER ON
UNIVERSAL SERVICE. WE HAVE A
HISTORIC INVESTMENT NOW, AND WE
NEED TO CONTINUE THAT COMMITMENT
AND BRING MORE DOLLARS TO THE
TABLE THAT'S FOR FUTURE
DISCUSSION. UM SECOND TO YOUR
QUESTION ABOUT IS THAT AN ANSWER
? MAYBE WE HAVE ENOUGH MONEY. WE
DON'T NOW AT PRESENT. WE DO NOT
HAVE ENOUGH MONEY RIGHT NOW. SO
THE ANSWER TO MY FIRST QUESTION
IS NÓ. YOU DON'T HAVE ENOUGH TO
MAKE IT UNIVERSAL. AT PRESENT,
GIVEN THE LEVEL OF NEED IN
CALIFORNIA, NÓ WE DON'T
CALIFORNIA HAS YET TO MAKE A
FULL INVESTMENT IN DELIVERING
UNIVERSAL SERVICE AND THE NEXT
AND THEN THE NEXT QUESTION I TO
FIXED WIRELESS AND OTHER
TECHNOLOGY THAT CAN ACHIEVE THE
SAME UP AND DOWN AND ALL OF THAT
THERE'S GOING TO BE LOTS OF
PLACES IN CALIFORNIA. YOU'RE NOT
GOING TO BE ABLE TO GET UH, TO
GET, UH, THE BROADBAND FIBER?
UH, IT IS JUST GONNA BE. COST
PROHIBITIVE. YOU EVEN SUGGEST
THAT IN THE YOUR PROPOSAL
VOLUME. TWO. SO YOU ARE. I'M
GONNA JUST ASK DIRECTLY YOU WILL
BE LOOKING FOR ALTERNATIVES LIKE
FIXED WIRELESS. COMPLETE. THAT
THAT LAST MILE? YES ASSEMBLY
MEMBER? YES THERE THERE. I HAVE
A GOOD ANSWER FOR YOU, UM, FIXED
WIRELESS AND A NUMBER OF
TECHNOLOGIES ARE ALREADY
ELIGIBLE UNDER BEAD. YES. UM,
I'D LIKE TO ADDRESS L A Ó.
QUICKLY. UM. IT APPEARS WE'RE
GOING TO HAVE WHAT AMOUNTS TO A
STATE OWNED MIDDLE MILE. AS THE
L Ó SCENE AND OPERATIONS AND
MAINTENANCE PLAN FOR THAT
INFRASTRUCTURE AND HAS THE L A
Ó SEEN A BUSINESS PLAN. NÓ WE
HAVE NOT SEEN A MAINTENANCE AND
OPERATIONS PLAN FOR THE NETWORK.
WE'RE AWARE THAT èC Dð Tð IS
DOING MARKET SOUNDING TO TRY TO
UNDERSTAND WHAT MAINTENANCE AND
OPERATIONS OF THAT NETWORK WOULD
LOOK LIKE. AND THE THIRD PARTY
ADMINISTRATOR FOR THE NETWORK,
GOLDEN STATE NET, IS ALSO TRYING
TO FORECAST CUSTOMER REVENUES TO
UNDERSTAND HOW MUCH COULD BE
USED TO MAINTAIN AND OPERATE THE
NETWORK. UM BUT THAT WORK IS, AS
THEY SAID, EXTREMELY CHALLENGING
THAT III. I UNDERSTAND THAT
WITHOUT THAT KIND INFORMATION.
SELF SUSTAINING. WITHOUT THE
BUSINESS PLAN OR WITHOUT KNOWING
ESTIMATES OF OPERATIONS COSTS.
AND IF IT IS NOT SELF SUSTAINING
DOESN'T THAT MEAN WE'RE GOING TO
START SEEING PRESSURE ON THE
GENERAL FUND? UM, IT'S TOO EARLY
TO SAY WHETHER WE'LL SEE
PRESSURE TO THE GENERAL FUND. UM
THE STATED GOAL OF CDT IS TO
MAKE IT A SELF SUSTAINING
NETWORK. UM BUT WE'RE AWAITING
MORE INFORMATION ON THAT. AND
FINALLY, UH, HERE, YOU SEE A
STATED THAT ENSURING ACCESS TO
UNSERVED HOUSEHOLDS POPULATIONS
IS THAT I THINK A BILLY A $9
BILLION PROBLEM. I'M JUST GONNA
ASK ELLA. OH, STRAIGHT OUT
QUESTION. GIVEN THE FUNDING THAT
WE HAVE THE REPORTING THAT WE'RE
GETTING THE ADMISSION THAT THERE
WILL BE IN FACT SHORTFALLS. UH,
DO YOU THINK THAT THERE IS A
ANYWAY THAT WE WILL DELIVER ON
THE PROMISE OF BROADBAND FOR ALL
BECAUSE IT SOUNDS LIKE THERE
WILL BE BROAD BAND FOR SOME, BUT
NOT BROADBAND FOR ALL. NOT
ENOUGH MONEY AND DIFFICULTY AND
DEPLOYMENT. THAT'S A DIFFICULT
QUESTION TO ANSWER. UM. IT WILL
LARGELY DEPEND ON THE
IMPLEMENTATION OF THE THREE
STATE BROADBAND PROGRAMS AND
PROJECTS AND I THINK THAT
LEGISLATIVE OVERSIGHT OF THOSE
EFFORTS IS CRITICAL. TO
ACHIEVING THE IMPLEMENTATION
THAT DOES PROVIDE UNSERVED AND
UNDERSERVED AREAS OF THE STATE
WITH BROADBAND ACCESS. AT THIS
TIME, WE'RE VERY MUCH MOVING
INTO THE IMPLEMENTATION. THERE
ARE STILL A LOT OF UNKNOWNS AND
INFORMATION THAT NEEDS TO BE
GATHERED TO BE ABLE TO MAKE THAT
DETERMINATION. AND I THINK THAT
THAT'S PART OF THE LEGISLATURE'S
ROLE IS TO GET THAT INFORMATION
AND TO USE IT TO MAKE THESE
DECISIONS DO WE? DO WE HAVE A
COMMITMENT THAT YOU'RE NOT GOING
TO LEAVE. THESE RURAL AREAS
BEHIND IF YOU RUN OUT OF MONEY
SO ASSEMBLYMEMBER'S WE HAVE A
COMMITMENT TO DELIVER, UM LAST
MILE NETWORKS UNDER THE TERMS OF
THE THREE PROGRAMS THAT EXISTS
NOW EQUALLY EQUITABLY THROUGHOUT
THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA. AND SO
RURAL COMMUNITIES ARE JUST AS
PRIORITIZED AS ANY OTHER
COMMUNITY. NOW YOU ARE BRINGING
UP A VERY GOOD POINT, WHICH IS
THAT OVERALL, THE STATE STILL
NEEDS TO SEE CONTINUED
INVESTMENT IN THE FUTURE INTO
MAKING SURE THAT BROADBAND IS
TRULY ACHIEVED. UM OR UNIVERSAL
SERVICE IS TRULY ACHIEVED ACROSS
THE STATE AT THE MOMENT UNDER
THE PROGRAMS THAT WE HAVE TODAY,
WHERE WE'RE LOOKING AT INVESTING
THE BILLIONS THAT WE HAVE. TODAY
THERE IS AN EQUITABLE ATTENTION
BEING PAID ON RURAL COMMUNITIES
JUST AS MUCH ON AS ON URBAN
COMMUNITIES FOLLOW THAT THAT THE
CALIFORNIA ADVANCED SERVICE FUND
ORIGINALLY HAD A 5050 SPLIT
BETWEEN URBAN AND RURAL. THE PUC
HAVE A COMMITMENT THAT THERE
WILL STILL BE THAT 5050. AT THE
RURAL WILL HAVE A PLACE AT THE
TABLE. JUST AS IMPORTANT AND
SIGNIFICANT. AS THE HIGH DENSITY
POPULATED AREAS. YES,
ASSEMBLYMEMBER'S THANK YOU.
THANK YOU. CHAIR. THANK YOU ONTO
MR BRYANT. THANK YOU, MR CHAIR,
AND IT'S GOOD TO JOIN YOU HERE
THIS MORNING. UM THINKING ABOUT
THE CHAIRS, QUESTION AND MR
PATTERSON'S AS WELL. NOT BEING
ABLE TO COVER THE WHOLE STATE.
IT SEEMS LIKE THE MATERIALS THAT
WE WERE GIVEN A DAY SHOW THAT
ABOUT 84% OF THE STATE WILL BE
COVERED WITH THE CURRENT
INVESTMENT IN 16% OF THE STATE'S
UNDERSERVED COMMUNITIES LEFT
BEHIND. ANY DEMOGRAPHICS ARE
CHARACTERISTICS OF THAT 16% THAT
ARE STRIKING TO YOU. SO, UM.
YEAH IT SOUNDS LIKE YOU'RE
SLICING AND DICING USING THE
MATERIALS ASSEMBLYMEMBER'S ER I
DID READ THEM. I HAVE I HARD TO
ANSWER THAT QUESTION ON THE FLY.
BECAUSE I'M NOT EXACTLY CERTAIN
WHAT YOU'RE REFERRING TO. UM BUT
IT LOOKS LIKE MY COLLEAGUE HAS A
RESPONSE. SO I AGAIN IF YOU ARE
SLICING AND DICING AND MAKING
IT, UH, ABOUT THE NUMBERS, I
THINK I WOULD GO BACK TO A
COUPLE OF THINGS. ONE THE
FEDERAL FUNDING ACCOUNT, WHICH
IS THE $2 BILLION APPROXIMATELY
$2 BILLION ACCOUNTS AS AN
EMPHASIS ON HOW WE'RE GOING TO
PRIORITIZE THOSE, UH THOSE AND
EVALUATE THOSE GRANT
APPLICATIONS. NO I'M
SPECIFICALLY AROUND WHETHER
THEY'RE AIMING TO REACH. UM WHAT
ARE DEFINED AS UNDERSERVED
COMMUNITIES, DISADVANTAGED
COMMUNITIES OR LOW INCOME
COMMUNITIES WHERE THEY'RE ON
AFFORDABILITY. UM ON GENERAL
VIABILITY OF THE APPLICATION AS
WELL. AND SO WE'RE REALLY TRYING
TO TARGET THE FEDERAL FUNDING
ACCOUNT TOWARDS AREAS THAT ARE
TEND TO BE LEFT BEHIND GENERALLY
, OR HAVE A HARDER TIME GETTING
ATTENTION FROM GENERAL INDUSTRY
AND FOR THE N T I FOR THE BEAD
PROGRAM AND NT TO WE DO HAVE ONE
OF THE GOALS OF THE NT I A IS
THAT WE HAVE TO THE STATE HAS TO
AIM TO REACH 100% COVERAGE WITH
THE ALLOCATION, SO THAT MEANS
ALL OF THE AREAS THAT ARE GOING
TO BE IDENTIFIED BY ANTI A AND
GO THROUGH THE CHALLENGE
PROCESS. AFTER THE MAP. AFTER WE
GO THROUGH THAT WE HAVE, UH N T.
I IS ASKING STATES TO AIM TO
REACH 100% COVERAGE OF ALL OF
THOSE LOCATIONS, WHICH ARE
SCATTERED THROUGHOUT THE STATE
IN BOTH URBAN AND RURAL
COMMUNITIES. AND I THINK THAT
THAT BRINGS ME TO SIMILAR
THOUGHTS AS AS MY COLLEAGUE.
FROM FRESNO, RIGHT THAT IF
EXISTING FUNDING ISN'T ENOUGH TO
COVER THE STATE AND MEET 100%
GOLD IN CERTAIN COMMUNITIES ARE
GONNA GET LEFT BEHIND IN THE
COMMUNITY THAT HAVE BEEN LEFT
BEHIND. IT APPEARS FROM THE
CURRENT MAPS AND DESIGN OF
STRIKING CHARACTERISTICS OF
BEING UNDERSERVED IN OTHER
CAPACITIES BY STATE INVESTMENTS
THERE. COMMUNITIES OF COLOR.
THEY ARE BLACK COMMUNITIES IN
BOTH NORTHERN AND SOUTHERN
CALIFORNIA. THAT'S THAT'S JUST
DEEPLY CONCERNING TO ME. SO I
GUESS MY SECOND QUESTION AND
LAST QUESTION IS THAT THERE'S
BEEN CLAIMS FROM A LOT OF
ADVOCATES AND ORGANIZERS THAT
THEY JUST CAN'T GET IN TOUCH
WITH THE P U C OR C, D T THAT
THEY DON'T FEEL HEARD THAT THEY
FIND IT VERY DIFFICULT TO PLAY A
ROLE IN THIS PROCESS, IF NOT
IMPOSSIBLE, DESPITE BEING AS
WELL ORGANIZED AS A COMMUNITY
THAT DOESN'T HAVE INTERNET
ACCESS CAN BE, AND I ALSO THINK
THAT THAT IS AN INTERESTING
POINT, GIVEN THAT THE OPENING
STATEMENTS FROM CDT INCLUDED LÀ
USD 600,000 STUDENTS AND THE
STRUGGLES THAT THEY HAD A
DISPROPORTIONATE SHARE OF THOSE
STUDENTS CAME FROM COMMUNITIES
THAT HAVE BEEN LEFT OUT OF THE
CURRENT PROCESS. AND SO HOW DO
WE MAKE SURE THAT WITH
ADDITIONAL INVESTMENT IF WE WERE
TO ALLOW THIS TO HAPPEN THAT
EQUITY, UM AND COVERAGE REACHES
THAT 100% GOAL IN A WAY THAT IS
COMMUNITY DRIVEN AND INFORMED BY
FOLKS WHO WANT TO HAVE A ROLE IN
THIS PROCESS. THANK YOU FOR THAT
FOR THE QUESTION
ASSEMBLYMEMBER'S SO I WAS
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR HAVE AN OPEN
DOOR POLICY AND I ASKED MY TEAM
TO HAVE AN OPEN DOOR POLICY AS
WELL. I CAN ACTUALLY TELL YOU
THAT OUR TEAM HAS MET WITH
ADVOCATES FROM, UM GROUPS AND
ORGANIZATIONS ACROSS THE STATE
MULTIPLE TIMES DURING THE FAA
GRANT SETUP AND DISTRIBUTION
PROCESS. I'M ALWAYS HAPPY. I DO
DIRECT MY TEAM TO HAVE THAT OPEN
DOOR, SO WE'RE ALWAYS HAPPY TO
MEET FURTHER. THE OTHER GOOD
THING ABOUT, UM HAVING A
COMMITTEE, A UTILITY COMMISSION
DELIVER ON PART OF THE BROADBAND
INITIATIVE IS THAT WE OURSELVES
ARE A PUBLIC AGENCY. WE
OURSELVES HAVE OPEN PROCEEDINGS.
AND A NUMBER OF THE ADVOCACY
GROUPS ARE PARTIES TO OUR BEAD
AND F F A PROCEEDING AND THERE
THEY HAVE THE CHANCE TO PUT
THEIR COMMENTS IN IN A FORMAL
MANNER. THOSE ARE THEN
CONSIDERED BY THE COMMISSIONERS
WHEN THEY'RE REACHING PROPOSED
DECISIONS AS WE ROLL OUT THESE
PROGRAMS, SO THERE ARE MULTIPLE
WAYS BOTH THE INFORMAL STAFF
CONVERSATIONS THAT WE'VE ALREADY
HAD AND WILL CONTINUE TO HAVE
AND THEN THE FORMAL PROCESS BY
WHICH PUBLIC COMMENTS CAN BE
MADE. THANK YOU. MOVING ON TO
MISS BERNIE. THANK YOU AND I
WANT TO THANK CHAIR VALENCIA FOR
PULLING US OUT TOGETHER TODAY. I
THINK YOU CAN SEE YOU HAVE A
BUNCH OF VERY PASSIONATE
LEGISLATORS HERE WHO REPRESENT
VARIOUS PARTS OF THE STATE. AND
I THINK MOST OF THESE PEOPLE WE
HAVE THE CHAIR WITH A LOCK. WE
HAVE MOST OF THE MOVERS AND
SHAKERS THAT ARE IN THE
BROADBAND SPACE. SO THANK YOU
FOR PULLING US TOGETHER FOR
TODAY. UM, I WANT TO POINT OUT
THAT, UNLIKE CDT, WHERE THE
FINAL DECISION MAKERS THE
GOVERNOR, THE CPU SEE THE FINAL
DECISION MAKERS OF THE
COMMISSIONERS, AND IT'S
UNFORTUNATE THAT NONE OF THE
COMMISSIONERS COULD JOIN US
TODAY BECAUSE THEY ARE THE ONES
THAT MAKE THE DECISION. SO IT'S
FINE THAT YOU HAVE AN OPEN DOOR
POLICIES, BUT THE COMMISSIONERS
DON'T AND THEIR DECISION MAKERS
AND WE ALL HAVE AN OPEN DOOR
POLICY. FOR MAKING THOSE
DECISIONS, AND SO WHEN WE LOOK
AT WHAT IT'S GONNA TAKE TO SERVE
THE UNDERSERVED AND UNSERVED IN
CALIFORNIA WITH A 6 BILLION THAT
WE HAVE IN FRONT OF US, I ALSO
WANT TO POINT OUT THAT WE'RE ONE
OF THE FEW STATES WHO DIVIDE UP
BETWEEN THE CPU C AND THE C D. T
THE MIDDLE OF THE LAST MILE. THE
LAST MILE IS NOT A GOAL IN AND
OF ITSELF. IT SERVES NO PURPOSE
IF IT DOESN'T CONNECT THE LAST
MILE BECAUSE OUR MEASURE OF
SUCCESS FOR ALL OF US UP HERE IS
THAT OUR PEOPLE ARE SERVED. SO
THE MIDDLE MILE. IT'S GREAT THAT
YOU'VE GONE FORWARD WITH YOUR
PLANNING. BUT THE CPSC
ORIGINALLY WHEN ASSEMBLYMEMBER'S
QUIRK-SILVA WAS CHAIR OF C AND C
YOU GUYS SAID YOU'RE GOING TO BE
OPENING APPLICATIONS AND THEY
WOULD BE ALLOCATED BY THE END OF
2022. IT IS NOW 2024. AND YOU'RE
SAYING MAYBE WE'RE GONNA KNOW SO
WHERE YOU'VE GONE FORWARD AND
WE'VE BUILT THIS MINUTE. WE'RE
PLANNING THE MIDDLE MILE
ALLOCATING, LEE SAYS YOU'RE
WELCOME THIS $1.5 BILLION AND WE
DON'T KNOW HOW MANY LAST MILE
HOUSEHOLDS ARE SERVED. I ASKED
IN THE LAST MIDDLE MILE ADVISORY
COUNCIL. I ASKED HOW MANY OF THE
F F A APPLICATIONS? I THINK
THERE WERE OVER 500 IF I'M
CORRECT, RIGHT. OVER 500 HOW
MANY ARE PROPOSING TO CONNECT
THAT MIDDLE MILE? BECAUSE IF
WE'RE SPENDING $1.5 BILLION FOR
20 PROJECTS THAT CONNECT 20,000
PEOPLE. THAT MIDDLE MILE MONEY
IS BETTER USED TO CONNECT THE
PORTION OF OUR POPULATIONS AND
ALL OF OUR COMMUNITIES WHO ARE
UNSERVED. SO I'D LIKE TO ASK
AGAIN. HOW MANY OF THE F F A
LAST MILE APPLICATIONS ARE
PROPOSING TO CONNECT TO ANY PART
OF THE MIDDLE MILE. GOOD MORNING
. ASSEMBLYMEMBER'S THANK YOU FOR
THE QUESTION RIGHT NOW. 340 HAVE
SAID THEY EITHER WILL OR MAY
CONNECT TO THE STATEWIDE MIDDLE
MILE NETWORK. OKAY SO THAT'S A
DIFFERENT NUMBER. WHEN I ASKED
AND THE LAST MIDDLE MILE
ADVISORY COUNCIL, I GOT THE
ANSWER SEVERAL AND I SAID, DOES
THAT MEAN FIVE, SO 340 IS VERY
DIFFERENT THAN SEVERAL. I
APPRECIATE THAT. I WASN'T AT
THAT PARTICULAR MEETING, SO I
CAN'T SPEAK TO THE NUMBER GIVEN
AT THAT TIME WE ARE IN. AS YOU
KNOW, WE'RE IN THE MIDST OF THE
DUE PROCESS PORTION OF ALL THIS
AND SO ON OCCASION. IT COULD BE
HARD FOR US TO GIVE INFORMATION.
