|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||
1 | AN ACT concerning telecommunications.
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||
2 | Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||
3 | represented in the General Assembly:
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||
4 | Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
5 | Connect Illinois Act. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
6 | Section 5. Legislative purpose. The General Assembly finds | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
7 | that the future economic vitality of the State of Illinois | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
8 | depends on participation in the growing global information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
9 | economy and, for this reason, a State authority coordinating | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
10 | the spread of broadband telecommunications technology is in the | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
11 | economic interest of the people of Illinois. The General | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
12 | Assembly further finds that current State telecommunications | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
13 | policy does not encourage the rapid and widespread deployment | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
14 | of state-of-the-art broadband technology and that Illinois and | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
15 | the United States as a whole have fallen drastically behind | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
16 | other states and nations in the capacity, the availability, and | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
17 | the affordability of broadband services. The purpose of this | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
18 | