[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1492 Reported in Senate (RS)]
Calendar No. 441
110th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 1492
[Report No. 110-204]
To improve the quality of Federal and State data regarding the
availability and quality of broadband services and to promote the
deployment of affordable broadband services to all parts of the Nation.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
May 24, 2007
Mr. Inouye (for himself, Mr. Dorgan, Mr. Pryor, Ms. Cantwell, Ms.
Klobuchar, Mr. Kerry, Mr. Nelson of Florida, Mr. Obama, Mr. Carper,
Mrs. Boxer, Mr. Rockefeller, and Mrs. Clinton) introduced the following
bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce,
Science, and Transportation
October 24, 2007
Reported by Mr. Inouye with an amendment
[Strike all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in
italic]
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To improve the quality of Federal and State data regarding the
availability and quality of broadband services and to promote the
deployment of affordable broadband services to all parts of the Nation.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
<DELETED>SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.</DELETED>
<DELETED> This Act may be cited as the ``Broadband Data Improvement
Act''.</DELETED>
<DELETED>SEC. 2. FINDINGS.</DELETED>
<DELETED> The Congress finds the following:</DELETED>
<DELETED> (1) The deployment and adoption of broadband
technology has resulted in enhanced economic development and
public safety for communities across the Nation, improved
health care and educational opportunities, and a better quality
of life for all Americans.</DELETED>
<DELETED> (2) Continued progress in the deployment and
adoption of broadband technology is vital to ensuring that our
Nation remains competitive and continues to create business and
job growth.</DELETED>
<DELETED> (3) Improving Federal data on the deployment and
adoption of broadband service will assist in the development of
broadband technology across all regions of the
Nation.</DELETED>
<DELETED> (4) The Federal Government should also recognize
and encourage complementary state efforts to improve the
quality and usefulness of broadband data and should encourage
and support the partnership of the public and private sectors
in the continued growth of broadband services and information
technology for the residents and businesses of the
Nation.</DELETED>
<DELETED>SEC. 3. IMPROVING FEDERAL DATA ON BROADBAND.</DELETED>
<DELETED> (a) Improving FCC Broadband Data.--Within 120 days after
the date of enactment of this Act, the Federal Communications
Commission shall issue an order in WC docket No. 07-38 which shall, at
a minimum--</DELETED>
<DELETED> (1) revise or update, if determined necessary, the
existing definitions of advanced telecommunications capability,
or broadband;</DELETED>
<DELETED> (2) establish a new definition of second
generation broadband to reflect a data rate that is not less
than the data rate required to reliably transmit full-motion,
high-definition video; and</DELETED>
<DELETED> (3) revise its Form 477 reporting requirements to
require filing entities to report broadband connections and
second generation broadband connections by 5-digit postal zip
code plus 4-digit location.</DELETED>
<DELETED> (b) Exception.--The Commission shall exempt an entity from
the reporting requirements of subsection (a)(3) if the Commission
determines that a compliance by that entity with the requirements is
cost prohibitive, as defined by the Commission.</DELETED>
<DELETED> (c) Improving Section 706 Inquiry.--Section 706 of the
Telecommunications Act of 1996 (47 U.S.C. 157 nt) is amended--
</DELETED>
<DELETED> (1) by striking ``regularly'' in subsection (b)
and inserting ``annually'';</DELETED>
<DELETED> (2) by redesignating subsection (c) as subsection
(e); and</DELETED>
<DELETED> (3) by inserting after subsection (b) the
following:</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(c) Measurement of Extent of Deployment.--In determining
under subsection (b) whether advanced telecommunications capability is
being deployed to all Americans in a reasonable and timely fashion, the
Commission shall consider data collected using 5-digit postal zip code
plus 4-digit location.</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(d) Demographic Information for Unserved Areas.--As part
of the inquiry required by subsection (b), the Commission shall, using
5-digit postal zip code plus 4-digit location information, compile a
list of geographical areas that are not served by any provider of