BUT UM, I ASKED THE TEAM TO PREP
FOR US FOR TODAY, AND 340 IS THE
CURRENT COUNT. THEY WILL OR THEY
MAY IT'S BOTH. WHAT IS THAT
MEAN? FOR YOU? THE WILL AND THE
MAY WELL, UM, THERE ARE A NUMBER
OF THE NEW ENTRANCE TO THIS
MARKETPLACE, THE SPECIAL
DISTRICTS, THE LOCAL GOVERNMENTS
, THE TRIBES WHO HAVE SAID THEY
WILL UM, BECAUSE THEY HAVE THEY
NEED THAT CONNECTION TO THE
STATEWIDE MIDDLE MILE NETWORK.
AND THEN THERE ARE OTHER, UM,
PROVIDERS WHO HAVE WHO ARE NOT
THE SAME NEW ENTRANTS WHO HAVE
POSSIBLY MORE EXPERIENCE IN THIS
AREA WHO SAID THAT THEY MAY IT
MIGHT DEPEND ON THE FINAL DESIGN
OF THEIR NETWORK. UM WE'RE NOT
SURE WHY THEY SAY MAY BUT THAT'S
WHAT THEY'RE THAT'S WHAT
THEY'RE, UM THEY'RE PUBLIC
STATEMENTS ARE AND AT THE RISK
OF GOING BACK TO OLD TERMINOLOGY
. WE HAD A WHOLE DISCUSSION. THE
INTERCESSION LAST YEAR, UH, YOU
KNOW, CHAMPIONED BY
ASSEMBLYMEMBER'S BONTA AND
WILSON. AROUND WHAT WE USED TO
CALL PHASE ONE PHASE TWO MIDDLE
MILE. OTHERS 340 APPLICATIONS.
YOU KNOW HOW MANY ARE PLANNING?
UH TO CONNECT TO ANY OF THE
CONSTRUCT BUILD PARTS OF THE
MIDDLE MILE, WHICH ARE IN
HISTORICALLY DISADVANTAGED
COMMUNITIES. SO THAT QUESTION AS
OF TODAY, ASSEMBLYMEMBER'S I
CAN'T ANSWER, BUT THAT'S A
SUBJECT OF ONGOING DISCUSSION
AND PARTNERSHIP BETWEEN US AND C
D T. WE ABSOLUTELY RECOGNIZED
THE IMPORTANCE OF CONNECTING
THOSE WHO ARE CONNECTING THE
DISADVANTAGED COMMUNITIES TO THE
MIDDLE MILE NETWORK. WHAT I CAN
SAY IS THAT AMONG THE NEW
ENTRANCE, THE SPECIAL DISTRICTS,
LOCAL GOVERNMENTS, UM THERE IS A
1.8 IF YOU SUM ALL OF THEIR
APPLICATIONS TOGETHER, IT'S SUMS
TO 1.8 BILLION, SO THEY ARE
PRESENTING $1.8 BILLION IN
PROPOSALS THAT WOULD LEVERAGE
THE MIDDLE MILE NETWORK. THAT'S
FINE. I THINK WHAT'S IMPORTANT
IS FOR YOU TO GET TO BACK TO ALL
OF US ON WHAT PART OF THE MIDDLE
MILE NETWORK BECAUSE CDT HAS THE
LEAST BUILD, AND THEN THEY
CONSTRUCT, BUILD, AT LEAST BUILD
IS IN HISTORICALLY SERVED AREAS
AND THEN CONSTRUCTION PART IS IN
HISTORICALLY UNDERSERVED AREAS
OR UNSERVED AREAS, AND I THINK
IT'S VERY IMPORTANT THAT WHEN WE
USE THIS, WE'RE INVESTING. AND
IF A LOT OF THOSE APPLICATIONS
IN IT IN OUR UNSERVED
POPULATIONS ARE IN HISTORICALLY
UNDERSERVED OR UNSERVED AREAS
AND THEIR CONSTRUCT BUILD. THAT
IS A GOOD INVESTMENT FOR
CALIFORNIA. BUT IF THERE'S ONE
APPLICATION. THEN THAT'S NOT A
GREAT INVESTMENT, SO WE HAVE
WHEN WE'RE LOOKING AT IT REALLY
DIFFICULT BUDGET YEAR AND WE'RE
LOOKING AT HOW WE'RE ALLOCATING
THESE MONIES. WE HAVE TO KNOW.
ARE WE DOING? ARE WE CORRECTING
THE WRONGS OF THE PAST? AND ARE
WE DOING THE RIGHT THING FOR
CALIFORNIA AND I HAVE LOTS OF
MORE QUESTIONS, BUT I'M GONNA
LET OTHER PEOPLE SPEAK FOR A
WHILE. THANK YOU. WE WILL NOW
MOVE ON TO RESPOND TO THANK YOU.
I'LL JUST START WITH SOME
INITIAL QUESTIONS. I MIGHT HAVE
SOME OTHERS AS WELL. THANK YOU,
TOO. UH CHER OF R C AND C
COMMITTEE FOR LOOSENING SOME OF
THE CHALLENGES THAT I HAVE. I
WANT TO FOCUS ON SPECIFICALLY ON
THE LAST MILE BROUGHT BROADBAND
INITIATIVES AND THE FLOW OF THE
FUNDING THROUGH THE LOCAL AGENCY
TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE GRANTS AND
THAT FEDERAL FUNDING ACCOUNTS.
SO UH, STATED THAT, UH, 106
GRANTS WERE AWARDED 92 TRIBES 42
, 2 CITIES 45 2 COUNTIES. OF
THOSE AND THAT, UH, 75% OF THE
PEOPLE WHO APPLIED FOR A LOT OF
FUNDING ENDED UP RECEIVING FAA
FUNDING. OF THOSE WHO RECEIVED
FAA, A FUNDING THE NINE TRIBES
WHO APPLIED FOR TECHNICAL
ASSISTANCE FUNDING. WE'RE ALL
NINE TRIBES FUNDED. WITH F F A
FUNDING. SO ASSEMBLYMEMBER'S
THANK YOU FOR THE QUESTION. I'LL
JUST START BY CLARIFYING THEY
HAVE APPLIED. OUR FIRST GRANT
ROLLOUT AS ASSEMBLY BIMMER
WARNER WAS ASKING. THE FIRST
GRANT ROLLOUT IS ANTICIPATED IN
JUNE OF THIS YEAR, SO THERE
HASN'T BEEN ANY ACTUAL FUNDING
YET. UM BUT TO THE DETAIL OF
YOUR QUESTION, AS FAR AS THE
TRIBES THAT HAVE APPLIED, LET ME
TURN TO MARIA. WE RECEIVED
APPLICATIONS FROM TRIBAL NATIONS
FOR THE FEDERAL FUNDING ACCOUNT.
OKAY AND OF THE 42 CITIES THAT
APPLIED FOR LOCAL AGENCY TECH
TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE GRANTS. HOW
MANY QUALIFY AS LOW INCOME
CITIES OR URBAN CITIES. I'D HAVE
TO DO THAT ANALYSIS AND WE CAN
CERTAINLY FOLLOW UP WITH YOU. I
DON'T HAVE ALL OF THE GRANT
APPLICATIONS IN FRONT OF ME, BUT
WE CAN CERTAINLY FOLLOW UP WITH
THAT ANALYSIS, THEN KIND OF
GIVEN THAT QUESTION. YOU ALSO
DON'T RESPOND TO ALSO DON'T HAVE
A SENSE OF HOW MANY OF THE 42
CITIES ENDED UP APPLYING FOR
FUNDING THAT WOULD QUALIFY AS AS
LOW INCOME. WE HAVE 109 APPLE
109 AWARDS THAT WE SORRY. PARDON
ME, 100 AND SIX AWARDS THAT WE
MADE IN THE LOT OF PROGRAM. WE
KNOW THAT ROUGHLY, UH, FOR 3/4
OF THOSE, UM, WERE ABLE TO
PARTICIPATE IN FIFA APPLICATIONS
. YOU ALREADY GAVE ME THAT
INFORMATION. I'M SPECIFICALLY
ASKING ABOUT LOW INCOME
COMMUNITIES WITHIN THE 42 THAT
APPLIED FOR LADA AND WHAT THE
REPRESENTATION OF THAT WAS WITH
IT WITHIN THE FAA FUNDING,
CERTAINLY, AND WE CAN FOLLOW UP
WITH THAT ANALYSIS OF WITH YOU.
OKAY SO THE ANSWER IS THAT WE
ACTUALLY DON'T HAVE THAT
INFORMATION AVAILABLE TO US TO
KNOW THE EXTENT TO WHICH THERE
IS ACTUAL TARGETING FROM AN
EQUITY BASED PERSPECTIVE AROUND
THE TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE GRANTS
THAT WERE PROVIDED. AND THEN THE
APPLICATION. THE CONVERSION OF
THOSE TWO APPLICATIONS FOR
PARTICULARLY LOW INCOME
COMMUNITIES. I THINK THAT
INFORMATION DECISIONS IS
AVAILABLE. NOT TODAY. NOT TODAY,
BUT WE CERTAINLY CAN GET THAT
INFORMATION AND I WOULD ADD TO
THAT. UM WE DO SEE THAT A LOT OF
THE PUBLIC AGENCIES THAT ARE, UM
ARE HAVE PUT FORTH APPLICATIONS
ARE REALLY TRYING TO HAVE A
FOCUS ON EQUITY. AND SO I THINK
THAT IS SOMETHING THAT, UM,
CERTAINLY WILL SHOW UP IN THE
SCORING PROBABLY AS WELL IN THE
SCORING. OKAY I'M GONNA MOVE ON
TO SOME QUESTIONS AROUND THE
MIDDLE MYELIN SPECIFICALLY, YOU
KNOW, NOT ALL MIDDLE MILE IS THE
SAME BETWEEN CONSTRUCTION. UM
AND LEASING. WE KNOW THAT THAT
LEASING I WANT TO GET A LITTLE
BIT INTO THE WEEDS ON THIS,
BECAUSE, UH, MY UNDERSTANDING IS
THAT THERE ARE VERY SPECIFIC
DIFFERENCES IN TERMS OF THE
QUALITY AND LONG TERM ACCESS
BETWEEN LEASING VERSUS
CONSTRUCTING. AND UH, I WANTED
TO GET A SENSE RIGHT NOW FROM
MIDDLE MILE FUNDING. UH GIVEN
THE FACT THAT LISA'S THEY LAST
THERE THERE, IT'S A LEASE. IT'S
NOT OWNED BY THE STATE. WE'RE
MAKING A HUGE INVESTMENT RIGHT
NOW. THE MAJORITY OF THE
INVESTMENTS THAT YOU SHARED
INDICATED THAT THEY WERE
PRIMARILY LEAST DO YOU HAVE A
SENSE OF THE OVERALL PORTFOLIO
OF LEASE VERSUS? UH VERSUS BUILD
AND WHERE THOSE LEASES ARE
HAPPENING. AND I'M PARTICULARLY
INTERESTED ON WHETHER THERE IS
AN OVERREPRESENTATION OF LEASES
WITHIN OUR, UH URBAN CORRIDORS,
PLACES LIKE ENGLEWOOD. OAKLAND
SPECIFICALLY. YES I WILL TRY TO
ANSWER THAT QUESTION. UM, THE,
UH IT IS NOTED. WE HAVE A TOTAL
OF, UH, 3484 MILES OF LEASES
THAT WE'VE SIGNED IN TERMS OF
THE TERM. THE STANDARD IS 20
YEARS. WE'VE THE WAY WE'VE DONE.
IT IS WE CAN EXTEND THE, UM THEM
FOR ANOTHER 20 YEARS. SO TOTAL
OF 40 YEARS. UM, BUT I ALSO NOTE
THAT 2500 MILES IS JUST FROM ONE
LEASE. AND WE HAVE BASICALLY 120
YEARS WE CAN EXTEND IT FIVE
TIMES FOR 120 TOTAL OF 100 AND
20 YEARS. SO, UM, WE THINK IN
TERMS OF THE TIME WE THINK WE'RE
GONNA THIS IS IN TERMS OF THE
TECHNOLOGY WE'RE TALKING ABOUT.
I THINK THAT'S UH WE'RE
CONFIDENT THAT THAT'S GOING TO
GIVE US WHAT WE NEED IN TERMS OF
THE UM WHAT WE'RE ACTUALLY DOING
WITH THOSE LEASES. I KNOW THERE
WAS. THERE'S BEEN SOME CONCERN
THAT THE. RELEASING ANY
EQUIPMENT THAT FOR RELEASING A
SEGMENT THAT PERHAPS THERE WOULD
BE NOT THE SAME QUALITY. AND SO
WHAT WE'VE DONE WITH ALL OF OUR
LEASES IS TO HAVE OUR PARTNERS
PULL NEW FIBER FOR US, SO
THEY'LL BE EVERYBODY WHO'S
GETTING A LEAST SEGMENT WILL BE
GETTING, UH, THE SAME NEW FIBER
THAT WE WILL BE PUTTING IN, UM
SAME NEW ELECTRONIC. SO THERE
THERE'S GOING TO BE QUITE
QUALITATIVELY. IT'S GOING TO BE
THE SAME THING. UM THE ONE
ADVANTAGE FOR A LOT OF THOSE
LEASES IS FOR THE MAJORITY OF
THOSE LEASES IS THAT THE
CONDUITS ALREADY IN THE GROUND,
AND SO, UM, YOU MIGHT HAVE, UH,
NOTED IN MY IN MY PRESENTATION,
THE DISCUSSION OF SOME SEGMENTS
BEING ABLE TO START TO LIGHT UP
IN 25 OR 26 EARLIER THAN THE
FEDERAL DEADLINE, AND THAT'S DUE
PRIMARILY BECAUSE FOR THOSE
LEASES WE'RE GOING TO HAVE, UH,
ACTUAL LIT FIBER. WE'LL HAVE THE
INFRASTRUCTURE IN THE GROUND AND
FUNCTIONAL EARLIER THAN THE
DECEMBER 2026 DEADLINE. WHAT
HAPPENS AFTER THE 20 YEARS?
WHERE DOES THE CAPITAL
INVESTMENT COME FOR RENEWAL OF
THOSE LEASES? THAT WILL HAVE TO
COME FROM THE REVENUES FROM ON
THE NETWORK. THAT WOULD BE THE
EXPECTATION DO YOU HAVE ANY
PROJECTIONS AT ALL? WHETHER THE
REVENUES FROM THE NETWORK ARE
ACTUALLY GOING TO BE ABLE TO
COVER THE INVESTMENTS THAT ARE
MADE? IN ORDER TO BE ABLE TO
SUPPORT THAT OVER TIME. THAT'S
PART OF WHAT WE'RE TRYING TO
ACHIEVE WITH THE CURRENT MARKET
SOUNDING EFFORT, I THINK BROADLY
SPEAKING OR WORK. WE'VE GIVEN
THE INFRASTRUCTURE THAT WE'RE
BUILDING THE FACT THAT IT IS
STATEWIDE THE FACT THAT IT
CONNECTS EVERY COUNTY OF THE
STATE AND RUN STATEWIDE. I THINK
OVER TIME, THERE'S A HIGH LEVEL
OF CONFIDENCE THAT THERE WILL BE
SUFFICIENT REVENUES TO BE ABLE
TO, UM TO PAY FOR THEIR EXTEND
THOSE LEASES. UM YOU KNOW, AND
IN THE OUT YEARS, SO BUT BUT
WE'RE DOING MORE WORK ON THAT.
SO THE ANSWER IS MAYBE WITH THE
HIGH LEVEL OF CONFIDENCE. I JUST
HAVE A DEEP CONCERN THAT WE ARE
RELYING ON A STRATEGY RIGHT NOW
TO HAVE. LISA'S PURCHASED AND WE
KNOW I KNOW WHERE THOSE LEASES
ARE PURCHASED THEIR PRIMARILY IN
URBAN CORRIDORS WHERE THERE IS
EXISTING FIBER WHERE WE HAVE TO
ADD TO REALLY FIGHT FOR A
GUARANTEE THAT THOSE LEAST THE
QUALITY OF THOSE THAT FIBER THAT
CONNECTIVITY WOULD BE
COMMENSURATE WITH WHAT THAT
WOULD WHICH WOULD BE BUILT AND
WE DON'T HAVE A PLAN FOR
ENSURING THAT THERE IS FUNDING
FOR THAT INITIAL INVESTMENT FOR
LEASES OVER TIME. WE ARE HIGHLY
CONFIDENT, UM. I MAKE A DECISION
TO BUY A HOUSE. I HAVE A SENSE
OF WHAT? THAT WHAT? WHAT? THE
HOUSE COSTS. I KNOW THE
DIFFERENCE BETWEEN WHAT THE
HOUSE COSTS AND WHAT I OWN
VERSUS VERSUS RENTING. AND I,
AND I KNOW THAT WHEN I RENT
SOMETHING I HAVE IT FOR A LITTLE
WHILE AND I HAVE NOT A LOT OF
CONTROL AROUND WHETHER OR NOT I
GET TO OCCUPY THAT RENTAL SPACE
WHEN I OWN SOMETHING. I KNOW
THAT IT'S IN MY HANDS TO BE ABLE
TO UNDERSTAND THE QUALITY OF THE
PLACE ON THAT. I'M LIVING. I
THINK THAT I HAVE A GRAVE
CONCERN WITH THE FACT THAT WE
ARE BUILDING AN ENTIRE
INFRASTRUCTURE IN THE
COMMUNITIES THAT ARE MOST
INVESTED ON A SYSTEM THAT IS
THAT WE CAN ONLY PROJECT. CAN'T
CONFIDENCE THAT'S NOT A NUMBER
AROUND OUR OVERALL ABILITY TO
CONTINUE FUNDING WITH THAT. I'LL
START MY QUESTIONS NOW. BUT I'M
SURE I WILL HAVE OTHERS. MAY I?
MAY I MAKE ONE ADDITIONAL
COMMENT? UM IS THAT WHEN WE DID
THESE LEASES AND THESE JOINT
BUILD DEALS, UM THE COST PER
MILE IS LESS THAN HALF OF THE
AVERAGE CUSTOMER MILES LESS THAN
HALF OF CONSTRUCTION, SO THAT IS
ALSO THE FACT THAT WE'RE ABLE TO
PROVIDE SERVICE TO THESE AREAS.
