[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 187 (Thursday, November 21, 2019)]
[Senate]
[Page S6763]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
SA 1253. Mr. WICKER submitted an amendment intended to be proposed by
him to the bill S. 1294, to require Federal agencies with jurisdiction
over broadband deployment to enter into an interagency agreement
related to certain types of funding for broadband deployment; which was
ordered to lie on the table; as follows:
Strike all after the enacting clause and insert the
following:
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Broadband Interagency
Coordination Act of 2019''.
SEC. 2. INTERAGENCY AGREEMENT.
(a) Definitions.--In this section--
(1) the term ``covered agency'' means--
(A) the Federal Communications Commission;
(B) the Department of Agriculture; and
(C) the National Telecommunications and Information
Administration; and
(2) the term ``high-cost programs'' means--
(A) the programs for Universal Service Support for High-
Cost Areas set forth under subpart D of part 54 of title 47,
Code of Federal Regulations, or any successor thereto;
(B) the Remote Areas Fund set forth under subpart J of part
54 of title 47, Code of Federal Regulations, or any successor
thereto;
(C) the Interstate Common Line Support Mechanism for Rate-
of-Return Carriers set forth under subpart K of part 54 of
title 47, Code of Federal Regulations, or any successor
thereto;
(D) the Mobility Fund set forth under subpart L of part 54
of title 47, Code of Federal Regulations, or any successor
thereto; and
(E) the High Cost Loop Support for Rate-of-Return Carriers
program set forth under subpart M of part 54 of title 47,
Code of Federal Regulations, or any successor thereto.
(b) Interagency Agreement.--Not later than 180 days after
the date of enactment of this Act, the heads of the covered
agencies shall enter into an interagency agreement requiring
coordination between the covered agencies for the
distribution of funds for broadband deployment under--
(1) the high-cost programs;
(2) the programs administered by the Rural Utilities
Service of the Department of Agriculture; and
(3) the programs administered by the National
Telecommunications and Information Administration.
(c) Requirements.--In entering into an interagency
agreement with respect to the programs described in
subsection (b), the heads of the covered agencies shall--
(1) require that the covered agencies share information
with each other about existing or planned projects that have
received or will receive funds under the programs described
in subsection (b) for new broadband deployment;
(2) provide that--
(A) subject to subparagraph (B), upon request from another
covered agency with authority to award or authorize any funds
for new broadband deployment in a project area, a covered
agency shall provide the other covered agency with any
information the covered agency possesses regarding, with
respect to the project area--
(i) each entity that provides broadband service in the
area;
(ii) levels of broadband service provided in the area,
including the speed of broadband service and the technology
provided;
(iii) the geographic scope of broadband service coverage in
the area; and
(iv) each entity that has received or will receive funds
under the programs described in subsection (b) to provide
broadband service in the area; and
(B) if a covered agency designates any information provided
to another covered agency under subparagraph (A) as
confidential, the other covered agency shall protect the
confidentiality of that information;
(3) designate the Federal Communications Commission as the
entity primarily responsible for--
(A) coordinating among the covered agencies; and
(B) storing or maintaining access to all broadband
deployment data;
(4) consider basing the distribution of funds for broadband
deployment under the programs described in subsection (b) on
standardized data regarding broadband coverage; and
(5) provide that the interagency agreement shall be updated
periodically, except that the scope of the agreement with
respect to the Federal Communications Commission may not
expand beyond the high-cost programs.
(d) Assessment of Agreement.--
(1) Public comment.--Not later than 1 year after entering
into the interagency agreement required under subsection (b),
the Federal Communications Commission shall seek public
comment on--
(A) the effectiveness of the interagency agreement in
facilitating efficient use of funds for broadband deployment;
(B) the availability of Tribal, State, and local data
regarding broadband deployment and the inclusion of that data
in interagency coordination; and
(C) modifications to the interagency agreement that would
improve the efficacy of interagency coordination.
(2) Assessment; report.--Not later than 18 months after the
date of enactment of this Act, the Federal Communications
Commission shall--
(A) review and assess the comments received under paragraph
(1); and
(B) submit to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and
Transportation of the Senate and the Committee on Energy and
Commerce of the House of Representatives a report detailing
any findings and recommendations from the assessment
conducted under subparagraph (A).
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