advanced telecommunications capability (as defined by section 706(c)(1)
of the Telecommunications Act of 1996 (47 U.S.C. 157 nt)) and to the
extent that data from the Census Bureau is available, determine, for
each such unserved area--</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(1) the population;</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(2) the population density; and</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(3) the average per capita income.'';</DELETED>
<DELETED> (4) by inserting ``an evolving level of'' after
``technology,'' in paragraph (1) of subsection (e), as
redesignated.</DELETED>
<DELETED> (d) Improving Census Data on Broadband.--The Secretary of
Commerce, in consultation with the Federal Communications Commission,
shall expand the American Community Survey conducted by the Bureau of
the Census to elicit information for residential households, including
those located on native lands, to determine whether persons at such
households own or use a computer at that address, whether persons at
that address subscribe to Internet service and, if so, whether such
persons subscribe to dial-up or broadband Internet service at that
address.</DELETED>
<DELETED>SEC. 4. STUDY ON ADDITIONAL BROADBAND METRICS AND
STANDARDS.</DELETED>
<DELETED> (a) In General.--The Comptroller General shall conduct a
study to consider and evaluate additional broadband metrics or
standards that may be used by industry and the Federal Government to
provide users with more accurate information about the cost and
capability of their broadband connection, and to better compare the
deployment and penetration of broadband in the United States with other
countries. At a minimum, such study shall consider potential standards
or metrics that may be used--</DELETED>
<DELETED> (1) to calculate the average price per megabyte of
broadband offerings;</DELETED>
<DELETED> (2) to reflect the average actual speed of
broadband offerings compared to advertised potential
speeds;</DELETED>
<DELETED> (3) to compare the availability and quality of
broadband offerings in the United States with the availability
and quality of broadband offerings in other industrialized
nations, including countries that are members of the
Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development;
and</DELETED>
<DELETED> (4) to distinguish between complementary and
substitutable broadband offerings in evaluating deployment and
penetration.</DELETED>
<DELETED> (b) Report.--Not later than one year after the date of
enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General shall submit a report to
the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation and the
House of Representatives Committee on Energy and Commerce on the
results of the study, with recommendations for how industry and the
Federal Communications Commission can use such metrics and comparisons
to improve the quality of broadband data and to better evaluate the
deployment and penetration of comparable broadband service at
comparable rates across all regions of the Nation.</DELETED>
<DELETED>SEC. 5. STUDY ON THE IMPACT OF BROADBAND SPEED AND PRICE ON
SMALL BUSINESSES.</DELETED>
<DELETED> (a) In General.--The Small Business Administration Office
of Advocacy shall conduct a study evaluating the impact of broadband
speed and price on small businesses.</DELETED>
<DELETED> (b) Report.--Not later than one year after the date of
enactment of this Act, the Office shall submit a report to the Senate
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, the Senate
Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, the House of
Representatives Committee on Energy and Commerce, and the House of
Representatives Committee on Small Business on the results of the
study, including--</DELETED>
<DELETED> (1) a survey of broadband speeds available to
small businesses;</DELETED>
<DELETED> (2) a survey of the cost of broadband speeds
available to small businesses;</DELETED>
<DELETED> (3) a survey of the type of broadband technology
used by small businesses; and</DELETED>
<DELETED> (4) any policy recommendations that may improve
small businesses access to comparable broadband services at
comparable rates in all regions of the Nation.</DELETED>
<DELETED>SEC. 6. ENCOURAGING STATE INITIATIVES TO IMPROVE
BROADBAND.</DELETED>
<DELETED> (a) Purposes.--The purposes of any grant under subsection
(b) are--</DELETED>
<DELETED> (1) to ensure that all citizens and businesses in
a State have access to affordable and reliable broadband
service;</DELETED>
<DELETED> (2) to achieve improved technology literacy,
increased computer ownership, and home broadband use among such