SOONER IS ALSO WE WANT TO MAKE
SURE EVERYBODY UNDERSTANDS THAT
THERE'S IT'S A IT'S ALSO A LOWER
COST ALTERNATIVE IN TERMS OF
BEING ABLE TO GET THE SAME ALL
OF THE SAME BENEFITS SOONER. BUT
WITH LESS LESS PRESSURE IN TERMS
OF THE OVERALL BUDGET. YES, SO
IT'S CHEAPER. Tð. INVEST LESS IN
POOR COMMUNITIES FOR A SHORTER
PERIOD OF TIME. RIGHT NOW. THANK
YOU RESPOND TO WE'LL NOW MOVE ON
TO A DOCTOR WOULD. THANK YOU, MR
CHAIR AND THANK YOU TO EVERYONE
WHO'S HERE. UM YOU KNOW, SB 186
WAS PASSED IN. 2021. A WHILE AGO
, AND AS PART OF THAT THERE WAS
A ESTABLISHED A MIDDLE MILE
ADVISORY COMMITTEE COMPOSED OF.
FOR LEGISLATORS, UH AND IN
ADDITION TO ALL OF THE STAFF, SO
I HAVE ATTENDED ALL BUT TWO OF
THOSE MEETINGS IN THE LAST 2.5
YEARS, SO I FEEL LIKE I'VE KIND
OF BEEN A ONE PERSON AT TIMES,
ACTUALLY, MOST OF THE TIME,
QUITE FRANKLY, ONE PERSON
OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE ON THIS AND
I KNOW OVER THE TIME I'VE ASKED
YOU ALL SOME REALLY HARD
QUESTIONS AND REALLY PRESSED
YOU. NONE OF THE QUESTIONS HERE
TODAY SURPRISED ME BECAUSE
THEY'VE COME UP AT THESE
HEARINGS IN THE PAST, AND SO, SO
I WANT TO. I DO HAVE SOME SOME
QUESTIONS. UM, UH BUT I DO WANT
TO SAY JUST IN GENERAL. OR THE
SCOPE OF THIS PROJECT AND THE
KIND OF COOPERATION REQUIRED
BETWEEN AGENCIES THAT DON'T WORK
WELL TOGETHER TYPICALLY OR HAVE
NEVER WORKED TOGETHER. UM IN
SOME CASES, UM, I HAVE TO SAY I
AM IMPRESSED WITH THE PROGRESS
AND I KNOW, UM, THAT, UM, MIGHT
COME AS A SURPRISE BECAUSE I'M
HYPERCRITICAL OF THINGS BECAUSE
MY EXPECTATIONS ARE REALLY HIGH,
BUT BUT I HAVE TO SAY THAT I AM
IMPRESSED WITH THE PROGRESS AND
IT SEEMS TO BE GETTING BETTER
OVER TIME. THIS IS A VERY
COMPLICATED PROJECT. WITH
MULTIPLE FUNDING SOURCES. UM A
HUGE NUMBER OF STAKEHOLDERS AND
THE YOU KNOW THE EXPECTATION
THAT WE GET THIS PERFECT OUT OF
THE GATE IS PRETTY TOUGH. UM AND
BUT AND THERE ARE THERE ARE
THINGS THAT HAVE HAPPENED THAT I
HAVEN'T BEEN THRILLED WITH.
THERE HAS BEEN A FAIR AMOUNT, OF
COURSE CORRECTION THROUGHOUT THE
PROCESS, AND THERE'S MORE AND I
WILL SAY THAT, UM, THE
STAKEHOLDERS ALL THE
STAKEHOLDERS HAVE BEEN
RESPONSIVE. WHEN I'VE ASKED
QUESTIONS, AND, UM, AND THERE IS
REAL PROGRESS. SO, UM I DO HAVE,
YOU KNOW, OBVIOUSLY THE GOAL IS
BROADBAND FOR ALL. MY DISTRICT
IS THE AS THE LEAST ADOPTION OF
BROADBAND OF ANY PLACE IN THE
STATE. SO YOU THINK I HAVE AN
INTEREST? I'VE HAD AN INTEREST
IN THIS SINCE BEFORE I WAS
ELECTED TO THE LEGISLATURE A
DECADE AGO. I HAVE BEEN A DOG IN
THIS ISSUE FOR A LONG, LONG TIME
ALSO REPRESENT SOME OF THE
POOREST COMMUNITIES IN THE STATE
, TWO OF THE POOREST COUNTIES IN
THE STATE. BY BY PER CAPITA
INCOME OR IN MY DISTRICT, SO I
HAVE A VESTED INTEREST IN AND
UNDERSERVED AND UNSERVED
COMMUNITIES. WE HEAR A LOT ABOUT
UNDERSERVED AND UNSERVED. UM UH,
YOU KNOW, MY FOCUS IS ON
UNDERSERVED BECAUSE OF THE
NUMBER OF UNDERSERVED PEOPLE.
UM, IN SOME WEALTHIER
COMMUNITIES. UH THEY FEEL
UNDERSERVED BECAUSE THEY'RE NOT
GETTING THE BROAD BEAT THE
BANDWIDTH THAT THEY WANT. WE'RE
MY COMMUNITIES ARE HISTORICALLY
NOT GETTING ANY BANDWIDTH AT
ALL. AND SO I AM BEEN DOGGED IN
MY DETERMINATION TO GET AS MUCH
COVERAGE FOR AS MANY PEOPLE TO
HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY AS POSSIBLE.
UM IN THE LAST YEAR IN THE LAST
MEETING WE HAD. I THINK IT WAS
THE LAST MEETING. COULD THEY ALL
KIND OF BLUR TOGETHER AFTER A
WHILE, BUT ONE OF THE RECENT
MEANS I BROUGHT UP THE ISSUE OF
MAINTENANCE AND ASKED QUESTION
BECAUSE WE HAD SOMEBODY FROM
ANOTHER STATE THERE. SO WE ASKED
THE QUESTION. HOW ARE YOU DOING?
WHAT IS THE COST? AND THE
ANSWER? WE GOT FROM THAT PERSON.
AND I THINK THE STATE WAS IT WAS
EITHER MARYLAND OR
MASSACHUSETTS, MARYLAND. OKAY,
UM, IS ABOUT 1. ANNUALLY OF THE
VALUE OF THE NETWORK. SO IF YOU
FAST FORWARD THAT WE'RE LOOKING
AT A $9 BILLION NETWORK, IT'S
GOING TO BE ABOUT $90 MILLION A
YEAR TO MAINTAIN THAT SO JUST SO
YOU KEEP THAT. KEEP THAT IN THE
BACK OF YOUR MIND. UM UM SO
COUPLE COUPLE QUESTIONS HERE.
ONE FOR THE L A. OH SO, UM, AS
WE LOOK AT THE BUDGET ABOUT
SHIFTING OF DELAYING SOME SOME
OF THE RESOURCES HERE DO ANY OF
THOSE DELAYS AFFECT FEDERAL
FUNDING. ARE WE LEAVE BY BY
DOING THESE DELAYS? ARE WE
LEAVING ANY FEDERAL FUNDING ON
THE TABLE? UH THE DELAY OF THE
LAST MILE PROJECT GRANTS THE 100
MILLION. I DO NOT BELIEVE THAT
WOULD RESULT IN ANY REDUCTION OF
FEDERAL FUNDS. FROM THE
INFRASTRUCTURE INVESTMENT IN
JOBS ACT. OKAY, ALRIGHT, THAT'S
IMPORTANT. AND WHAT'S IMPORTANT
HERE IS THAT THERE IS A DEADLINE
OF 2026 TO ACTUALLY COMPLETE
THESE PROJECTS, OR WE WILL LEAVE
HUGE AMOUNTS OF FEDERAL MONEY ON
THE TABLE. SO THE FACT THAT THE
NETWORKS AND THE TIMELINES HAVE
CONTINUED TO EVOLVE. I HAVE
CONFIDENCE THAT THIS WILL GET
DONE. AND UM AND I DON'T BELIEVE
I'M ALONE IN THAT. AND I
UNDERSTAND THAT THERE ARE
CONCERNS IN DIFFERENT PARTS OF
THE STATE. YOU KNOW, UM HOW MANY
HOURS I'VE SPENT INVESTED IN
THIS OVER THE YEARS, BUT, UM,
BUT I UNDERSTAND FROM THE
BEGINNING THAT AND I UNDERSTAND
THE QUESTIONS OR CONCERNS ABOUT
LEASING. UM YEAH. I MEAN PEOPLE
THESE CARS AND LEASE ALL SORTS
OF EQUIPMENT AND ALL SORTS OF
THINGS OVER THE YEARS. SO ONE OF
THE QUESTIONS I HAVE, WHICH I
CAN'T BELIEVE I DIDN'T ASK OVER
TIME. BUT IS THIS IN A LEAST
ANNALISE? UM ARRANGEMENT AND
RECOGNIZE THAT ONE OF THE
REASONS FOR LEAD, FOR THE LEAST
PART IS TO NOT OVERBUILD. WHY
WOULD WE BUILD A NETWORK RIGHT
NEXT TO AN EXISTING NETWORK? IF
WE COULD ACTUALLY LEASE
COMPONENTS OF THAT TO MAKE THE
OVERALL COST LESS LESS LESS
COSTLY. FASTER TO IMPLEMENT, UM
OVER TIME. BUT ONE OF THE THINGS
I DIDN'T I NEVER ASKED WAS, UM
IN THAT LEASE, WHO MAINTAINS THE
LEAD THE LEAST PORTION OF THAT
BECAUSE YOU'RE PIGGYBACKING ON
EXISTING NETWORKS, SO MAYBE IT'S
A T AND T OR REISEN OR WHOEVER
ELSE HAS IT THERE, BUT WHO
MAINTAINS THE NETWORK? UM, AND
IN THAT LEASE AGREEMENT UM YEAH,
THAT THAT'S A GREAT QUESTION.
UM, THE, UH, THAT'S INCLUDED IN
OUR LEASE AGREEMENTS. SO WHEN WE
LEAST FOR EXAMPLE, STEPHEN IS
THE ONE WHERE WE'RE GETTING
APPROXIMATELY 2500 MILES. THEY
PROVIDE THE MAINTENANCE AND
OPERATION AND WE PAY THEM FOR
THAT. SO THE CONCERN THAT WE'RE
GETTING A POTENTIALLY
SUBSTANDARD NETWORK BY LEASING
ISN'T. IT WOULD BE COVERED BY
THE FACT THAT WE ACTUALLY HAVE,
UM, SOMEONE WHO'S GONNA MAINTAIN
THAT NETWORK. YES THAT IS
CORRECT. ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU. I
APPRECIATE THAT. UM YOU KNOW,
LOOK, I HAVE I HAVE BEEN ONE OF
THE BIGGEST SKEPTICS AND
HARSHEST CRITICS AT TIME OF THIS
PROGRAM, AND I HAVE TO SAY THAT
THE RESPONSIVENESS THAT I'VE
SEEN FROM THE AGENCIES INVOLVED
HAS HAS BEEN REALLY REMARKABLE
ARE THEIR ISSUES AND CONCERNS.
YES AND ONE OF THE ISSUES THAT I
HAVE CONCERNS ABOUT. IS THAT, UM
YOU KNOW, HOW ARE YOU CONTINUING
TO ENGAGE WITH COMMUNITIES ALONG
THE WAY, BECAUSE AS WE ALL
THESE. THERE'S A LOT OF PROGRAMS
AND FOR EXAMPLE, THERE
CONSORTIUMS OF PEOPLE IN MY
DISTRICT WHO HAVE THESE LAST
MILE PROJECTS ARE TRYING TO
IMPLEMENT AND SO ONE OF THE
CRITICISMS AND CONCERNS I'VE HAD
IS HOW ARE WE COMMUNICATING WITH
THEM? BECAUSE THEY'RE SITTING
THERE? THEY'VE BEEN SITTING
THERE FOR YEARS, BUT PROJECTS
AND THEY'RE TRYING TO GET GRANTS
TO CASA AND OTHER PLACES TO BE
ABLE TO BUILD THESE AND WHEN WE
HAD THIS HICCUP WHERE WE HAD A
PHASE ONE PHASE TWO AND SUDDENLY
A BUNCH OF THINGS DISAPPEARED.
THAT'S NO LONGER THE CASE. BUT
YOU CAN IMAGINE THE HORROR THAT
WENT THROUGH PEOPLE'S MINDS WHEN
SUDDENLY ON THE MAPS. THEY WERE
IN A DIFFERENT PHASE AND NO
CERTAINTY THAT THAT PHASE WAS
EVER GOING TO GET BUILT. SO WHAT
ARE WE DOING TO COMMUNICATE?
BECAUSE YOU CANNOT. YOU CANNOT
GET BROADBAND ADOPTION. UM, IF
YOU DON'T HAVE THE LAST MILE
PROJECTS, AND THERE'S A LOT OF
PEOPLE HAVE BEEN WAITING FOR
YEARS AND YEARS AND YEARS, AND
THEY NEED THE MIDDLE MILE, BUT
THEY ALSO NEED YOU KNOW WHEN
IT'S COMING SO THEY CAN
COORDINATE THEIR APPLICATIONS.
AND BE SURE SO WE GET A, YOU
KNOW, GET THE HOOK UP AS QUICKLY
AS POSSIBLE. YES
ASSEMBLYMEMBER'S THANK YOU VERY
MUCH FOR THAT QUESTION. WE ARE
USING EVERY CHANNEL THAT WE HAVE
TO COMMUNICATE WITH BOTH THE
APPLICANTS SO THERE ARE 484
APPLICATIONS PENDING, UM, WERE
COMMUNICATING WITH THE
STAKEHOLDERS TO THOSE
APPLICATIONS THROUGH WEBINARS.
AND THEN, AS MARIA MENTIONED, WE
HAVE HIRED A TEAM OF
CASEWORKERS. THEY ARE LITERALLY
MIDFIELDERS BETWEEN, UM US, THE
CPUC AND ALL OF OUR DIFFERENT
PROGRAMS AND THE LOCAL
COMMUNITIES. THE LOCAL
GOVERNMENTS WHO ARE TRYING TO
SORT ALL OF THIS OUT AND
UNDERSTAND IT AND UNDERSTAND
WHERE AND WHEN AND HOW THEY
SHOULD APPLY. SO WE'RE USING
EVERY CHANNEL UM, THAT WE HAVE
BEEN ABLE TO THINK OF TO TRY TO
COMMUNICATE AND BS TRANSPARENT
AS POSSIBLE. WELL, I KNOW THAT,
UM THAT CERTAINLY IN SOME OF THE
SMALLER COMMUNITIES. THE LACK OF
TECHNICAL EXPERTISE IS A REAL
CHALLENGE. BUT THAT ISN'T JUST
IN SMALLER COMMUNITIES. THAT
COULD BE ANOTHER UNDERSERVED
COMMUNITIES, COMMUNITIES AS WELL
. AND SO YOU KNOW IF THERE ARE
NETWORKS AVAILABLE, AND THEY
DON'T AND COMMUNITIES DON'T HAVE
THE TECHNICAL EXPERTISE TO BE
ABLE TO ACCESS THAT, THEN THAT'S
GOING TO DRAMATICALLY REDUCE THE
ADOPTION. AND SO, SO IT'S IN.
PARA TIVE THAT ALL COMMUNITIES,
UH, THAT THAT WANT TO BE ABLE TO
HAVE ACCESS TO INTERNET TO THE
BROADBAND CAN HAVE IT AND IT IS
LEARNED TO HEALTHCARE. YOU KNOW,
IT IS. THESE ARE NOT. IT'S NOT
JUST A RURAL AND URBAN ISSUE.
THE ISSUES ARE REALLY ABOUT
UNSERVED AND UNDERSERVED PEOPLE.
REGARDLESS OF WHAT COMMUNITIES
YOU LIVE IN IT AND I FOCUS ON
RURAL BECAUSE THAT'S MY
DISTRICT, YOU KNOW. BUT UM, BUT
THE ADOPTION, UM IS CRITICAL AND
WITHOUT THAT TECHNICAL
ASSISTANCE OR EVERY COMMUNITY,
NOT EVERYBODY IS AS
SOPHISTICATED AS AS YOU KNOW,
YOU KNOW, IN L, A COUNTY OR
WHATEVER, YOU KNOW, SO IT'S
REALLY, REALLY CRITICAL TO GET.
WE'RE GOING TO MAXIMIZE THIS
OPPORTUNITY THAT THAT TECHNICAL
ASSISTANCE HAPPENS ACROSS A
BROAD RANGE OF COMMUNITY.
ASSEMBLYMEMBER'S WOULD. I'D LIKE
TO, UH, ACTUALLY OUT ONTO
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR PATTERSON'S
COMMENT, SO AS WE WERE JUST
TALKING ABOUT C G T NOT ONLY ON
THE MIDDLE MILE, BUT WE'RE ALSO
DOING THE DIGITAL EQUITY PLAN
AND AS WE WERE TALKING ABOUT, WE
TALK ABOUT UNSERVED AND
UNDERSERVED AND THAT IS THAT
CONNECTIVITY AND THAT IS ALL
AROUND OUR STATE. WE HAVE UNDER
CONNECTIVITY AND WE HAVE, UM,
BUT WE ALSO HAVE AFFORDABILITY
IS AN ISSUE. WE ALSO HAVE
LITERACY. WE ALSO HAVE DEVICES
AND SO IN PARTNERSHIP AS CPUC
WAS GOING OUT ON THE ROAD AND
DOING THE BEAD EFFORTS, WE
ACTUALLY JOINED THEM AS WE WERE
DOING THE DIGITAL EQUITY PLAN,
SO THIS WAS INSTEAD OF THEM
COMING TO THE COMMUNITIES. WE
THINK WE DID 2021 TOGETHER
INSTEAD OF THEM DOING IT, AND WE
ACTUALLY PARTNERED WITH SO WE
COULD TALK ABOUT INFRASTRUCTURE.
WE COULD TALK ABOUT BARRIERS.
YOU KNOW WHAT'S GOING ON? UM
WHAT CAN WE DO FOR DIGITAL
NAVIGATORS SO THAT WHEN PEOPLE
ARE STRUGGLING, AND THEY NEED A
YOU KNOW, AN APPLE STORE GEEK,
YOU KNOW, GEEK SQUAD TO BE ABLE
TO HELP THEM FIGURE OUT HOW TO
DO THEIR THEIR TECHNOLOGY. I
ALWAYS SAY MY DAD STILL HAS A
FLIP PHONE, YOU KNOW, YOU KNOW,
I END UP BEING HIS IT SUPPORT.
HOW DO WE MAKE SURE THAT PEOPLE
CAN GET TO THE SERVICES THEY
NEED AND SO IT'S ABOUT THE
CONNECTION. YOU KNOW, THAT'S
WHAT WE'RE HERE FOR. IT'S ALSO
MAKING SURE THAT THROUGH OUR
MAINTENANCE AND OPERATION
CONTRACTS EITHER LEASE PURCHASE
OR BY REQUIRING ANYBODY THAT
CONNECTS TO PRIDE OF
AFFORDABILITY TO THE LAST MILE
HOUSEHOLDS AND BUSINESSES AND
THEN MAKING SURE THAT PEOPLE
HAVE THE DEVICES. I KNOW YOU
HAVE A LOT OF LAST MILE
OPPORTUNITIES FOR PEOPLE TO GET
DISCOUNTED DEVICES AND MAKING
SURE THAT THEY KNOW HOW TO USE
THE TECHNOLOGY. ONE OF THE
THINGS WE'VE ALSO BEEN DOING IS
JUST BETWEEN OCTOBER AND JANUARY
. WE'VE HAD 40 ENGAGEMENTS AND
OUTSIDE OF MIDDLE MILE AND THIS
CALIFORNIA BROAD BAND COUNCILS.
WE'VE BEEN COMMITTED TO MAKING
SURE THAT WE'RE GOING OUT AND
HAVING TWO WAY CONVERSATIONS
WITH THE ADVOCACY GROUPS AND
WE'RE ALSO PUTTING MORE
TRANSPARENCY ON OUR ON OUR
WEBSITES. SO IF THERE IS ANY
CHANGES TO MILES THAT THEY CAN
ACTUALLY SEE WHAT IT IS. WHERE
IT'S AT AND THEN BE ABLE TO
COMPARE IT TO OTHER PRIOR MAP,
SO WE'RE COMMITTED ACROSS BOTH
OF OUR ORGANIZATIONS TO BE AS
TRANSPARENT AS POSSIBLE. THANK
YOU AND I KNOW WE'VE HAD THOSE
IN OUR COMMUNITY, AND THAT'S A
HELPFUL AND ALSO, UM, WE'VE HAD
AND THANK YOU AGAIN FOR THIS,
UM, ENGAGEMENT WITH OUR TRIBAL
COMMUNITIES IN IN MY DISTRICT,
AND, UM INCLUDING INCLUDING A
WORKSHOP THAT WE ATTENDED AND WE
LEARNED A LOT. AND SO, UM, SOME
OF THE MOST UNDER UNSERVED
PEOPLE IN THE ENTIRE STATE WHERE
YOU HAVE CHALLENGES. SOME PEOPLE
DON'T EVEN STILL DON'T HAVE
ELECTRICITY. WE'RE RUNNING WATER
. UM AND SO, SO I WANT TO THANK
YOU FOR YOUR EFFORTS IN THAT
REGARD. UM AND, UH, THAT THOSE
WILL. THIS WILL BE LIFE
CHANGING. THANK YOU. THANK YOU,
DOCTOR. WOULD WE WILL NOW MOVE
ON TO MR RAMOS. THANK YOU, MR
CHAIR AND THANK YOU TO MY
COLLEAGUE FOR BRINGING UP THE
TRIBAL IMPACT. AND, UM, THE
RURAL NOUS AND THE TRUE NEED OF
INFRASTRUCTURE WHEN WE START
WHEN WE'VE SEEN DURING THE COVID
CRISIS, WE'VE SEEN THAT A LOT OF
TRIBES THAT HAD TO SWITCH TO
LEARNING DISTANCE LEARNING HAD
NO CAPABILITIES OF INTERNET AND
THE WAY THAT THAT TRIBAL
GOVERNMENTS BROUGHT A SOLUTION
TO THAT. WAS PUTTING THE BOOKS
INTO A VAN AND DROVE, DROVE
THOSE BOOKS TO EACH HOUSE AND
COLLECTED THE ASSIGNMENTS FROM
IT. AND SO I WANT TO THANK YOU
FOR BEING HERE TODAY IN
HIGHLIGHTING SOME OF THOSE
GRANTS THAT HAVE BEEN APPROVED
FOR TRIBAL GOVERNMENTS. I
BELIEVE EIGHT IN THOSE AREAS AND
I BELIEVE THERE'S A CONTRACT
WORKING WITH KOOPA ON ON SOME
ISSUES MOVING FORWARD. UM ONE OF
THE QUESTIONS THAT THAT WANT TO
POSE IS HAVE. WE LOOKED AT THE
GRANTS FROM TRIBES THE REQUEST
OF GRANTS FROM TRIBES COMING IN
ON A REGIONAL AREA, MEANING
NORTH CENTRAL SOUTHERN, AS FAR
AS WHERE THAT GREATEST NEED IS
THAT CERTAINLY WE COULD ATTEST
TO SOME AREAS OF TRIBAL
COMMUNITY STILL IN THE STATE OF
CALIFORNIA. 110 FREE RECOGNIZED
TRIBES AND TRIBAL COMMUNITY IN
THE STATE. THAT STILL DON'T HAVE
, UM, ADEQUATE, UM, ROADS,
RIGHT? UM ELECTRICITY SERVICE
AND THOSE AREAS THAT ARE THERE
AND NOW AS THE STATE MOVES TO
THE BROADBAND AND TO THE
CAPABILITIES OF INTERNET AND
THOSE TYPES OF THINGS WE'RE
LEAVING CALIFORNIA HAS FIRST
PEOPLE FAR BEHIND AGAIN, AND SO
I KNOW THERE WAS SOME MONEY THAT
WAS APPROVED RIGHT SOME GRANTS
THAT WERE APPROVED CLOSE TO THAT
$5 MILLION MARK. BUT THE
QUESTION IS COULD THERE BE MORE
DEMAND? THAT'S OUT THERE THAT
WE'RE NOT EVEN SEEING JUST BASED
ON THE DOLLARS THAT WERE
ACTUALLY APPROVED THIS TIME
AROUND. UH ASSEMBLYMEMBER'S
THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR THE
QUESTION. I UM I BELIEVE THAT
ALL OF YOUR THE MEMBERS OF THIS
COMMITTEE ARE RAISING THE SAME
POINT, WHICH IS WE KNOW HOW
HISTORIC THIS INVESTMENT IS. AND
AT THE SAME TIME WE KNOW THAT
THE NEED OUTSTRIPS THAT
INVESTMENT AND SO TO ANSWER YOUR
QUESTION, UM WE ARE PROVIDING
THIS TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE TO
TRIBES AS I MENTIONED IN MY
OPENING, THE TRIBES THEMSELVES
ARE LEVERAGING THAT TECHNICAL
ASSISTANCE TO APPLY FOR FEDERAL
TRIBAL DOLLARS AND THEY'VE
ALREADY BROUGHT IN 250 MILLION
FROM THE DEPARTMENT OF
AGRICULTURE TO SERVE THEIR
COMMUNITIES, SO THEY ARE
THEMSELVES USING IT AS A
LEVERAGE TOOL. TO BRING IN OTHER
SOURCES OF FUNDS. UM THE, UH,
THE OTHER THING I WANT TO
MENTION IS THAT I KNOW ALL OF
YOU ARE AWARE OF THE AFFORDABLE
CONNECTIVITY PROGRAM, WHICH
PROVIDES A DISCOUNT TO INTERNET
SERVICE FOR NEEDY PEOPLE. AND WE
HAVE 2.5 MILLION CALIFORNIANS
WHO DEPEND ON THAT. A C P
SUBSIDY, WHICH IS PRESENTLY NOT
SLATED FOR RENEWAL AT THE
FEDERAL LEVEL. SO UM, PRESIDENT
ALICE REYNOLDS AND DIRECTOR
BAILEY CRIMMINS HAVE BEEN ACTIVE
IN WASHINGTON SEEKING THE
REAUTHORIZATION OF THAT PROGRAM,
BUT TO BE HONEST, IT'S NOT
LOOKING VERY BRIGHT FOR IT. BUT
IT'S JUST TO NOTE THAT THERE ARE
NUMEROUS DIFFERENT SOURCES AND
BUILDING BLOCKS THAT WE ARE ALL
USING TO ENSURE THAT
CALIFORNIANS GET THAT
CONNECTION. AND STAY CONNECTED.
UM OVERALL, I DO THINK WE'RE
GOING TO NEED TO EXAMINE HOW
CALIFORNIA MAKES A FUTURE
INVESTMENT IN ENSURING THAT
TRIBES AND OTHERS, UM, REALLY
OBTAINED THE UNIVERSAL SERVICE.
WE ALL WANT. THE REGION THE
QUESTION AS FAR AS THE REGIONAL
APPROACH. UM CERTAINLY YOUR OX
UP IN THE AREAS THAT MY
COLLEAGUE REPRESENTS, UM, HAS A
DRASTIC NEED. UM AND THERE STILL
IS MISCONCEPTIONS THAT EVERY
TRIBE IS DOING WELL WITH WITH
GAMING. WHEN WE KNOW THAT'S NOT
THE CASE, THE MAJORITY OF THE
TRIBES 110 RECOGNIZED TRIBES
STILL NEED BASIC SERVICE. UM
INFRASTRUCTURAL SERVICE, AND
CERTAINLY BROADBAND. AND SO BY
AWARDING THE GRANTS ARE WE
GIVING FALSE HOPE THAT THINGS
COULD BE COMPLETED DOWN THE ROAD
, OR ARE WE LOOKING TO MAKE SURE
THAT WE'RE CONTINUING TO
OUTREACH TO THE TRIBES THAT ARE
OUT THERE TO LEVERAGE TO MAKE
SURE THAT AND HELPING WITH THE
ASSISTANCE EXPERTISE TO ENSURE
THAT AN INFRASTRUCTURAL SYSTEM
IS SOMETHING THAT'S GOING TO BE
THERE FOR A TIME TO RELY ON? SO
ASSEMBLYMEMBER'S, UM I SAY THE
LATTER. THE LATTER IS WHAT WE AT
THE CPUC ARE COMMITTED TO DOING
AND OVER TIME AS OUR PROGRAMS
CONTINUE AND EVOLVE. AS WE SEE
SOME OF THESE LAST MILE NETWORKS
DEVELOPED AND THEN WE CONTINUE
TO ASSESS THE NEED ONGOING WILL
STILL HAVE THE CALIFORNIA
ADVANCED SERVICES FUND. AS A
PROGRAM THAT CAN CONTINUE TO
INVEST IN THESE COMMUNITIES. LET
ME SEE IF MARIA HAS ANYTHING TO
ADD. THANK YOU. HOT THANK YOU.
ASSEMBLYMEMBER'S FOR THAT
QUESTION. UM IN ADDITION TO WHAT
RACHEL JUST MENTIONED ABOUT THE
NINE TRIBES THAT RECEIVED A LOT
OF FUNDING, I DO ALSO WANT TO
MENTION THAT, UH, THERE IS A
PROGRAM CALLED TRIBAL TECHNICAL
ASSISTANCE UNDER THE CALIFORNIA
ADVANCED SERVICES FUND. UM THE
THERE IS A PROPOSED CHANGE OUT
FOR PUBLIC COMMENT. THE
COMMISSION WILL CONSIDER VOTING
ON NEXT MONTH. THAT WOULD EXPAND
THAT PROGRAM ALLOW AND REALLY
ALLOW FOR MORE HIGHER DOLLAR
THRESHOLD FOR ADDITIONAL
SERVICES ARE THAT COULD BE
COVERED UNDER THAT TECHNICAL
ASSISTANCE FOR THE VERY REASON
THAT YOU MENTIONED, WHICH IS A
LOT OF TRIBES, UM, A LOT OF
COMMUNITIES, BUT TRIBES IN ALSO
IN PARTICULAR, HAVE A LOT OF
CAPACITY. UM ISSUES IN TERMS OF
WHAT THEY CAN, HOW THEY CAN
APPLY FOR THESE GRANTS, AND SO
THAT TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE THOSE
ADDITIONAL TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE
DOLLARS THAT WILL CONTINUE NOW
THAT EVEN LOTTE HUSBAND
EXHAUSTED, WE HOPE WILL BE VERY
HELPFUL TO THE TRIBES, AND WE
KNOW THAT THERE IS A LOT OF
DEMANDS. UM AND THEN, LASTLY, TO
YOUR QUESTION ON REGIONS UM, YOU
KNOW, THE TRICKY PART IS THAT
THESE ARE ALL APPLICATION DRIVEN
PROCESSES. AND CERTAINLY THERE
ARE. UM WE, UH. WE ARE. NONE OF
YOU KNOW, WE DON'T WANT TO BE IN
A POSITION TO TELL TRIBES AND
YOU KNOW WE ARE SUPPORTING SO WE
WANT TO SUPPORT TRIBAL
SOVEREIGNTY AND ALLOW THEM TO
APPROACH THESE PROCESSES. AND
THESE, UM, WELL PROGRAMS AS THEY
SEE BEST FIT FOR THEIR
COMMUNITIES AND THEIR IN THEIR
NATIONS. IT DEFINITELY IS, UM,
YOU KNOW, INTERESTING TO SEE
WHERE THAT NEED IS AT. WE KNOW
THAT AREAS IN SOUTHERN
CALIFORNIA ANZA AREA THAT
THERE'S STILL AREAS THAT STILL
NEED INFRASTRUCTURE THAT'S THERE
THROUGHOUT THE STATE, AND THE
REASON FOR THE REGIONAL APPROACH
THAT IS, WE COULD START TO
PINPOINT WHERE THE GREATEST NEED
IS THAT WITHIN THE DIFFERENT
AREAS OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA,
CENTRAL AND NORTHERN BECAUSE WE
KNOW THERE IS A NEED THAT'S
THEIR, UM, ALSO MAKING SURE THAT
THE OUTREACH TO TRIBES CONTINUE.
WE DO KNOW THAT EIGHT GRANTS
WERE AWARDED. THERE'S A
AGREEMENT WITH HOOPER TO MOVE
FORWARD. BUT THERE'S FAR MORE
TRIBES THAT ARE OUT THERE. SO I
HAVE MORE TRIBES ASKED FOR
ASSISTANCE OR FOR GRANTS
CAPABILITIES THAN THE EIGHT THAT
WERE AWARDED. AND JUST TO ALSO
POINT OUT ON THE FINAL MILE. WE
HAVE THE AGREEMENTS WITH HOOPER
AND YOU AND THE OTHER TRIBES AND
SOMETHING MAYBE NOT SURE IF THE
OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE IS AWARE OF
THAT WE HAVE UNIQUE
RELATIONSHIPS WHERE THEY'RE
ACTUALLY HELPING BUILD JOBS,
BRINGING JOBS TO THOSE
COMMUNITIES AS WE'RE BUILDING
AND THEY'RE ACTUALLY HELPING
CONSTRUCT AND HELPING MAINTAIN
THOSE LEASES AND BUILD
OPPORTUNITIES IN THEIR OWN
COMMUNITIES. SO IN ADDITION TO
PROVIDING CONNECTIVITY, WE ARE
ACTUALLY INVESTING IN THEIR
ECONOMIC ABILITIES TO BE, UM, A
PART OF THIS WHOLE ONE TIME
INVESTMENT AND SO WASN'T SURE IF
YOU WERE AWARE OF THAT. I DEEPLY
APPRECIATE ALL THE WORK THAT'S
BEING DONE IN ATTENTION TO THE
TRIBAL GOVERNMENT THAT EIGHT
THAT WERE AWARDED HOW MANY
ACTUALLY CAME IN AND MIGHT NOT
HAVE BEEN REWARDED. AND IS THERE
SOME BARRIERS TO THE TRIBAL
GOVERNMENT ASPECT AND TO WHAT'S
NEEDED ON THE APPLICATION
ITSELF. UM I'D HAVE TO DOUBLE
CHECK. I DO KNOW THAT WE
RECENTLY JUST EXHAUSTED THE LAST
BITS OF TRAVEL GOVERNANCE, SO I
DO BELIEVE AT LEAST ONE
APPLICATION WAS DENIED. BECAUSE
OF THE EXHAUSTION OF FUNDING. UM
HOWEVER, THAT IS WHY ONE OF THE
REASONS THAT THIS NEW PROPOSAL
FOR THE EXPANDED TECHNICAL
ASSISTANCE PROGRAM IS REALLY
IMPORTANT. UM, AND ONE OF THE
THINGS THAT IS DIFFERENT ABOUT
THAT THE PROPOSED ONE OF THE
PROPOSED CHANGES IS THAT TO THAT
PROGRAM IS THAT IT WOULD ALLOW,
UM TRIBES TO USE FUNDING FOR
GRANT WRITING RELATED TO
BROADBAND, WHICH IS IN ITSELF.
YOU KNOW, GRANT, WRITING IN
ITSELF IS A REALLY BIG HURDLE
AND THE CHALLENGE AND SO BEING
ABLE TO WRAP THAT INTO THE NEW
PRO GRAHAM. UM GRANT, WRITING
SPECIFICALLY FOR BROADBAND
DEPLOYMENT ALLOWS THEM TO
CONTINUE TO, UM, EXPAND THEIR
CAPACITY IN THAT SENSE, SO IT'S
JUST GOES BEYOND JUST THE
FEASIBILITY STUDIES THAT ARE
NORMALLY IN THE MARKET ANALYSIS
THAT ARE NORMALLY DONE. BUT
THANK YOU FOR THAT. AS A FORMER
CHAIRMAN OF THE TRIBAL
GOVERNMENT. THE GRANT WRITER IS
THE FIRST STEP, UM, MOVING
FORWARD IN MANY TIMES. THE GRANT
WRITER, UM IS PART OF THE GRAN
ITSELF BECAUSE THAT'S WHERE SOME
OF THE INFRASTRUCTURE IS NEEDED
WITHIN SOME OF THE TRAVEL
GOVERNMENTS HERE IN THE STATE OF
CALIFORNIA, I WANT TO THANK YOU
EVEN HAVING THIS DISCUSSION AND
SENDING AROUND TRIBAL
GOVERNMENTS. IS SOMETHING THAT'S
THIS LEGISLATURE IS NOW MOVING
FORWARD IN INCLUDING IN A LOT OF
THE DIALOGUE, SO THANK YOU FOR
ALL YOUR COMMENTS AND THANK YOU
FOR YOUR HARD WORK. THANK YOU,
MR RAMOS. NOW WE WILL MOVE ON TO
MY COLLEAGUE FROM ORANGE COUNTY,
MR QUIRK-SILVA. GOOD MORNING AND
PLEASED TO BE HERE TO HERE. NOT
ONLY YOUR TESTIMONY, BUT, UH,
THE QUESTIONS FROM MY COLLEAGUES
. SOME OF YOU MIGHT REMEMBER ME
FROM MY YOUTH FEW YEARS BACK
BEING NOT ONLY THE SHERIFF C AND
C N C BUT ALSO ON THE MIDDLE
MILE. SO SOME OF THE QUESTIONS I
HAVE HAD SOME BACKGROUND. I DO
HAVE A FEW QUESTIONS MYSELF, BUT
I WOULDN'T MAKE A FEW MACRO
COMMENTS ON THE BUDGET AS A
WHOLE. UH AS YOU KNOW, UM MANY
OF OUR SUBCOMMITTEES ARE GOING
TO BE TASKED WITH REALLY MAKING
SOME MAJOR CUTS TO, UH,
IMPORTANT PROGRAMS TO CALIFORNIA
RELATED TO HOUSING RELATED TO AH
, SOME OF OUR INFRASTRUCTURE
JUST FOR LIVING IN CALIFORNIA.
WHETHER IT'S THROUGH KELL WORKS,
WHETHER IT'S UNDER HOMELESSNESS.
SO WHEN I LOOK AT THE BUDGET
REQUEST, UH, IN THE BROAD BANDS
BACK SPECTRUM OF $1.5 BILLION
ASK TO COMPLETE OR TO MOVE
FORWARD WITH THIS PROJECT. AH IT
IS CERTAINLY SOMETHING THAT
WE'RE GOING TO LOOK AT CLOSELY
AND BUDGET SUB FIVE DOES NOT
MEAN THAT, UH, I DO NOT
UNDERSTAND THAT NOT MOVING
FORWARD WITH THAT 1.5 WORK COULD
, UH, SLOW DOWN SOME OF THE
PROGRESS MY, UH COLLEAGUE
ASSEMBLYMEMBER'S JIM WOOD, WHO
HAS BEEN PART OF THIS DISCUSSION
. AS HE SAID, I KNOW THE
MEETINGS HE'S TALKING ABOUT AS I
PARTICIPATED IN THEM. I KNOW
HE'S BEEN A SOUL ADVOCATE, BUT
ALSO WITH THE ASSEMBLY MEMBER.
UH JIM PATTERSON, ONE OF THE
QUESTIONS THAT HE ASKED THAT I
WANT TO GO BACK TO IS THE
BUSINESS PLAN. FOR MAINTENANCE.