citizens and businesses;</DELETED>
<DELETED> (3) to establish and empower local grassroots
technology teams in each State to plan for improved technology
use across multiple community sectors; and</DELETED>
<DELETED> (4) to establish and sustain an environment ripe
for broadband services and information technology
investment.</DELETED>
<DELETED> (b) Establishment of State Broadband Data and Development
Grant Program.--</DELETED>
<DELETED> (1) In general.--The Secretary of Commerce shall
award grants, taking into account the results of the peer
review process under subsection (d), to eligible entities for
the development and implementation of statewide initiatives to
identify and track the availability and adoption of broadband
services within each State.</DELETED>
<DELETED> (2) Competitive basis.--Any grant under subsection
(b) shall be awarded on a competitive basis.</DELETED>
<DELETED> (c) Eligibility.--To be eligible to receive a grant under
subsection (b), an eligible entity shall--</DELETED>
<DELETED> (1) submit an application to the Secretary of
Commerce, at such time, in such manner, and containing such
information as the Secretary may require; and</DELETED>
<DELETED> (2) contribute matching non-Federal funds in an
amount equal to not less than 20 percent of the total amount of
the grant.</DELETED>
<DELETED> (d) Peer Review; Nondisclosure.--</DELETED>
<DELETED> (1) In general.--The Secretary shall by regulation
require appropriate technical and scientific peer review of
applications made for grants under this section.</DELETED>
<DELETED> (2) Review procedures.--The regulations required
under paragraph (1) shall require that any technical and
scientific peer review group--</DELETED>
<DELETED> (A) be provided a written description of
the grant to be reviewed;</DELETED>
<DELETED> (B) provide the results of any review by
such group to the Secretary of Commerce; and</DELETED>
<DELETED> (C) certify that such group will enter
into voluntary nondisclosure agreements as necessary to
prevent the unauthorized disclosure of confidential and
proprietary information provided by broadband service
providers in connection with projects funded by any
such grant.</DELETED>
<DELETED> (e) Use of Funds.--A grant awarded to an eligible entity
under subsection (b) shall be used--</DELETED>
<DELETED> (1) to provide a baseline assessment of broadband
service deployment in each State;</DELETED>
<DELETED> (2) to identify and track--</DELETED>
<DELETED> (A) areas in each State that have low
levels of broadband service deployment;</DELETED>
<DELETED> (B) the rate at which residential and
business users adopt broadband service and other
related information technology services; and</DELETED>
<DELETED> (C) possible suppliers of such
services;</DELETED>
<DELETED> (3) to identify barriers to the adoption by
individuals and businesses of broadband service and related
information technology services, including whether or not--
</DELETED>
<DELETED> (A) the demand for such services is
absent; and</DELETED>
<DELETED> (B) the supply for such services is
capable of meeting the demand for such
services;</DELETED>
<DELETED> (4) to identify the speeds of broadband
connections made available to individuals and businesses within
the State, and, at a minimum, to rely on the data rate
benchmarks for broadband and second generation broadband
identified by the Federal Communications Commission to promote
greater consistency of data among the States;</DELETED>
<DELETED> (5) to create and facilitate in each county or
designated region in a State a local technology planning team--
</DELETED>
<DELETED> (A) with members representing a cross
section of the community, including representatives of
business, telecommunications labor organizations, K-12
education, health care, libraries, higher education,
community-based organizations, local government,
tourism, parks and recreation, and agriculture;
and</DELETED>
<DELETED> (B) which shall--</DELETED>
<DELETED> (i) benchmark technology use
across relevant community sectors;</DELETED>
<DELETED> (ii) set goals for improved
technology use within each sector;
and</DELETED>
<DELETED> (iii) develop a tactical business
plan for achieving its goals, with specific
recommendations for online application
development and demand creation;</DELETED>
<DELETED> (6) to work collaboratively with broadband service
providers and information technology companies to encourage
deployment and use, especially in unserved and underserved
areas, through the use of local demand aggregation, mapping
analysis, and the creation of market intelligence to improve
the business case for providers to deploy;</DELETED>