UH AS I REMEMBER ASKING THAT
QUESTION QUITE A HANDFUL OF
YEARS AGO, WHICH IS THE INITIAL
VISION IS TO HAVE BROADBAND
ACCESS FOR ALL ALL OR IF YOU
WANT TO CALL IT THE GOLDEN STATE
NETWORK, WHICH I ALWAYS THOUGHT
WAS A, UH, VERY CLEVER, BUT THE
TRUTH IS, WE NEED A BUSINESS
PLAN FOR WHAT THIS WILL LOOK
LIKE IN THE FUTURE TO MAINTAIN
THIS, AND IT NEEDS TO GET TO, UH
AS, UM, BUDGET SUB CHAIRS.
SOONER THAN LATER BECAUSE IT'S
ONE THING TO LAY THE FOUNDATION.
THAT'S ANOTHER THING TO PAY FOR
THE MAINTENANCE. HOW WILL THAT
LOOK? SO THAT WOULD BE ONE
QUESTION THE SECOND QUESTION I
WOULD HAVE WOULD READ, UH, GO
BACK TO LOOKING AT FUNDING THIS
AND ONE OF THE AREAS THAT
DOESN'T SEEM TO BE ADDRESSED IS
WIRELESS. AS WE KNOW TECHNOLOGY,
EVEN IN THE SHORT AMOUNT OF TIME
SINCE I'VE LEFT THE COMMITTEE TO
NOW WE'RE SEEING NEW WAYS THAT
TECHNOLOGY CAN BE MOVED FORWARD.
OF COURSE, WE'RE TALKING ABOUT
UNDERGROUND WITH FIBER, BUT
THERE'S ALSO WIRELESS. I HAD A
PRESENTATION. I'M GOING TO SAY
NOT TOO LONG AGO ABOUT A NEW WAY
TO MOVE FORWARD ON WIRELESS THAT
COULD GO THROUGH A VERY, UH JUST
SAY THEY SHOWED US HOW IT GO
THROUGH THE CAPITOL BUILDING.
THAT'S HOW POWERFUL IT CAN BE.
SO ARE WE GOING TO LOOK AT
ADDING THAT IN AS PART OF OUR
NETWORK, UH, KNOWING THAT THIS
CONTINUES TO CHANGE, SO I'M NOT
SURE WHO I KNOW. MARK IS LOOKING
AT ME. MAYBE ON THE MAINTENANCE
THAT THAT QUESTION, BUT ON
ADDING WIRELESS AND WHY WE'RE
NOT MOVING FORWARD WITH THAT. UH
IS SOMETHING THAT I'D LIKE TO
ADDRESS? THANK YOU. YES THANK
YOU. UM, YES. THE UH AS WE'VE
BEEN FOCUSED SO MUCH ON
DEVELOPMENT THUS FAR, YOU KNOW,
WE'VE, UH AND WE ARE MAKING
PROGRESS. WE HAVE AS THE L A
HAVE NOTED, UM WE ARE MOVING
FORWARD WITH THE MARKET SOUNDING
AND SO IN TERMS OF TIMING, AND I
THINK WE WOULD WE'RE EXPECTING
TO HAVE TO BE ABLE TO PRESENT
SOMETHING I WOULD SAY NO LATER
THAN THE APRIL MIDDLE MILE
ADVISORY COMMITTEE IN TERMS OF
OUR FINDINGS ON THAT. SO I THINK
THAT KIND OF FITS WITHIN WITHIN
THE BROADER TIMEFRAME THERE.
THANK YOU AND ASSEMBLYMEMBER'S.
THANKS FOR THE QUESTION ON
TECHNOLOGY, UM, FIXED WIRELESS
AND OTHER TECHNOLOGIES ARE
ELIGIBLE UNDER TWO OF THE THREE
PROGRAMS, BROADBAND EQUITY
ACCESS AND DEPLOYMENT AND
CALIFORNIA ADVANCED SERVICES
FUND. AND AS I NOTED, THE
COMMISSION IS REGULARLY VOTING
ON GRANT PROPOSALS THROUGH THE
CSF. AS RECENTLY AS FEBRUARY,
15TH. THEY JUST APPROVED MORE
THAN 6 MILLION TO TWO WIRE FIXED
WIRELESS PROGRESS. EXCUSE ME
FIXED WIRELESS PROJECTS THAT
WILL DELIVER TO PRESENTLY
UNSERVED HOUSEHOLDS, SO THE
TECHNOLOGY OPTIONS ARE WE'RE
PUTTING EVERYTHING ON THE TABLE
UNDER THE THOSE TWO PROGRAMS. I
WOULD JUST MAKE THE FINAL
COMMENT THAT I WOULD ASK YOU TO
VERY SERIOUSLY CONSIDER, UH WHAT
THIS MIGHT LOOK LIKE WHAT? THE
DELAY OF FUNDING AS WE KNOW THAT
THERE IS A BUDGET. ASK HERE THAT
THE GOVERNOR HAS PUT IN WITH 1.5
. BUT WHAT IS THIS GOING TO LOOK
LIKE WITHOUT THAT FUNDING? AS
ALL OF OUR SUBCOMMITTEES ARE
GOING TO BE ASKED TO MAKE SOME
VERY SERIOUS CUTS IN MANY AREAS,
SO REALLY MAPPING THAT OUT WOULD
BE IMPORTANT. YOU DON'T NEED TO
ANSWER THAT. NOW I THINK WE WILL
BE HAVING, UH, OUR OWN BROADBAND
HEARING UNDER SOME FIVE, BUT
WHAT WOULD THAT LOOK LIKE WITH
THAT REDUCED FUNDING OR
INVESTMENT? THANK YOU. WONDERFUL
THANK YOU NOW ARE DISTINGUISHED
MEMBER, MR BENNETT. THANK YOU
VERY MUCH CHAIR VALENCIA. UM. MY
FIRST QUESTION DEALS WITH THE
FEDERAL ENCUMBRANCE DEADLINES
THAT ARE COMING UP. SO WE HAVE
AN ENCUMBRANCE DEADLINE COMING
UP AT THE END OF THIS YEAR, AND
I JUST WANT TO BE CLEAR THAT I
THINK I HEARD IN YOUR
PRESENTATION THAT YOU'RE GOING
TO HAVE APPROVED ALL THE
PROPOSED PROJECTS BY JUNE. IS
THAT CORRECT? THANKS
ASSEMBLYMEMBER'S AND NICE TO SEE
YOU. UM AT LEAST THE INITIAL
TRANCHE OF AWARDS. YES, BY JUNE.
WE CAN'T SAY IT. THIS POINT
WHETHER IT WILL, UM BE FOR THE
ENTIRE FEDERAL FUNDING ACCOUNTS
BECAUSE WE'RE NAVIGATING ALL OF
THE CHALLENGES AND REBUTTALS.
SO, UM. WHAT? WHAT'S THE RISK
THAT WE'RE GOING TO LOSE SOME
FEDERAL FUNDING BECAUSE WE DON'T
MEET THE ENCUMBRANCE DEADLINE.
PRESENTLY WERE NONE BECAUSE WE
ARE AIMING TO ISSUE ALL OF THE
AWARDS WITH PLENTY OF TIME TO
HIT THE ENCUMBRANCE AND THE
LIQUIDATION DEADLINES. JUNE IS
THE FIRST TRENCH WHAT'S WHAT'S
YOUR DEADLINE TO ACTUALLY, MAKE
SURE THAT YOU YOU HAVE ALL OF
THE PROPOSALS. WELL, THERE IS A
LET'S SEE, THERE IS DEFINITELY A
CHANCE THAT WE WILL GO AHEAD AND
ISSUE AWARDS THAT TOTAL $2
BILLION BECAUSE THAT IS WERE
OVER SUBSCRIBED ALREADY. UM I
JUST CAN'T SAY WHETHER OR NOT
WILL HIT THAT TARGET OR BECAUSE
OF CHALLENGES AND OBJECTIONS. UM
WE MIGHT NOT ISSUE ALL OF THOSE,
BUT THEN WE'LL IMMEDIATELY DO A
NEXT ROUND OF GRANT APPLICATIONS
, AND THEN WE HAVE A COMPLETION
DEADLINE ALSO WHERE WE RISK
LOSING FEDERAL FUNDING IF WE
DON'T HAVE THE COMPLETIONS DONE,
AND I'M CONCERNED WITH THE
SUPPLY CHAIN, UM, CHALLENGES
THAT WE'VE SEEN OUT THERE. UM
SPEND SIGNIFICANT PARTICULARLY
IN SOME ELECTRICAL EQUIPMENT
REGARDING OUR PORTS, ETCETERA,
UM WHAT KIND OF SAFEGUARDS ARE
WE PUTTING IN TO MAKE SURE THAT
WE MEET THE ACTUAL, YOU KNOW,
CONSTRUCTION DEADLINES TO
COMPLETION DEADLINES THAT YOU
KNOW THAT WE HAVE SO THAT WE
DON'T LOSE THAT FEDERAL FUNDING.
CAN YOU HELP ME WITH THAT?
PLEASE EXCELLENT QUESTION AND
GIVEN THAT WE ARE RESPONSIBLE
FOR DISTRIBUTING, TOO, AS YOU
KNOW, A FEW 100 DIFFERENT
APPLICANTS, EACH ONE OF THOSE
APPLICANTS WILL NEED TO BE
MANAGING THEIR SUPPLY CHAIN
APPROPRIATELY. DO YOU HAVE ANY
DETAIL ON THAT MARIA? AND COULD
YOU LOWER YOUR MICROPHONE?
YOU'RE MUCH EASIER TO HEAR WHEN
YOU DON'T. YEAH. THERE YOU GO.
THAT HELPS A LOT. YOU ALWAYS
JUST A FRIEND. I'M GONNA UM, UH,
TO FOLLOW UP ON YOUR QUESTION.
ONE THING, UM I AGREE WITH
RACHEL. AND IN REGARDS OF EACH,
UH EACH APPLICANT HAVING TO
MANAGE THEIR SUPPLY CHAIN. I
WOULD ADD THAT THERE'S CURRENTLY
FOR, UM, OF THE OF IN THE
FEDERAL FUNDING ACCOUNT FUNDING.
THERE'S REALLY, UH, 540 IN
FEDERAL FUNDING. IN THAT ACCOUNT
STILL REMAINING, AND THE REST IS
GENERAL FUND AND SO ARE INTENDED
TO ENSURE THAT WE ARE GETTING
THAT FEDERAL FUNDING AT THE DOOR
AS QUICKLY AS POSSIBLE SO THAT
WE ARE FIRST AND QUICKLY SO THAT
WE CAN MEET THOSE DEADLINES. UM
AND THEN THE GENERAL FUND
DOESN'T HAVE THOSE SAME, UM,
STRINGS ATTACHED. SO IF PEOPLE
RUN INTO SUPPLY CHANGE PROBLEMS,
ETCETERA. THEY'LL BE FUNDED WITH
THE GENERAL FUND SIDE OF IT, AND
WE WILL. WE WILL. WE WILL DO THE
FEDERAL FUNDS FOR WE'LL GET THE
FEDERAL FUNDS OUT SO THAT WE'RE
GOING TO GET THE FEDERAL FUNDS
AT THE DOOR FIRST, AND DO WE
HAVE A RE PUTTING ANYTHING INTO
THE CONTRACTS THAT HELP US
GUARANTEE THAT THESE PEOPLE ARE
GOING TO DO IT. PENALTIES IF
THEY IF THEY DON'T MEET THE
DEADLINES, ETCETERA, I THINK
THAT YOU'RE PROBABLY TALKING
ABOUT ABOUT OVERSIGHT AND
MONITORING, AND THE PROGRAM
CERTAINLY DOES HAVE A LOT OF
MECHANISMS IN THEIR RELATED TO
MONITORING THEIR EACH APPLICANT
WILL HAVE TO DO REGULAR
REPORTING ON PROGRESS, AND THEY
ARE ONLY ELIGIBLE FOR PAYMENTS.
UH, AT INTERVALS OF PROGRESS ON
BASED ON THOSE REPORTS THAT WE
WILL VERIFY MY THIRD QUESTION IS
, UM, WE'VE HEARD ABOUT THE $100
MILLION DELAY AND I KNOW
ASSEMBLYMEMBER'S WOODS ASKED
ABOUT THAT, ETCETERA, BUT THE
JUSTIFICATION FOR CUTTING 250
MILLION FROM THE LOAN LOSS
RESERVE FUND I KNOW YOU MAY NOT
BE ABLE TO OFFER THE
ADMINISTRATION'S JUSTIFICATION.
BUT IF YOU HAVE IF YOU HAVE ANY
ANY EXPLANATION FROM THE
ADMINISTRATION, BUT WHAT WILL
THE IMPACT BE OF THAT CHANGE OF
$250 MILLION OF CUTTING $215
MILLION FROM ALONE? MARSHALS
WERE FUN. CAN YOU HELP US WITH
THE IMPACTS? YES I APPRECIATE
THE QUESTION. I MEAN, THE IMPACT
IS THAT SIMPLY LESS FUNDING WILL
BE AVAILABLE AS A CREDIT
ENHANCEMENT FOR THESE NEW
ENTRANTS TO THE MARKETPLACE. DO
YOU HAVE ANY INFORMATION ON THE
JUSTIFICATION? UM, I THINK
BUDGET CHALLENGE AND THIS IS ONE
MORE. I THINK EVERYONE IS TRYING
TO ADDRESS THE BUDGET CHALLENGE.
GREAT THANK YOU. UM AND THEN,
UH, TWO MORE QUICK QUESTIONS ONE
COULD YOU JUST BRIEFLY SUMMARIZE
HOW YOU DO THE COORDINATION
BETWEEN THE CPU C AND THE C D. T
ON MIDDLE MILE UH AND LAST MILE
DOES C D T MAKE SURE THEY TAKE
INTO CONSIDERATION WHERE WE'RE
DOING THE LAST MILE. THERE'S
CERTAINLY LAST MILE HAS TO TAKE
INTO CONSIDERATION. COULD YOU
JUST SUMMARIZE HOW THAT
COORDINATION IS TAKING PLACE FOR
ALL OF US? ABSOLUTELY SO, UM,
THE C D T TEAM IN THE PUC TEAMS.
UM, WE MEET UP AT LEAST ONCE A
WEEK, IF NOT MORE. AND UH, IN
FACT, IF YOU HAVE HAD CHANCE TO
GO IN AND LOOK AT, UM, THE
PUBLIC UTILITIES COMMISSIONS
WEBSITE THEY SHOW THE M N B. I
MAP ON IT RIGHT? AND, UM, AND AS
NOTED, WE'VE BEEN WORKING WITH
THE CPUC TEAM. ON THE F F A
GRANT APPLICATIONS. THAT'S WHAT
WE WERE ABLE TO PUT THE MAP IN
YOUR SLIDE THERE. SO UH, WE WORK
. IT'S VERY IMPORTANT. YOU KNOW,
I THINK WE, AS HAS BEEN SAID,
YOU KNOW, REPEATEDLY, YOU NEED A
MIDDLE MILE AND YOU NEED A LAST
MILE ON THAT LAST MILE
CONNECTIONS REALLY IMPORTANT. SO
WE'RE WORKING. WE'RE WORKING
TOGETHER REGULARLY TO, UM AND AS
WE KIND OF MOVE FORWARD WITH
WITH THAT MIDDLE MILE WE? WE
DEFINITELY ARE LOOKING AT WHERE
THOSE, UH, F F A GRANT
APPLICATIONS. WE WILL BE THANK
YOU AND ONE JUST FINAL OVERALL
SUGGESTION. UM AND THAT IS THAT,
UM, WHEN YOU HAVE POWER POINT
PRESENTATIONS IF THEY ARE UP ON
THE SCREEN, AND WE CAN FOLLOW
WITH YOU SO BUT THAT YOU HAVE TO
SUBMIT THEM IN ADVANCE FOR THAT
TO HAPPEN IF THAT DOESN'T
HAPPEN, THOUGH, IF WHEN YOU'RE
GOING THROUGH YOUR POWER POINT
IS, YOU'LL BE CLEAR WHAT PAGE
YOU'RE ON. YOU'VE GOT, YOU KNOW
16 PEOPLE UP HERE TRYING TO
FIGURE OUT NOW WHAT PAGE ARE YOU
ON, ETCETERA. SO I JUST
SUGGESTED THAT WOULD BE HELPFUL
FOR PRESENTATIONS. THANK YOU
VERY MUCH. WONDERFUL THANK YOU,
MR BENNETT. NOW WE WILL MOVE ON
TO MR GREG HART. THANK YOU, MR
CHAIR. UM MOST OF THE QUESTIONS
THAT I HAVE HAVE BEEN ASKED, BUT
I JUST WANT TO START OFF BY
SAYING HOW MUCH I APPRECIATE AND
WANT TO THANK YOU FOR THE WORK
THAT YOU DID GETTING ADDITIONAL
FEDERAL FUNDING TO THE STATE
THAT IS REALLY CRITICAL. WE
WOULD NOT BE ABLE TO ACHIEVE
WHAT WE ARE GOING TO BE
ACHIEVING WITHOUT THAT WORK AND
APPRECIATE IT. UM THE QUESTION I
HAVE IS ABOUT THE FUTURE AND
CURRENT YEAR INVESTMENTS THAT
ARE PROPOSED BY THE STATE IF WE
ARE NOT ABLE TO MAKE THOSE
COMMITMENTS BECAUSE OF THE
BUDGET ISSUES THAT WE'RE DEALING
WITH IS THAT PUT ANY OF THE
FEDERAL FUNDING AT RISK?
PRESENTLY FOR THE LAST MILE
NETWORK PORTION OF BROADBAND FOR
ALL NO ASSEMBLY. NEVER SAME WITH
THE MIDDLE MILE TWO YES, THAT IS
CORRECT. THANK YOU. WONDERFUL
AND NOW BACK TO MS PRONTO. I'LL
JUST PICK UP ON THE QUESTION
THAT ASSEMBLYMEMBER'S HEART JUST
ASKED. UH BUT MORE FROM A
PERSPECTIVE OF WHAT THE IMPACT
OF NOT BEING ABLE TO COMPLETE
THE MIDDLE MILE, UH,
INFRASTRUCTURE BUILD OUT WOULD
BE SO YOU HAVE A BCP FOR $1.5
BILLION TO BE ABLE TO FOLLOW
THROUGH WITH COMPLETION OF THE
ENTIRETY OF THE 10,000 MILES
THAT WERE IDENTIFIED. THAT
NEEDED CONSTRUCTION IN ORDER TO
BE ABLE TO COMPLETE THE STATE
NETWORK. UH IF THE 2200 MILES
ARE NOT ABLE TO BE FULLY
CONSTRUCTED, LEAST WHATEVER.
HOWEVER WE MIGHT GET THEM OUT.
PURCHASED, UM WHAT IS THE IMPACT
ON OUR OVERALL? UH INVESTMENT IN
INFRASTRUCTURE AND ASSURANCE
THAT EVERYBODY WILL ACTUALLY
HAVE. THE POSSIBILITY OF
BROADBAND FOR ALL AND CONNECTING
TO THE LAST MILE. UM WE'RE STILL
IN THE IN THE PROCESS OF
ANALYZING WHAT THAT WOULD LOOK
LIKE, UM, I THINK OUR GENERAL
THE WAY WE'VE APPROACHED THE
NETWORK AND ROLLING OUT AS
CALTRANS GETS GIVEN SEGMENTS
READY FOR RECONSTRUCTION. WE
MOVE FORWARD WITH CONSTRUCTION.