<DELETED> (7) to establish programs to improve computer
ownership and Internet access for unserved and underserved
populations;</DELETED>
<DELETED> (8) to collect and analyze detailed market data
concerning the use and demand for broadband service and related
information technology services;</DELETED>
<DELETED> (9) to facilitate information exchange regarding
the use and demand for broadband services between public and
private sectors; and</DELETED>
<DELETED> (10) to create within each State a geographic
inventory map of broadband service, and where feasible second
generation broadband service, which shall--</DELETED>
<DELETED> (A) identify gaps in such service through
a method of geographic information system mapping of
service availability at the census block level;
and</DELETED>
<DELETED> (B) provide a baseline assessment of
statewide broadband deployment in terms of households
with high-speed availability.</DELETED>
<DELETED> (f) Participation Limit.--For each State, an eligible
entity may not receive a new grant under this section to fund the
activities described in subsection (d) within such State if such
organization obtained prior grant awards under this section to fund the
same activities in that State in each of the previous 4 consecutive
years.</DELETED>
<DELETED> (g) Reporting.--The Secretary of Commerce shall--
</DELETED>
<DELETED> (1) require each recipient of a grant under
subsection (b) to submit a report on the use of the funds
provided by the grant; and</DELETED>
<DELETED> (2) create a web page on the Department of
Commerce web site that aggregates relevant information made
available to the public by grant recipients, including, where
appropriate, hypertext links to any geographic inventory maps
created by grant recipients under subsection (e)(10).</DELETED>
<DELETED> (h) Definitions.--In this section:</DELETED>
<DELETED> (1) Eligible Entity.--The term ``eligible entity''
means a non-profit organization that is selected by a State to
work in partnership with State agencies and private sector
partners in identifying and tracking the availability and
adoption of broadband services within each State.</DELETED>
<DELETED> (2) Nonprofit Organization.--The term ``nonprofit
organization'' means an organization--</DELETED>
<DELETED> (A) described in section 501(c)(3) of the
Internal Revenue Code of 1986 and exempt from tax under
section 501(a) of such Code;</DELETED>
<DELETED> (B) no part of the net earnings of which
inures to the benefit of any member, founder,
contributor, or individual;</DELETED>
<DELETED> (C) that has an established competency and
proven record of working with public and private
sectors to accomplish widescale deployment and adoption
of broadband services and information technology;
and</DELETED>
<DELETED> (D) the board of directors of which is not
composed of a majority of individuals who are also
employed by, or otherwise associated with, any Federal,
State, or local government or any Federal, State, or
local agency.</DELETED>
<DELETED> (i) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized
to be appropriated to carry out this section $40,000,000 for each of
fiscal years 2008 through 2012.</DELETED>
<DELETED> (j) No Regulatory Authority.--Nothing in this section
shall be construed as giving any public or private entity established
or affected by this Act any regulatory jurisdiction or oversight
authority over providers of broadband services or information
technology.</DELETED>
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Broadband Data Improvement Act''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
The Congress finds the following:
(1) The deployment and adoption of broadband technology has
resulted in enhanced economic development and public safety for
communities across the Nation, improved health care and
educational opportunities, and a better quality of life for all
Americans.
(2) Continued progress in the deployment and adoption of
broadband technology is vital to ensuring that our Nation
remains competitive and continues to create business and job
growth.
(3) Improving Federal data on the deployment and adoption
of broadband service will assist in the development of
broadband technology across all regions of the Nation.
(4) The Federal Government should also recognize and
encourage complementary state efforts to improve the quality
and usefulness of broadband data and should encourage and
support the partnership of the public and private sectors in
the continued growth of broadband services and information
technology for the residents and businesses of the Nation.
SEC. 3. IMPROVING FEDERAL DATA ON BROADBAND.
(a) Improving FCC Broadband Data.--Within 120 days after the date
of enactment of this Act, the Federal Communications Commission shall
issue an order in WC docket No. 07-38 which shall, at a minimum--
(1) revise or update, if determined necessary, the existing
definitions of advanced telecommunications capability, or
broadband;
(2) identify tiers of broadband service, among those used
by the Commission in collecting Form 477 data, in which a
substantial majority of the connections in such tier provide
consumers with an information transfer rate capable of reliably
transmitting full-motion, high definition video; and
(3) revise its Form 477 reporting requirements as necessary
to enable the Commission to identify actual numbers of
broadband connections subscribed to by residential and business
customers, separately, either within a relevant census tract
from the most recent decennial census, a 9-digit postal zip
code, or a 5-digit postal zip code, as the Commission deems
appropriate.
(b) Exception.--The Commission shall exempt an entity from the
reporting requirements of subsection (a)(3) if the Commission
determines that a compliance by that entity with the requirements is
cost prohibitive, as defined by the Commission.
(c) Improving Section 706 Inquiry.--Section 706 of the
Telecommunications Act of 1996 (47 U.S.C. 157 nt) is amended--
(1) by striking ``regularly'' in subsection (b) and
inserting ``annually'';
(2) by redesignating subsection (c) as subsection (e);
(3) by inserting after subsection (b) the following:
``(c) Measurement of Extent of Deployment.--In determining under
subsection (b) whether advanced telecommunications capability is being
deployed to all Americans in a reasonable and timely fashion, the
Commission shall consider data collected through Form 477 reporting
requirements.
``(d) Demographic Information for Unserved Areas.--As part of the
inquiry required by subsection (b), the Commission shall compile a list
of geographical areas that are not served by any provider of advanced
telecommunications capability (as defined by section 706(c)(1) of the
Telecommunications Act of 1996 (47 U.S.C. 157 nt)) and to the extent
that data from the Census Bureau is available, determine, for each such
unserved area--
``(1) the population;
``(2) the population density; and
``(3) the average per capita income.''; and
(4) by inserting ``an evolving level of'' after
``technology, as'' in paragraph (1) of subsection (e), as
redesignated.
(d) Improving Census Data on Broadband.--The Secretary of Commerce,
in consultation with the Federal Communications Commission, shall
expand the American Community Survey conducted by the Bureau of the
Census to elicit information for residential households, including
those located on native lands, to determine whether persons at such
households own or use a computer at that address, whether persons at
that address subscribe to Internet service and, if so, whether such
persons subscribe to dial-up or broadband Internet service at that
address.
SEC. 4. STUDY ON ADDITIONAL BROADBAND METRICS AND STANDARDS.
(a) In General.--The Comptroller General shall conduct a study to
consider and evaluate additional broadband metrics or standards that
may be used by industry and the Federal Government to provide users
with more accurate information about the cost and capability of their
broadband connection, and to better compare the deployment and
penetration of broadband in the United States with other countries. At
a minimum, such study shall consider potential standards or metrics
that may be used--
(1) to calculate the average price per megabit per second
of broadband offerings;
(2) to reflect the average actual speed of broadband
offerings compared to advertised potential speeds and to
consider factors affecting speed that may be outside the
control of a broadband provider;
(3) to compare, using comparable metrics and standards, the
availability and quality of broadband offerings in the United
States with the availability and quality of broadband offerings
in other industrialized nations, including countries that are
members of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and
Development; and
(4) to distinguish between complementary and substitutable
broadband offerings in evaluating deployment and penetration.
(b) Report.--Not later than one year after the date of enactment of
this Act, the Comptroller General shall submit a report to the Senate
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation and the House of
Representatives Committee on Energy and Commerce on the results of the
study, with recommendations for how industry and the Federal
Communications Commission can use such metrics and comparisons to
improve the quality of broadband data and to better evaluate the
deployment and penetration of comparable broadband service at
comparable rates across all regions of the Nation.
SEC. 5. STUDY ON THE IMPACT OF BROADBAND SPEED AND PRICE ON SMALL
BUSINESSES.
(a) In General.--The Small Business Administration Office of
Advocacy shall conduct a study evaluating the impact of broadband speed
and price on small businesses.