UM BUT I'LL NOTE THAT WE ALSO
HAVE, UH UM AS I HAD MENTIONED
THE WE CALL IT CLARIFY, SQUARED,
BUT THAT THE SOLICITATION FOR
OTHER ALICIA JOINED BUILD
PARTNERS THAT WILL WE'RE
CURRENTLY REVIEWING THAT MIGHT
FACTOR IN AS WELL. SO UM AND WE
WANT TO MAKE SURE THERE'S NO
GAPS IN THE NETWORK TO MAKE SURE
THERE'S NO STRANDED ASSETS. UM
AND THEN AGAIN, LOOKING AT WHERE
THE FAA GRANT APPLICATIONS ARE
SO WITHOUT THE ADDITIONAL
FUNDING, WE WOULD HAVE TO GO
BACK, AND WE'RE AND WE'RE
ALREADY DOING A LOT OF THIS
ANALYSIS NOW, BUT WE WOULD HAVE
TO BE MORE STRATEGIC ABOUT WHERE
WE DO. AND DON'T UH, UM, MOVE
FORWARD. IS THE CASE THAT UH,
THERE HAVE BEEN ORGANIZATIONS
SINCE 2021. THAT WE'RE FOCUSED
ON. THAT COMMITMENT OR THE
OBJECTIVE OF HAVING THE FULL
10,000 MILE MIDDLE MILES ARE
FULLY COVERED. PEOPLE HAVE BASED
THEIR LAST MILE APPLICATIONS ON
THE EXISTENCE OF THE FULL 10,000
MILES. THERE WAS A MOVE LAST
YEAR BY THE PUC TO FOCUS IN ON
JUST FUNDING OR MOVING FORWARD
WITH THE PROJECTS FOR THE 80
SORRY, JUST A LITTLE OVER 8000
MILES, AND WE HAVE A REMAINING
2000 MILES. ISH THAT ARE NOT
ATTENDED TO RIGHT NOW. UH AND I
JUST GONNA HARP ON THIS AGAIN.
BECAUSE IT'S VERY IMPORTANT. Tð.
PARTICULARLY BLACK COMMUNITIES,
LATINO COMMUNITIES THROUGHOUT
THE STATE. IF WE DO NOT HAVE THE
FULL FUNDING AND COMPLETION OF
THE MIDDLE MILE, WE WILL BE
LEAVING. REDLINED COMMUNITIES
HISTORICALLY. DISINVESTED IN
COMMUNITIES. WITHOUT FULL
ACCESS. I DON'T I I'M SEARCHING
YOUR FACES BECAUSE I DIDN'T
OFFER A QUESTION IN THERE. BUT
I'M JUST IN TERMS OF
CONFIRMATION OF THAT REALITY.
THAT IS WHAT WE WOULD BE DOING.
WE PRIORITIZED. FOLLOWING THE
CPUC MAPS FOR THE INITIAL
INVESTMENT IN THAT MIDDLE MILES
OF THE 8000 MIDDLE MILES
PROJECTS THAT WE WERE ABLE TO
DO. WE LEFT ON THE TABLE AND
DEFERRED COMPLETION OF. OR
FUNDING FOR THE COMPLETION OF
THOSE 2000 MILES IN THAT
CATEGORY OF 2000 MILES ARE THE
COMMUNITIES THAT IS THAT. MR
PATTERSON IS TALKING ABOUT THAT.
I'VE BEEN TALKING ABOUT THAT
CHAIR. WILSON HAS BEEN TALKING
ABOUT THAT MR BRIAN HAS BEEN
TALKING ABOUT UH, THAT THE
CALIFORNIA LEGISLATIVE BLACK
CAUCUS HAS BEEN TALKING ABOUT.
HOLY. THAT'S I'M JUST SEEKING
CONFIRMATION ABOUT THE REALITY
OF THAT. CHOICE. UM LIKE JUST A
QUICK COMMENT AND
ASSEMBLYMEMBER'S BONTA. UH. AS
YOU ARE AWARE OF THE
MINISTRATIONS FULLY COMMITTED,
SO CALTRANS IS NOT GOING TO STOP
THE REHAB FUNDING TO LOOK AT ALL
4000 MILES OF CONSTRUCTION, ALL
PRE PLANNING WHEN WE LOOK AT
WHAT WE HAVE MONIES FOR TODAY IS
ABOUT 1800 MILES, AND THEN WE'RE
ASKING FOR 1.5 BILLION FOR THE
2200 ADDITIONAL TO MAKE UP THE
4000 ADMINISTRATION. IF WE DON'T
GET THE FUNDING, OBVIOUSLY F F A
WILL BE A BIG PRIORITY, MAKING
SURE THAT THE NETWORK DOESN'T
HAVE ANY LOST SEGMENTS AND
MAKING SURE THAT WHEREVER
THERE'S A COMMITMENT IN FEDERAL
FUNDING THAT WE'RE MEETING THAT,
AND SO, UM YOU KNOW THE
COMMITMENT IS TO MAKE SURE THAT
THE PRIORITIES MEET WITH
ADMINISTRATION AND THE
LEGISLATURE. UM BUT I WANTED TO
LET YOU KNOW THAT THEY'RE ALL OF
THE CONSTRUCTION PRE PLANNING IS
CONTINUING. AND WITH THE
ANTICIPATION THAT WE'RE GOING TO
BUILD THE ENTIRE NETWORK AND IF
I CAN ADD ASSEMBLY MEMBER UM THE
CPUC SET UP STRUCTURAL
INCENTIVES IN ORDER TO BRING
APPLICATIONS TO THE FOUR THAT
SERVE DISADVANTAGED COMMUNITIES
AND SO WITHIN OUR GRANT
APPLICATION PROCESS WE GAVE WE
PROVIDED A STRUCTURE IN WHICH
POINTS ARE GIVEN FOR AN ONGOING
AFFORDABILITY COMMITMENT. A
COMMITMENT TO SERVE PRESENTLY
DISADVANTAGED COMMUNITIES. UM
AND A CONNECTION TO THE MIDDLE
MILE NETWORK, THE STATE'S MIDDLE
MILE NETWORK. SO WE BUILT ALL
THAT INTO THE FAA GRANT
APPLICATION PROCESS SO THAT
THOSE APPLICATIONS WHICH WERE
REVIEWING NOW THAT UH, MEET
THOSE CRITERIA EARN MORE POINTS
IN THE PROCESS ARE THEREBY FLOAT
HIGHER IN THE IN THE
PRIORITIZATION SCHEME
ALTOGETHER. AND SO I
WHOLEHEARTEDLY AGREE WITH YOU.
THIS IS OUR OPPORTUNITY TO NOT
LEAVE THOSE COMMUNITIES BEHIND
AGAIN. AND THE WORK THAT SB 156
THE WORK PLAN THAT IT SET OUT
FOR CALIFORNIA IS WORKING. UM,
THAT'S WHAT I BELIEVE WE'RE
REPORTING TO YOU TODAY. OF THOSE
484 APPLICATIONS ABOUT 90 ARE
FROM THESE NEW ENTRANCE TO THE
MARKETPLACE. THE LOCAL
GOVERNMENTS, THE TRIBES AND THE
NEW SPECIAL DISTRICTS THAT ARE
GOING TO SERVE THE PRESENTLY
UNSERVED PORTIONS OF CALIFORNIA.
THAT IS WHAT WE ARE AT WORK,
PRIORITIZING AND LOOKING TO FUND
FIRST. IN ORDER TO DELIVER THE
LAST MILE CONNECTIVITY IF THERE
IS A CRUCIAL DEPENDENCY ON THE
STATE'S MIDDLE MILE NETWORK,
BECAUSE THAT IS WHAT THOSE NEW
ENTRANTS HAVE TOLD US IN THEIR
APPLICATIONS THAT THEY DEPEND ON
THAT MIDDLE MILE NETWORK IN
ORDER TO MAKE THEIR LAST MILE
NETWORK FUNCTION. HIÂU UH, JUST
WANT TO CLARIFY YOU SAID
UNSERVED, UNSERVED AND
UNDERSERVED. I'VE SAT THROUGH
MANY HOURS OF CONVERSATION ABOUT
THIS AND HEARINGS. UH, THROUGH
OUR CHAIR OF C AND C MS BURNER.
AND YOU JUST SAID UNSERVED. SO
WITHIN THE FEDERAL FUNDING
ACCOUNT, THERE IS A BROAD,
EXPANSIVE DEFINITION OF UNSERVED
. IT'S A PLACE IT'S LOCATIONS
WHERE THERE IS NO RELIABLE. UM
UH, FIXED SERVICE. SO THAT'S A
BROAD DEFINITION THAT DOES
ENCOMPASS COMMUNITIES THAT
PRESENTLY DON'T HAVE VERY
RELIABLE, UM, FIBER SERVICE. SO
UNSERVED AND UNDERSERVED. YES
AND I JUST NEED TO DISTINGUISH
BETWEEN A TECHNICAL DEFINITION
BEING USED IN THE GRANT PROGRAM
AND THEN THE WAY THAT WE ALL
SPEAK ABOUT UNDERSERVED AND
UNSERVED. YES, THANK YOU. THANK
YOU. NOW BACK TO DOCTOR WOULD
THANK YOU FOR A SECOND BITE AT
THE APPLE HERE, SO UM, YOU KNOW,
I JUST WANT TO KIND OF GO BACK
TO THE BIG PICTURE FOR A MINUTE
IF WE DON'T APPROVED THE FUNDING
AND WHAT THAT MEANS FOR
COMMUNITIES THAT HAVE BEEN
HISTORICALLY UNSERVED AND
UNDERSERVED AS WELL. UM. THE
DIGITAL DIVIDE IS VERY, VERY
REAL IN IN IN A LOT OF OUR
DISTRICTS AND THE IMPACTS ON
EVERYBODY EVERYDAY LIVES FOR
PEOPLE WHO LIVE IN THESE
COMMUNITIES IS REALLY, REALLY
SIGNIFICANT. AND HEALTHCARE THE
ABILITY TO HAVE RELIABLE
BROADBAND SERVICE SO THAT WE CAN
HAVE MORE TELE TELE MEDICINE AND
COMMUNICATIONS BETWEEN EXISTING
PROVIDERS THAT ARE ROBUST AND
ENSURE THAT WE GET, UM THE RIGHT
CARE AT THE RIGHT TIME FOR
PEOPLE. IN EDUCATION. UM YOU
KNOW WHEN AND I APPLAUD THE
ABILITY WHEN WE HANDED OUT
CHROMEBOOKS TO PEOPLE YOU KNOW,
IN THE STATE HERE. AND I AND I
SAT THERE AND AT THE TIME SAID,
WELL, THAT'S GREAT IF YOU'VE GOT
A NETWORK, BUT THOSE CHROMEBOOKS
DON'T HELP THE PEOPLE THAT I
REPRESENT. AND IN SOME OF THESE
COMMUNITIES AND HELP SOME, BUT
IT CERTAINLY DIDN'T HELP A LOT
OF US. UH AND SO I'M GLAD THAT
SOME PEOPLE GOT SOME HELP AND
ESPECIALLY AROUND THE EDUCATION
PIECE OF IT. ALARM BELLS WENT
OFF FOR ME WHEN WE WHEN WE WENT
TO THIS PHASE ONE AND PHASE TWO
BECAUSE ONE OF THE MOST
HISTORICALLY UNSERVED AND
UNDERSERVED BECAUSE THERE IS
THERE ARE COMPONENTS OF THAT ARE
UNDERSERVED. PARTS OF MY
DISTRICT, UM, WAS DOUBT
RELEGATED TO A SECOND, A SECOND.
PHASE. AND THAT WAS PRETTY
SHOCKING TO ME. UM AND, UH, THE
BEST. BRIBE THE COVERAGE THAT
THAT COMMUNITY HAS HAD IN THE
LAST AND FOREVER PROBABLY WAS
WHEN WE HAD FLOODING IN 18 T
BROUGHT IN. UH WHAT THEY CALL A
COW, WHICH IS CELLULAR ON WHEELS
AND SET IT UP FOR A COUPLE OF
WEEKS, AND PEOPLE FOR THE FIRST
TIME HAD ACCESS TO WIFI AND
THEIR COMMUNITY. UM THIS IS A
PLACE WHERE KIDS GO AND SIT IN
THE PARKING LOT OF THE LIBRARY
TO DO THEIR COLLEGE
APPLICATIONS. UM, THIS, UH THIS
IS THESE ARE POOR COMMUNITIES.
AND, UM AND SO I'M HAPPY THAT
YOU KNOW THERE IS THE PHASING
PART IS HAS BEEN CHANGED. AND I,
UM, BUT IF WE DON'T PROVIDE THE
FUNDING COMMUNITIES LIKE THIS,
LIKE THE COMMUNITY'S
ASSEMBLYMEMBER'S BONTA IS
TALKING ABOUT WILL CONTINUE. TO
BE UM AND SERVED. OR UNDERSERVED
AND IT'S A HUGE DISSERVICE TO US
AND SO I WILL. I WILL ADVOCATE
UNTIL I RUN OUT OF VOICE. UM TO
CONTINUE THIS CONTINUE THE
FUNDING FOR THESE PROGRAMS AND
SO THAT WE CAN CONTINUE TO GET
IT THERE BECAUSE IT'S SO
IMPORTANT. UM I THINK MR BENNETT
BROUGHT UP. I THINK IT WAS. MR
BENNETT BROUGHT THE QUESTION.
YOU KNOW WHAT HAPPENS IF YOU
KNOW SOMEBODY SOME OF THESE
CONTRACTS THAT DON'T MEET THE
DEADLINES FOR CONSTRUCTION, AND
SO WHEN WE'RE TALKING ABOUT
PRIVATE, PRIVATE ENTITIES IN
PARTICULAR BUT SOME OF THESE ARE
BEING BUILT BY OUR OWN STATE
AGENCIES. AND SO WHAT HAPPENS IF
CALTRANS DOESN'T MEET A DEADLINE
AT LEAST FEDERAL FUNDING ON THE
TABLE? HOW DO WE GET THAT
RECTIFIED? AND WHERE DOES THAT
WHERE ARE THE RESOURCES COME
FROM, IF OUR OWN STATE AGENCY IS
NOT SUCCESSFUL IN COMPLETING A
PROJECT YES. NO, THANK YOU FOR
THAT QUESTION. UM SO, UH, THE
GOOD NEWS IS BEING GIVEN THE WAY
ALL OF THE PERMITTING WORK THAT
WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO DO. A
CALTRANS IS IN HISTORICALLY GOOD
SHAPE FOR MEETING THOSE
DEADLINES. UH BUT, UM, AS THE
BUDGET HAS BEEN, YOU KNOW,
SEVERAL BUDGETS HAVE PASSED
SINCE SB 156 CITY. TINA HAS
ABOUT $2.4 BILLION IN THOSE
FEDERAL FUNDS, WITH THE
REMAINDER BEING GENERAL FUND.
AND SO THE GENERAL FUND DOESN'T
HAVE THAT SAME TIME FRAME, SO IT
WILL BE MONITORING THAT AS WE
MOVE FORWARD IN TERMS OF
PROGRESS AS WE APPROACH THE 2024
DEADLINE. UM AND WE CAN WE CAN
SWAP OUT FUNDING THERE IF THERE
WERE ANY ISSUES, BUT WE DON'T
ANTICIPATE THAT THAT THERE'S
ALSO ALREADY SUBSTANTIAL AMOUNT
OF GENERAL FUND IN THERE THAT
WILL HELP US MITIGATE. THANK YOU
AND I THAT KIND OF THE FOR ME
WHEN I LOOK AT THE BROADBAND
ACCESS, I LOOK AT IT AND KIND OF
33 LEGS AND EVERYBODY HAS THEIR
OWN, UM, VISION OF THAT, BUT I
THINK OF AROUND HEALTH CARE, I
THINK AROUND EDUCATION BUT ALSO
THINK AROUND BUSINESS AND
COMMERCE AND THE ABILITY TO HAVE
BROADBAND ACCESS CAN BE REALLY
BENEFICIAL IN AGRICULTURE, THE
ABILITY TO HAVE A WIFI NETWORK
TO HELP DECIDE HOW MUCH WATER
TIED INTO A SYSTEM FOR
IRRIGATION IS APPROPRIATE BASED
ON CURRENT TECHNOLOGIES RATHER
THAN JUST WELL, I DON'T KNOW IT
LOOKS KINDA DRY, SO I'M GONNA
PUT WATER ON IT, YOU KNOW, AND
BECAUSE THERE ARE SOME
INCREDIBLE TECHNOLOGIES OUT
THERE THAT THAT WILL ALLOW US TO
BE SMARTER WITH OUR WATER AND
OTHER RESOURCES. BUT YOU CAN'T
DO THAT UNLESS YOU HAVE
BROADBAND. AND SO THE
RAMIFICATIONS OF THIS IN IN IN
IN COMMUNITIES IS REALLY
DRAMATIC. UM IN A STATE WHERE WE
HISTORICALLY STRUGGLE WITH
THINGS LIKE WATER SO ANYWAY, SO
THANK YOU. THANK YOU, DOCTOR
WOULD AND THEN MR PATTERSON.
YEAH, JUST A QUICK, LITTLE, UH,
NOTE. UM FIRST OF ALL WITH WITH
WITH MR WOOD WITH RESPECT TO THE
WATER AND AGRICULTURE. MY
DISTRICT IS THE HEART AND SOUL
OF AGRICULTURE AND IN CALIFORNIA
, THAT WOULD BE ABSOLUTELY
ESSENTIAL. I'VE GOTTEN INTO PICK
UP TRUCKS. WITH WITH OUR FARMERS
THAT ARE BEAT UP AND DIRTY ON
THE OUTSIDE, BUT YOU GO IN. IT
LOOKS LIKE THEIR LUNCH AND
ROCKET SHIPS. I MEAN, THEY CAN
ACTUALLY GO AND HAVE TECHNOLOGY
THAT CAN GO AND TAKE A LOOK AT
IT AT AN OPEN FIELD, AND
ACTUALLY, IT WILL. IT WILL
DESIGN THE FURROWING, UH AND AS
WELL AS AS THE WATER. I'M JUST
GOING TO END WITH THIS. FIRST OF
ALL, I APPRECIATE YOU BEING
HERE. THIS IS MY 12TH AND FINAL
YEAR IN THIS LEGISLATURE. FROM
THE DAY I WAS SWORN IN. THIS WAS
SOMETHING THAT WAS BEING LOOKED
AT. PROMISED. TALKED ABOUT. THAT
ONE THING TO SAY. LET'S GET THIS
DONE. RIGHT YOU KNOW, NO
EXCUSES. UM GET IT DONE. AND
YOU'VE YOU'VE DETECTED A LOT OF
INTEREST UP HERE AND SUPPORT
FROM OTHER MEMBERS. TO GET IT
DONE. UM WE HAVE LOTS OF MONEY.
IF WE CAN DESIGN THE NETWORKS
WITH AFFORDABILITY IN MIND, NOT
JUST FOR THE END USER. BUT FOR
THE CONSTRUCTION AS WELL, SO
MAKING A CHOICE BETWEEN YOU KNOW
REALLY EXPENSIVE FIBER. OR
AFFORDABLE. WIRELESS. IF WE'RE
RUNNING OUT OF MONEY. AND YOU
CAN REPLACE A VERY EXPENSIVE
UNDERGROUND SYSTEM. CHEAPER AND
QUICKER. THEN MAYBE ADJUSTING
JUST HOW MUCH. UM WIRELESS WE
USE. I THINK THAT HAS A AN
OPPORTUNITY AS WELL. SO BUT
LET'S LET'S GET IT DONE. I THINK
WE HAVE THE RESOURCES TO DO IT.
MANAGING. IT IS GOING TO BE A
CHALLENGE. UM, BUT I THINK WE
NEED TO BE HAVING ALL OF THE
OPTIONS ON THE TABLE AND THEN
MAKING A DECISION. IF WE CAN GET
INTO AREAS THAT ARE VERY
EXPENSIVE TO GET INTO. WITH WITH
WITH ONE TECHNOLOGY THAT THAT'S
GO INTO THAT TECHNOLOGY IN THE
FIRST PLACE, KNOWING THAT THE
LESS EXPENSIVE BUT WITH THE UPS
AND DOWNS THAT THEY HAVE. THAT'S
UNAFFORDABLE. WAY OF STRETCHING
THE MONEY AS WELL. THAT'S. CAN'T
BE DONE. BY THE WAY I HAVEN'T
THAT'S FROM RONALD REAGAN. I
HAVE IT IN MY OFFICE. IT'S A
LITTLE LEATHER PLAQUE THAT YOU
GET AT THE REAGAN LIBRARY, AND
IT SAYS IT CAN'T AND CAN IS IN
BIG CAPITAL LETTERS. IT CAN BE
DONE. LET'S DO IT. THANK YOU, MR
BYRNE. YES SO I HAVE A MIXTURE
OF QUESTIONS FROM VERY DETAILED
STUFF TO KIND OF BIGGER, BROADER
QUESTIONS. UM ON THE HANDOUT WE
GOT FROM THE CPUC. THE CAST OF
INFRASTRUCTURE ACCOUNT SAYS THE
TOTAL UNSERVED IS 362,517. THE
TOTAL PRIORITY. UNSERVED IS
LARGER AT 543. 1003 149. HOW IS
IT POSSIBLE THAT THERE'S IF YOU
HAVE THE TOTAL POPULATION OF
UNSERVED THEN YOU WOULD NORMALLY
SAY THE PRIORITY UNSERVED IS A
SUBSET OF THAT. AND YET YOUR
NUMBERS ARE BIGGER, SO I HOPE
THAT'S A TYPO, AND IT'S NOT
RELATED TO DEFINITIONS. BECAUSE
THAT MAKES NO SENSE TO ME. CAN
YOU SOMEBODY PLEASE EXPLAIN THAT
ASSEMBLYMEMBER'S THANK YOU FOR
THE QUESTION. I LOOKED AT THAT
LAST NIGHT IN THE AIRPORT AS
WELL AND HAD THE SAME QUESTION.
SO I LOOK FORWARD TO MARIA'S
RESPONSE. UH, CERTAINLY, UM
PRIORITY. UNSERVED IS IN THE
STATUTE FOR THE CSF, AND IT
DEFINES THAT THAT SCOPE AS
ANYBODY WHO DOES NOT HAVE ANY
SERVICE UP TO 10 1. AND SO
THAT'S THAT'S FEAR AND THEN SP
156 MODIFIED IN ADDITION TO
THAT, AND CREATED AN ADDITIONAL
CATEGORY OF UNSERVED, WHICH IS
BETWEEN 10 1. AND 25 3. SO THOSE
ARE ADDITIVE NUMBERS WERE
SUPPOSED TO ADD THEM TOGETHER.
YOU MIGHT WANT TO HAVE A
FOOTNOTE IN THE FUTURE. YOU LIKE
THAT? BECAUSE WE'RE LIKE, CAN
THEY DO MATH? YOU KNOW, THANK
YOU WILL DO THE FIRST THING AND
MY UNDERSTANDING IS THE FAA
ACCOUNT FOR THE FAA FUNDING
THAT'S ALLOCATED BY COUNTIES
CORRECT. SO WHEN WE LOOK AT THE
MIDDLE MILE, I THINK IT'S REALLY
IMPORTANT TO NOTE. IF WE DON'T
DO THE CONSTRUCT, BUILD PORTION,
WHICH FOR EASE OF UNDERSTANDING
IS THE PHASE TWO RIGHT OF THE
MIDDLE MILE. THOSE COUNTIES WILL
HAVE LESS LAST MILES BECAUSE
THEY'RE GOING TO HAVE TO SPEND
MORE MONEY CONNECTING TO A
FURTHER AWAY MIDDLE MILE IF
THEY'RE PROPOSING TO CONNECT TO
THE MIDDLE MILE. AND SO IS IT
POSSIBLE TO ALLOCATE MIDDLE MILE
FUNDING TO COUNTIES WHO HAVE TO
DO THIS IN THE CASE THAT FOR
WHATEVER REASON, THE CONSTRUCT
BUILD PORTION OF PHASE TWO
DOESN'T HAPPEN BECAUSE AS, UH,
SOME REMEMBER ON TO AND
ASSEMBLYMEMBER'S BRIAN POINTED
OUT. THESE ARE HISTORICALLY
REDLINED AREAS. AND I'M REALLY
CONCERNED THAT WHEN WE LOOK AT A
BUDGET DEFICIT, AND I SUSPECT
IT'S GONNA EVERY MONTH, WE GET
UPDATED NUMBERS THAT ARE LARGER
AND IT'S NOT GOING DOWN. UM THAT
IF THAT ENDS UP HAPPENING WHAT'S
GOING TO HAPPEN IS YOU'RE GONNA
ACTUALLY OF THE TOTAL POPULATION
YOU CAN SERVE WITH THESE THREE.
THE $6 BILLION INVESTMENT. WE'RE
ACTUALLY GONNA SERVE EVEN LESS
THAN WHAT WE THINK WE CAN SERVE.
WE CAN'T SERVE THEM. ALL RIGHT.
I THOUGHT IF WE HAD A $9 BILLION
NEED AND WE HAVE $6 BILLION,
THEN WE'RE BASICALLY CONSERVED
TWO THIRDS OF THE NEED IN
CALIFORNIA. THAT WAS MY MATH,
BUT I DON'T KNOW IF THAT'S
ACCURATE. SO CAM, MIDDLE MILES
WILL BE FUNDING BE USED FOR LAST
MILE. OKAY CAN I'M SORRY THAT
THE LAST QUESTION IN THE 1.5
BILLION FOR THE MIDDLE MILE,
SOME PORTION OF THAT BE USED FOR
LAST MILE FUNDING. IF THEY HAVE
TO CONNECT FURTHER. THE FAA
DOESN'T GO IF THEY IF WE DON'T
DO THE CONSTRUCT, BUILD IN THE
HISTORICALLY DISADVANTAGED,
ESPECIALLY URBAN AREAS. THEN
THEY'RE GONNA HAVE TO SPEND MORE
OF THEIR F F A LAST MILE FUNDING
TO CONNECT TO THE FARTHER AWAY
MIDDLE MILE. THAT'S GONNA BE
MORE COSTLY. NO GREAT. NO, I
UNDERSTAND WHERE YOU'RE COMING
FROM IN THAT SO IF I COULD STEP
BACK REAL QUICK, REAL QUICK TO
BE CLEAR. I UNDERSTAND. THERE'S
BEEN LAST YEAR, THERE WAS A
PRESENTATION OF THE PHASED
APPROACH AND, UM, THE IDEA WAS
TO GET WITHIN FIVE MILES OF, UH,
ALL OF THE UNSERVED COMMUNITIES.
WHEN WE LOOK AT HOW WE'RE GOING
TO BE APPROACHING, UM, THE REST
OF THE NETWORK. WE ARE NOT USING
THAT APPROACH. AND SO, UM, I
WANT TO BE CLEAR ON THAT WE ARE,
WE WOULD BE LOOKING AT TARGETING
EXACTLY WHAT YOU'RE TALKING
ABOUT. IN TERMS OF TARGETING
MIDDLE MILE DEVELOPMENT. TO
REACH WHERE THOSE F F A GRANT
APPLICATIONS ARE AND SO I THINK
THAT'S LARGELY WHICH WHAT YOU'RE
TALKING ABOUT. IN TERMS OF WE
WOULD BE BUILDING THE MIDDLE
MILE AS MUCH AS, UH, AS WE CAN
TO ACTUALLY REACH WHERE THOSE
LESS MILE APPLICATIONS ARE. BUT
YOU'RE ASKING FOR MORE MONEY TO
DO THAT. IN THE BUDGET. WE'RE
ASKING FOR MORE MONEY TO
COMPLETE THE FULL 10,000 MILE
NETWORK. IF WE DON'T GET ALL OF
THAT FUNDING, WE'RE GOING TO
HAVE TO DECIDE, YOU KNOW, MAKE
TOUGH DECISIONS ABOUT WHERE WE
GO AND ONE OF OUR PRIMARY FOCUS
IS WOULD BE. WHERE ARE THE F F A
GRANT APPLICATIONS? AND SO I
THINK IN ANSWER TO YOUR QUESTION
IS YES, WE ARE TALKING ABOUT
BUILDING USING WHATEVER FUNDING
WE HAVE AVAILABLE FOR THE MIDDLE
MILE. UH TO DEVELOPMENTAL MILDLY
THAT REACHES THOSE LAST MILE
APPLICANTS. THANK YOU. SO I KNOW
WE GOT RID OF THE PHASED
APPROACH. BUT THAT PHASE GETTING
RID OF THE FARES APPROACH
REQUIRES MORE MONEY. AND WE ALL
KNOW WE'RE GOING TO HAVE TO MAKE
CUTS. RIGHT, AND I DON'T KNOW IF
THIS IS GOING TO BE ONE OF THE
THINGS WE CUT OR NOT, YOU KNOW
THAT I'M NOT ON THE BUDGET
SUBCOMMITTEE, BUT WE HAVE TO
THINK ABOUT WHERE WE'RE DOING.
AND I WOULD SAY TO BE FAIR. I
THINK SOMEBODY ANSWERED THAT.
THE COORDINATION BETWEEN C D T
AND C P U. C IS WORKING AND I
DON'T THINK IT IS. I THINK THE
FACT THAT THE CPUC ORIGINALLY
TOLD US TOLD QUIRK-SILVA WHEN
SHE WAS CHAIR OF C AND C THAT
YOU WOULD SUBMIT APPLICATIONS
WILL BE OPEN IN JUNE OF 2022.
THEN YOU COULD HAVE HAD
COORDINATION. BUT YOU'RE NOW
PROGRESSING AND LEASING AND
CREATING NEW MAPS FOR THE MIDDLE
MILE WHERE YOU DON'T KNOW WHERE
THE FAA APPLICATIONS R AND B
FUNDING HASN'T EVEN OPENED. YOU
DON'T EVEN KNOW WHERE THOSE
FUNDINGS WERE. THAT FUNDING IS
GOING TO BE OR WHAT? WHERE THOSE
APPLICATIONS ARE GONNA BE. SO TO
BE FAIR, I DON'T THINK THE
COORDINATION IS WORKING, AND I
DON'T THINK YOU SHOULD. IT
SHOULD BE REPRESENTED TO US AND
OUR CONSTITUENTS THAT IT IS
WORKING. I THINK YOU TRY TO MAKE
IT WORK. I THINK THAT THERE IS A
PROBLEM HAVING TWO DIFFERENT
AGENCIES, ONE DOING MIDDLE MILE
AND ONE DOING LAST MILE AND THEY
WERE ALWAYS BE INEFFICIENCIES IN
THAT CONSTRUCT OTHER STATES WHO
DON'T HAVE THAT ARE ALREADY
DIGGING UP ROADS AND THEY'RE
ALREADY LAYING FIBER. AND WE'RE
NOT DOING THAT. GOING BACK TO FF
AROUND ONE AND TWO. THE FACT
THAT WE HAD THE DELAYS AND THEY
HAD THIS KIND OF OR FLUFF, ALL
WITH THE PHASE ONE PHASE TWO OF
THE MIDDLE MILE IN THE FALL.
THERE IS ALWAYS SUPPOSED TO BE
TWO ROUNDS OF F F A FUNDING THAT
WAS IN EVERY REPRESENTATION. AND
IF I WERE SOMEBODY WHO MAYBE I'M
A I'M A SMALL ENTITY AND I DON'T
HAVE A LOT OF CAPACITY. RIGHT.
SOME PLACES HAVE A LOT OF
CAPACITY HAVE ADVOCACY GROUPS.
BUT I CAN TELL YOU I DON'T KNOW
ONE ORGANIZATION IN MY DISTRICT.
THAT HAS CAPACITY TO DO ANY OF
THIS. SO IF I WERE THEM, I'D BE
LOOKING AT THIS AND I SAID,
WELL, I'M GONNA APPLY FOR ROUND
TWO. I'M GOING TO WAIT FOR THE
DUST TO SETTLE. AND SO IF YOU DO
ALLOCATE F F A ALL IN ONE ROUND,
WHICH IS WHAT I THINK WHAT WAS
AN OPTION THAT WAS GIVEN IF I
UNDERSTOOD CORRECTLY, IS THAT
CORRECT THAT I UNDERSTOOD THAT
CORRECTLY. UM WE'RE LOOKING
BECAUSE WE SIMPLY DON'T KNOW THE
OUTCOME OF ALL THE OBJECTIONS
AND REBUTTALS JUST CAN'T SAY
RIGHT NOW, WHETHER WE'RE GOING
TO ALLOCATE EVERYTHING IN THE
FIRST ROUND OR WHETHER THERE
WILL BE SOME REMAINING FOR
AROUND TWO. BUT THERE WAS ALWAYS
SUPPOSED TO BE AROUND TO
CORRECT. EVERYTHING I'VE EVER
SEEN. HAS TWO ROUNDS OF F F A
FUNDING. I'M SEEING MR METZGER
IS NODDING. YES THAT'S CORRECT.
WHEN THIS WAS PRESENTED A COUPLE
OF YEARS BACK, THERE WERE TWO
ROUNDS OF THE FAA GRANTS THAT
WERE SUPPOSED TO BE ADMINISTERED
. UM WHETHER OR NOT THAT'S GOING
TO HAPPEN NOW BECAUSE OF THE
TOTAL AMOUNT THAT'S BEING
REQUESTED. IS A QUESTION
QUESTION AND I WANT TO ASK THE
THING WHO'S BEING LEFT OUT? IF
WE ONLY DO THERE'S AN ADVANTAGE,
AND DISADVANTAGE OF THIS
APPROACH IS ALLOCATED ON ONE
TIME WE'RE PROBABLY GONNA MEET
OUR FEDERAL DEADLINES ALLOCATED
AROUND TO HAVE ALWAYS BEEN
CONCERNED THAT THAT ROUND TWO
DOESN'T HAVE ENOUGH TIME TO
CONSTRUCT AND EXPAND AND FINISH
ALL THE PROJECTS IN TIME. SO
THERE'S A THERE'S A ADVANTAGES
AND DISADVANTAGES TO BOTH
OPTIONS. I WOULD JUST SAY THE
PUBLIC HAS AN EXPECTATION OF
AROUND TWO AND I THINK THAT
THERE'S A PROBLEM THAT YOU'RE
GONNA ENCOUNTER. IF YOU ALLOCATE
ALL THE FUNDS IN ROUND ONE. YOU
HAVE AN ADVANTAGE THAT WE
PROBABLY SPEND THE MONEY AND WE
DON'T FORGO ANY FURTHER FEDERAL
DOLLARS, WHICH SHOULD TAKE
PRIORITY. BUT DO YOU HAVE A
PROBLEM WITH THAT? AND I JUST
WANT TO POINT OUT AND THE OTHER
THING IS, YOU KNOW WE WHEN WE
LOOKED AT THE TIMELINES OF F F A
HAS A DEADLINE BY WHICH THE
MONEY HAS TO BE EXPENDED FEED
HAS A DEADLINE. BY THE TIME THE
MONEY HAS TO BE EXPENDED MIDDLE
MAYA HAS A DEADLINE BY THE
FUNDING WOULD HAVE TO BE
EXPANDED. I SEE ABSOLUTELY NO
REASON FOR ONGOING ALLOCATIONS.
FOR STAFF. POSITIONS ONGOING
WHEN ALL THESE THINGS HAVE A
DEADLINE. AND I DON'T. I DON'T
KNOW IF YOU CAN JUSTIFY WHY YOU
THINK THEY NEED TO BE ONGOING
WHEN ALL THESE PROGRAMS AT SOME
POINT WILL BE BUILT. AND IF
THEY'RE NOT, ESPECIALLY WITH THE
CPU, SEE IF THEY'RE NOT PUBLICLY
OWNED. WHY WOULD WE BE
ALLOCATING MONEY IN A TIME OF A
BUDGET DEFICIT FOR ONGOING
POSITIONS WHERE THERE'S A
DEADLINE TO ALL THE PROGRAMS? SO
ASSEMBLYMEMBER'S THANK YOU FOR
THE FOR THE COMMENTS. I AGREE
WITH YOU THAT WE'RE FACING THIS
TENSION BETWEEN GETTING THE
MONEY OUT THE DOOR IN MEETING
DEADLINES VERSUS UM SEEING WHERE
THE NEXT ROUND OF APPLICATIONS
WOULD COME FROM, SO WE'LL BE. I
PROBABLY MISSPOKE A LITTLE BIT
EARLIER IN THE PROGRAM WHERE
MARIA CORRECTED ME. OUR POINT IS
TO DEFINITELY GET THE FIRST
TRANCHE OF FEDERAL DOLLARS OUT
THE DOOR. WITH THIS FIRST ROUND
ONE BECAUSE THOSE ARE UNDER THE
MOST SERIOUS DEADLINES, SO WE
WILL SEE WHAT HAPPENS ONCE WE
LOOK AT ARE ABLE TO ASSESS ALL
480 BEFORE APPLICATIONS AND GET
THROUGH THE DUE PROCESS. PORTION
THAT WE'RE IN RIGHT NOW. AS FAR
AS THE ONGOING COMMITMENT OF
STAFF POSITIONS TO THIS EFFORT.
UM I DO FEEL THAT, AS WE'VE
NOTED HERE, CALIFORNIA WON'T BE
FINISHED WITH ITS BROADBAND FOR
ALL INITIATIVE. UM EVEN WITH
THIS HISTORIC INVESTMENT OUR, UH
, CALIFORNIA ADVANCED SERVICES
FUND PROGRAM IS GOING TO BE
ONGOING. AND UM, WE WILL BE
LOOKING TO MAKE SURE THAT EVERY
UH, COMMUNITY IN CALIFORNIA GETS
SERVED IN THE FUTURE. THAT IS
THE JUSTIFICATION FOR US HAVING
A STAFF THAT CONTINUES TO WORK
ON THESE PROGRAMS IN THE FUTURE.
IT MIGHT JUST BE MY OPINION, BUT
I THINK THAT INVESTMENT SHOULD
BE IN INFRASTRUCTURE AND NOT IN
FUTURE STAFFING. BECAUSE THE
METRIC WE SHOULD ALL USE FOR
SUCCESS IS HOW MANY UNSERVED AND
UNDERSERVED CALIFORNIANS ARE
BEING SERVED PER DOLLAR. BY THE
LAST MILE AGAIN IN THE MIDDLE
MILE IS A MEANS TO AN END. IT'S
NOT THE GOAL. THE GOAL IS TO
CONNECT PEOPLE AT AT A RATE AT
WHICH THEY CAN FUNCTIONALLY DO
TELEHEALTH THEY COULD DO WE CAN
SUPPORT BUSINESSES. WE CAN
SUPPORT SCHOOLS. THAT'S THE
METRIC AND SOMETIMES I THINK WE
FORGET THE METRIC IS THE PEOPLE
AND HOW SERVED THEY ARE. THE
METRIC ISN'T HOW MANY MILES WE
BUILD. HOW MUCH THIS IT'S DO WE
SERVE THEM, AND THAT'S THE
PROBLEM WITH THE COORDINATION
BETWEEN THE TWO AGENCIES. THAT
MIDDLE MILE THEY'RE ON TRACK.
THEY'RE GOING FORWARD. AND IF WE
HAD GOTTEN OUT THOSE GRANT
APPLICATIONS IN 2022 LIKE WAS
ORIGINALLY PROMISED TO MY
PREDECESSOR AS SHERIFF, CNC.