(b) Report.--Not later than one year after the date of enactment of
this Act, the Office shall submit a report to the Senate Committee on
Commerce, Science, and Transportation, the Senate Committee on Small
Business and Entrepreneurship, the House of Representatives Committee
on Energy and Commerce, and the House of Representatives Committee on
Small Business on the results of the study, including--
(1) a survey of broadband speeds available to small
businesses;
(2) a survey of the cost of broadband speeds available to
small businesses;
(3) a survey of the type of broadband technology used by
small businesses; and
(4) any policy recommendations that may improve small
businesses access to comparable broadband services at
comparable rates in all regions of the Nation.
SEC. 6. ENCOURAGING STATE INITIATIVES TO IMPROVE BROADBAND.
(a) Purposes.--The purposes of any grant under subsection (b) are--
(1) to ensure that all citizens and businesses in a State
have access to affordable and reliable broadband service;
(2) to achieve improved technology literacy, increased
computer ownership, and home broadband use among such citizens
and businesses;
(3) to establish and empower local grassroots technology
teams in each State to plan for improved technology use across
multiple community sectors; and
(4) to establish and sustain an environment ripe for
broadband services and information technology investment.
(b) Establishment of State Broadband Data and Development Grant
Program.--
(1) In general.--The Secretary of Commerce shall award
grants, taking into account the results of the peer review
process under subsection (d), to eligible entities for the
development and implementation of statewide initiatives to
identify and track the availability and adoption of broadband
services within each State.
(2) Competitive basis.--Any grant under subsection (b)
shall be awarded on a competitive basis.
(c) Eligibility.--To be eligible to receive a grant under
subsection (b), an eligible entity shall--
(1) submit an application to the Secretary of Commerce, at
such time, in such manner, and containing such information as
the Secretary may require;
(2) contribute matching non-Federal funds in an amount
equal to not less than 20 percent of the total amount of the
grant; and
(3) agree to comply with confidentiality requirements in
subsection (h)(2) of this section.
(d) Peer Review; Nondisclosure.--
(1) In general.--The Secretary shall by regulation require
appropriate technical and scientific peer review of
applications made for grants under this section.
(2) Review procedures.--The regulations required under
paragraph (1) shall require that any technical and scientific
peer review group--
(A) be provided a written description of the grant
to be reviewed; and
(B) provide the results of any review by such group
to the Secretary of Commerce.
(C) certify that such group will enter into
voluntary nondisclosure agreements as necessary to
prevent the unauthorized disclosure of confidential and
proprietary information provided by broadband service
providers in connection with projects funded by any
such grant.
(e) Use of Funds.--A grant awarded to an eligible entity under
subsection (b) shall be used--
(1) to provide a baseline assessment of broadband service
deployment in each State;
(2) to identify and track--
(A) areas in each State that have low levels of
broadband service deployment;
(B) the rate at which residential and business
users adopt broadband service and other related
information technology services; and
(C) possible suppliers of such services;
(3) to identify barriers to the adoption by individuals and
businesses of broadband service and related information
technology services, including whether or not--
(A) the demand for such services is absent; and
(B) the supply for such services is capable of
meeting the demand for such services;
(4) to identify the speeds of broadband connections made
available to individuals and businesses within the State, and,
at a minimum, to rely on the data rate benchmarks for broadband
service utilized by the Commission to reflect different speed
tiers, including information transfer rates identified under
section 3(a)(2) of this Act, to promote greater consistency of
data among the States;
(5) to create and facilitate in each county or designated
region in a State a local technology planning team--
(A) with members representing a cross section of
the community, including representatives of business,
telecommunications labor organizations, K-12 education,
health care, libraries, higher education, community-
based organizations, local government, tourism, parks
and recreation, and agriculture; and
(B) which shall--
(i) benchmark technology use across
relevant community sectors;
(ii) set goals for improved technology use
within each sector; and
(iii) develop a tactical business plan for
achieving its goals, with specific
recommendations for online application
development and demand creation;
(6) to work collaboratively with broadband service
providers and information technology companies to encourage
deployment and use, especially in unserved areas and areas in
which broadband penetration is significantly below the national
average, through the use of local demand aggregation, mapping
analysis, and the creation of market intelligence to improve
the business case for providers to deploy;
(7) to establish programs to improve computer ownership and
Internet access for unserved areas and areas in which broadband
penetration is significantly below the national average;
(8) to collect and analyze detailed market data concerning
the use and demand for broadband service and related
information technology services;
(9) to facilitate information exchange regarding the use
and demand for broadband services between public and private
sectors; and
(10) to create within each State a geographic inventory map
of broadband service, including the availability of broadband
service connections meeting information transfer rates
identified by the Commission under section 3(a)(2) of this Act,
which shall--
(A) identify gaps in such service through a method
of geographic information system mapping of service
availability at the census block level among
residential or business customers; and
(B) provide a baseline assessment of statewide
broadband deployment in terms of households with high-
speed availability.
(f) Participation Limit.--For each State, an eligible entity may
not receive a new grant under this section to fund the activities
described in subsection (d) within such State if such organization
obtained prior grant awards under this section to fund the same
activities in that State in each of the previous 4 consecutive years.
(g) Reporting.--The Secretary of Commerce shall--
(1) require each recipient of a grant under subsection (b)
to submit a report on the use of the funds provided by the
grant; and
(2) create a web page on the Department of Commerce web
site that aggregates relevant information made available to the
public by grant recipients, including, where appropriate,
hypertext links to any geographic inventory maps created by
grant recipients under subsection (e)(10).
(h) Access to Aggregate Data.--
(1) In general.--Subject to paragraph (2), the Commission
shall provide eligible entities access, in electronic form, to
aggregate data collected by the Commission based on the Form
477 submissions of broadband service providers.
(2) Limitation.--Notwithstanding any provision of Federal
or State law to the contrary, an eligible entity shall treat
any matter that is a trade secret, commercial or financial
information, or privileged or confidential, as a record not
subject to public disclosure except as otherwise mutually
agreed to by the broadband service provider and the eligible
entity. This paragraph applies only to information submitted by
the Commission or a broadband provider to carry out the
provisions of this Act and shall not otherwise limit or affect
the rules governing public disclosure of information collected
by any Federal or State entity under any other Federal or State
law or regulation.
(i) Definitions.--In this section:
(1) Commission.--The term ``Commission'' means the Federal
Communications Commission.
(2) Eligible Entity.--The term ``eligible entity'' means a
non-profit organization that is selected by a State to work in
partnership with State agencies and private sector partners in
identifying and tracking the availability and adoption of
broadband services within each State.
(3) Nonprofit Organization.--The term ``nonprofit
organization'' means an organization--
(A) described in section 501(c)(3) of the Internal
Revenue Code of 1986 and exempt from tax under section
501(a) of such Code;
(B) no part of the net earnings of which inures to
the benefit of any member, founder, contributor, or
individual;
(C) that has an established competency and proven
record of working with public and private sectors to
accomplish widescale deployment and adoption of
broadband services and information technology;
(D) that has a board of directors a majority of
which is not composed of individuals who are also
employed by, or otherwise associated with, any Federal,
State, or local government or any Federal, State, or
local agency; and
(E) that has a board of directors which does not
include any member that is employed either by a
broadband service provider or by any other company in
which a broadband service provider owns a controlling
or attributable interest.
(j) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be
appropriated to carry out this section $40,000,000 for each of fiscal
years 2008 through 2012.
(k) No Regulatory Authority.--Nothing in this section shall be
construed as giving any public or private entity established or
affected by this Act any regulatory jurisdiction or oversight authority
over providers of broadband services or information technology.
Calendar No. 441
110th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 1492
[Report No. 110-204]
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To improve the quality of Federal and State data regarding the
availability and quality of broadband services and to promote the
deployment of affordable broadband services to all parts of the Nation.
_______________________________________________________________________
October 24, 2007
Reported with an amendment