THIS WOULD HAVE BEEN
COORDINATED. AND NOW WE'RE NOT
GONNA EVEN KNOW WHO'S GOING TO
GET THOSE ALLOCATIONS UNTIL
JUNE, 2024. THAT'S THAT'S A YEAR
AND A HALF LATER. SO I THINK WE
SHOULD REALIZE THERE'S A LOT OF
THINGS THAT WE LESSONS THAT WE
SHOULD LEARN AND WAYS THAT WE
CAN BE BETTER AND SMARTER AND
USING OUR MONEY. SO WE ARE
LOOKING AT THAT METRIC OF HOW
MANY PEOPLE WERE CONNECTING.
THANK YOU, MR BURNER. JUST ONE
FINAL QUESTION FOR ME. UH THE
EQUITY COMPONENT IS OF
SIGNIFICANT IMPORTANCE TO ALL OF
US. UM AND WE ALSO HAVE TO BE
MINDFUL OF THE STATE OF OUR
FINANCES. SO UH, QUESTION THAT I
HAVE, AND I'D APPRECIATE THE PUC
CONFIRMING THIS IS WHETHER OR
NOT THEY'RE THREE LAST MILE
GRAHAM PROGRAMS WILL TRY THE CSF
INFRASTRUCTURE GRANT ACCOUNT,
THE FEDERAL FUNDING ACCOUNT AND
THE BEAD PROGRAM. UH WILL ALLOW
FUNDING FOR THE MIDDLE MILE
FACILITIES TO CONNECT LAST MILE
UNDERSERVED LOCATIONS. APART AND
I'M PART YOU'RE ASKING WHETHER
THOSE THREE PROGRAMS DO, UM,
BUILD LAST MILE NETWORKS.
CORRECT? YES, THEY DO. AND WE'LL
CONNECT. IT COULD BE POTENTIALLY
USED TO CONNECT THE UNDERSERVED
COMMUNITIES THAT WERE ALL
REFERENCING TODAY. YES,
WONDERFUL. THANK YOU. WITH THAT
I WOULD LIKE TO ASK MY
COLLEAGUES IF THEY HAVE ANY
BRIEF CLOSING REMARKS. OKAY.
PERFECT THANK YOU. WE WILL NOW
MOVE ON TO PUBLIC COMMENT AT
THIS TIME. WE INVITE ANYONE HERE
IN THE HEARING ROOM TO MAKE
PUBLIC COMMENTS ABOUT THE TOPIC
OF THIS HEARING. PLEASE STEP UP
TO THE MICROPHONE. WE HAVE HAD A
ROBUST DISCUSSION THIS MORNING,
SO IT WOULD BE GREATLY
APPRECIATE IT IF WE COULD KEEP
OUR COMMENTS TO ONE MINUTE EACH.
THANK YOU. GOOD MORNING. TRACY
RYAN, RURAL COUNTY
REPRESENTATIVE, CALIFORNIA AND
ALSO ON BEHALF OF THE CALIFORNIA
STATE ASSOCIATIONS OF COUNTIES.
UM YES, WE WON 56 WAS AN
UNPRECEDENTED INVESTMENT IN
BROADBAND SOMETHING THAT WE
HAVEN'T SEEN IN THE STATE BEFORE
. AND UM IT IS A HEAVY LIFT WITH
FOUR C, D T AND THE C P U. C AND
IT HAS BEEN A CHALLENGING
PROCESS, ESPECIALLY WITH THE
MIDDLE MILE. AND I WILL SAY THAT
CDT HAS MOVED TO TRY TO BE MORE
TRANSPARENT AND INCLUSIONARY.
WITH WITH LOCAL GOVERNMENTS IN
PARTICULAR, HOWEVER, THEY'RE
STILL PUTTING US AFTER
NOTIFICATION OF CHANGE, SO
INSTEAD OF COLLABORATING WITH
LOCAL GOVERNMENTS AND COMMUNITY
ORGANIZATIONS ON WHAT IS NEEDED
IN THEIR COMMUNITIES WERE BEING
NOTIFIED AFTER THE FACT THAT THE
MIDDLE MILE HAS CHANGED. THAT
CONTINUES TO BE A PROBLEM, BUT
WE DO APPRECIATE THAT THEY ARE
WORKING WITH US, AND THEY HAVE
OPENED UP A LINE OF
COMMUNICATION. AS FAR AS THE F F
A AND THE LOAN LOSS RESERVE. I
AGREE. IT HAS BEEN VERY
FRUSTRATING TO BE SO FAR DOWN
THE ROAD AND NOT HAVE THIS MONEY
GO OUT YET, HOWEVER, I WILL SAY
THAT THEIR THEIR PROCESS HAS
BEEN VERY TRANSPARENT. THERE HAS
BEEN A LOT OF OUTREACH AND
THERE'S BEEN A LOT OF PUBLIC
PARTICIPATION, AND THAT DOES
SLOW THINGS DOWN. BUT THAT MEANS
THAT IT'S DONE. RIGHT SO, UM,
LASTLY, WE DO WANT TO SUPPORT
THE 1.5 BILLION FOR THE MIDDLE
MILE. I THINK THAT WILL ENSURE
THAT WE'RE ABLE TO LEVERAGE ALL
THIS OTHER MONEY THAT WE'VE PUT
INTO FOR THE LAST MILE FUNDING.
THANK YOU. THANK YOU. GOOD
MORNING, NICOLE WARD ULLMAN ON
BEHALF OF THE CHILDREN'S
PARTNERSHIP, URGING THE
COMMITTEE TO FULLY FUND THE
BROADBAND FUNDING IN THE
GOVERNOR'S BUDGET PROPOSAL. UH I
HAVE TWO QUICK POINTS TO MAKE
TODAY FIRST WHEN YOU THINK ABOUT
DIGITAL ACCESS, I WANT TO
ENCOURAGE YOU TO THINK OF IT AS
A CORE CHILDREN'S HEALTH EQUITY
ISSUE. I SAY THIS BECAUSE
BROADBAND ACCESS HAS A PROFOUND
IN COMPOUNDING EFFECT ON HEALTH
THAT STARTS IN CHILDHOOD. WE
CONSIDER DIGITAL EQUITY TO BE A
SUPER SOCIAL DETERMINANT OF
HEALTH BECAUSE DIGITAL INEQUITY
IN FACT COMPOUNDS INEQUITIES IN
OTHER SYSTEMS FROM IMPEDING
EDUCATION, INTERRUPTING
HEALTHCARE, LIMITING ACCESS TO
RESOURCES THAT COULD ADDRESS
ADVERSE SOCIAL CONDITIONS, SUCH
AS APPLICATIONS FOR HOUSING AND
INCOME ASSISTANCE PROGRAMS. THE
SOCIAL DRIVERS OF HEALTH AFFECT
INDIVIDUALS THAT ALL STAGES OF
LIFE, BUT THE EFFECTS ARE
PARTICULARLY SIGNIFICANT TO THE
HEALTH AND DEVELOPMENT OF
CHILDREN. THANK YOU. GOOD
MORNING CHAIR, HONORABLE MEMBERS
AND STATE PARTNERS. MY NAME IS
PATRICK MESIC. AND I'M HERE
TODAY ON BEHALF OF THE URBAN,
RURAL AND TRIBAL COMMUNITIES
THAT HAVE BEEN BYPASSED BY
PUBLIC AND PRIVATE
INFRASTRUCTURE INVESTMENTS FOR
GENERATIONS. SAFEGUARDING THE
GOVERNOR'S $1.5 BILLION PROPOSAL
TO COMPLETE THE MMB. I IS THE
ONLY WAY THIS ONCE IN A
GENERATION INFRASTRUCTURE
INVESTMENT REACHES MANY OF
CALIFORNIA'S HIGHEST POVERTY,
MOST POORLY CONNECTED
COMMUNITIES. VALENCIA AT THE
PROGRAMS THAT YOU NAMED, HAVE
SPECIFIC PROHIBITIONS AGAINST
MIDDLE MILE FUNDING IN THEM.
THESE COMMUNITIES INCLUDE TRIBAL
COMMUNITIES SENT ISABELLE AND
THOSE CARRIED HIS RESERVATION
URBAN COMMUNITIES LIKE SOUTH
CENTRAL L. A. AND EAST OAKLAND,
SOME OF THE HIGHEST
CONCENTRATIONS OF UNSERVED AND
UNCONNECTED IN THE IN THE STATE
OF CALIFORNIA. RURAL COMMUNITIES
LIKE BEAUTY PLUMMETS SIERRA AND
CENTRAL VALLEY AND COASTAL
COMMUNITIES LIKE HUMBOLDT AND
DEL NORTE. IF YOU ARE NOT
COMPELLED BY THIS MORAL
IMPERATIVE TO ABRUPTLY HALT
DEVELOPMENT OF THIS NETWORK WHEN
IT'S ONLY 80% COMPLETE, IS AKIN
TO CUTTING OFF A BRIDGE BEFORE
IT REACHES THE END OF THE RIVER.
IT'S JUST BAD POLICY. COMPLETING
THIS NETWORK IS MORE IMPORTANT
NOW THAN EVER IN 2028. THE FCC
WILL NO LONGER REQUIRE INCUMBENT
LOCAL EXCHANGE CARRIERS TO SELL
ACCESS TO THEIR MIDDLE MILE
NETWORKS AS UNBUNDLED NETWORK
ELEMENTS AT REASONABLE RATES.
FURTHER EXACERBATING
CONSOLIDATION AND DESPERATE ACTS
. ACCESS ABSENT COMPLETION OF
THE MMB AYE. THE CPUC ZONE
PRICING REPORT CONCLUDED THAT
THE SEAT THAT CALIFORNIA'S
MONOPOLISTIC MARKETS AND TRAPS
YOUR CONSTITUENTS IN THE HIGHEST
BROADBAND PRICES IN THE COUNTRY,
MISS BRANDY, A SINGLE MOTHER OF
TWO IN WEST OAKLAND, AFFORDABLE
HOUSING, PAYING 100 AND $50 A
MONTH TO KEEP HER KIDS ONLINE
CAN TESTIFY TO THAT FACT.
AFFORDABLE AND ACCESSIBLE,
MINIMAL ENABLES COMPETITIVE
FUNCTIONING MARKETS OR, IN SOME
CASES, MARKETS AT ALL. PLEASE
WORK WITH US. WE IMPLORE CDT TO
WORK ALONGSIDE ADVOCATES,
MUNICIPALITIES AND SMALL AND
REGIONAL PROVIDERS IN MARKET,
SOUNDING TO DEVELOP PRICING
STRUCTURES IN TERMS OF USE THAT
INCENTIVIZE UTILIZATION AS
NETWORK AND LOW REVENUE DENSITY
COMMUNITIES THAT INCUMBENTS HAVE
DEEMED UNECONOMIC FOR DECADES.
THANK YOU. THANK YOU. GOOD
MORNING, EVERYONE. MY NAME IS
GEORGIA SAVAGE AND I'M, THE
DEPUTY DIRECTOR OF OAKLAND AND
DIVIDED AND ONLY A FEW DAYS THE
CALIFORNIA ALLIANCE FOR DIGITAL
EQUITY, OR CADE, WAS ABLE TO
GATHER SIGNATURES FROM OVER 80
ORGANIZATIONS, INCLUDING MAYORS
OF OAKLAND, COMPTON, WEST
HOLLYWOOD AND LYNWOOD. THIS
LETTER HAS A WIDE ARRAY OF
SUPPORT FROM VARIOUS SECTORS,
INCLUDING LEADERS IN THE FIELD
OF EDUCATION, HEALTH, YOUTH
DEVELOPMENT, SOCIAL JUSTICE,
LOCAL GOVERNMENT, DIGITAL EQUITY
AND MORE. THE WIDE RANGE OF
SUPPORT FOR THIS IS BECAUSE OF
BECAUSE LEADERS IN OUR COMMUNITY
RECOGNIZE THE LACK OF
INFRASTRUCTURE PRESENT IN THE
HIGHEST POVERTY, MOST POORLY
CONNECTED COMMUNITIES AS WELL AS
THE INCREDIBLY HIGH COSTS IN OUR
STATE, AS MENTIONED BY PATRICK
LET US BE CLEAR THE COMMUNITIES
WE HAVE BEEN TALKING ABOUT IN
THIS HEARING. HISTORICALLY
REDLINE, TRIBAL AND RURAL WILL
NOT RECEIVE THE VITAL
INFRASTRUCTURE THEY NEED WITHOUT
THE PROPOSED $1.5 BILLION IN
ADDITIONAL FUNDING. IT IS
IMPORTANT. WE VIEW THIS AS A
CRITICAL INVESTMENT IN
CALIFORNIA'S FAIR SHARE OF THE
BILLIONS OF FEDERAL DOLLARS THAT
HAVE ALREADY BEEN CONTRIBUTED.
AS TOUCHED ON BY
ASSEMBLYMEMBER'S PATERSON AND
WOULD THE BENEFITS ARE WIDE
RANGING, INCLUDING INDIVIDUAL
BENEFITS, SUCH AS, UM, ALLOWING
INDIVIDUALS TO WORK STUDY
COMMUNICATE APPLY FOR GOVERNMENT
SERVICES OPERATE BUSINESSES,
ETCETERA. AND POWERING THE
STATES CRITICAL SYSTEMS,
INCLUDING ITS ELECTRICAL GRID,
WATER SUPPLY SYSTEMS, PUBLIC
SAFETY AND EMERGENCY RESPONSE
NETWORKS, IN ADDITION TO
ENABLING THRIVING BUSINESSES AND
SUPPORTING WITH HIGHER
EDUCATION. THE OAKLAND UNDIVIDED
AND KATE COALITION STRONGLY URGE
YOU TO SAFEGUARD AND SUPPORT THE
$1.5 BILLION FOR THE MM B. I AND
THE GOVERNOR HAS PROPOSED
BUDGET. THANK YOU. THANK YOU.
GOOD MORNING, IGNACIO HERNANDEZ
ON BEHALF OF THE UTILITY REFORM
NETWORK RETURN. I WANT TO ECHO.
THE COMMENTS THAT WERE JUST MADE
WERE PART OF THE COALITION AS
WELL. SO WE ADVOCATE FOR THE 1.5
BILLION AND FOR FULL FUNDING,
GIVEN THE MONEY THAT'S ALLOCATED
NOW REALLY IS MAY NOT BE ENOUGH
TO GET TO ALL OF THE NEEDS THAT
WE HAVE THROUGHOUT CALIFORNIA
THROUGHOUT YOUR DISTRICTS TURN
HAS BEEN INVOLVED IN THIS
PROCESS THROUGHOUT, AS YOU KNOW,
TRYING TO MAKE IT AS EFFECTIVE
AS POSSIBLE AND AS MANY PEOPLE
I'VE NEEDED AS POSSIBLE SO WE
NEED WE NEED TO CONTINUE THE
FUNDING. EXPAND THE FUNDING. IF
WE CAN PROTECT THE FUNDING, I'M
GOING FORWARD, SO WE'LL
PARTICIPATE IN THOSE HEARINGS
GOING FORWARD. I'M ALSO WANT TO
MAKE A QUICK STATEMENT ON BEHALF
OF THE COMMUNICATION WORKERS OF
AMERICA DISTRICT NINE. WE HAVE
TRIED, UM, DILIGENTLY TO UM,
AMPLIFY THE DISCUSSION ABOUT
LABOR STANDARDS AND TRAINING FOR
WORKERS. IT HAS BEEN CHALLENGING
, UM AT WORST IN CLUMSY AT BEST,
UM, AND TRYING TO HAVE
DISCUSSIONS WITH VARIOUS
AGENCIES AND ENTITIES. IT'S
GOTTEN BETTER OVER THE LAST FEW
MONTHS. I DO WANT TO APPRECIATE
THE ADMINISTRATION OF DIFFERENT
ENTITIES, BUT THERE'S NO FORMAL
PROCESS. WE PROVIDE STATEMENTS
TO THE CPUC IS THEY'RE
DEVELOPING THEIR PLANS, BUT MORE
NEEDS TO BE DONE TO ENSURE THAT
THE WORKERS ARE ONE AVAILABLE,
BUT THEY'RE TRAINED. THEY HAVE
SAFETY TRAINING. THEY'RE GOING
TO DO THE BEST WORK, UM,
POSSIBLE TO GET THE BEST OUTCOME
AND MAKE SURE THAT WE HAVE
SAFETY. WE NEED TO FORMALIZE
THAT. MUCH BETTER THAN WE HAVE.
WE THINK THERE'S STILL
OPPORTUNITIES TO DO THAT. I'M
GOING FORWARD AND WE HAVE TO
ENSURE THAT WE'RE HIRING FOLKS
FROM CALIFORNIA AND FROM YOUR
DISTRICTS, THE ONES THAT NEED TO
BE PART OF THIS AND BRING THEM
INTO THIS WORKFORCE BECAUSE
WE'RE GOING TO NEED IT FROM BOTH
FOR, UM FOR DEVELOPED FOR BUILD
OUT, BUT ALSO FOR MAINTENANCE
GOING FORWARD. WE'RE GONNA NEED
A STRONG WORKFORCE. AND SO WE'RE
WORKING IN VARIOUS AVENUES TO DO
THAT. WE LOOK FORWARD TO WORKING
WITH ALL OF YOU ON THAT.
WONDERFUL. THANK YOU. GOOD
MORNING MEMBERS. ORAZIO GONZALEZ
ON BEHALF OF NEXT GEN.
CALIFORNIA WE ARE MEMBERS OF THE
COALITION. UM WE CERTAINLY AGREE
THAT THE PROCESS TO DATE HAS NOT
BEEN PERFECT AND SHOULD AND CAN
BE IMPROVED, BUT THAT DOES NOT
NEGATE THE FUNDAMENTAL QUESTION
BEFORE THIS LEGISLATOR THAT THE
EXISTING FUNDING THAT HAS BEEN
APPROPRIATE TO DATE DOES NOT
MEET THE DEMAND. AND IF WE ARE
GOING TO BASICALLY ASK
COMMUNITIES THAT HAVE
HISTORICALLY HAD TO WAIT THAT
HAVE HISTORICALLY LACKED
INVESTMENT TO WAIT LONGER. OR
ARE WE GOING TO PROVIDE THE
STATE WITH THE RESOURCES TO GET
THE JOB DONE? WE ARE DUE TO
PLEASE SAFEGUARD THE $1.5
BILLION PROPOSED BY THE
GOVERNOR. THANK YOU. I BELIEVE
THAT CONCLUDES ALL PUBLIC
COMMENT. THANK YOU TO ALL OUR
WITNESSES TO ALL THE MEMBERS OF
THE PUBLIC AND THEN ALSO TO MY
COLLEAGUES FOR PARTICIPATING IN
TODAY'S HEARING. WE'VE LEARNED A
LOT TODAY ABOUT THE STATUS OF
OUR CURRENT BROADBAND
INVESTMENTS. THIS WILL BE A
CONTINUING CONVERSATION TO
ENSURE CALIFORNIA IS ON TRACK TO
CONNECT ALL CALIFORNIANS TO HIGH
SPEED INTERNET SERVICE AND TO
ENSURE THAT THE STATE MIDDLE
MILE NETWORK IS ECONOMICALLY
VIABLE. AS MENTIONED AT THE
BEGINNING OF THIS HEARING WILL
BE WORKING WITH OUR BUDGET
SUBCOMMITTEES AND OUR POLICY. UH
POLICY COMMITTEE TO DETERMINE
WHAT IF ANY, LEGISLATIVE ACTION
SHOULD BE TAKEN TO ENSURE THAT
ALL CALIFORNIANS HAVE ACCESS TO
BROADBAND WITH THAT? PLEASE STAY
TUNED. GRACIAS, AND THIS HEARING
IS ADJOURNED.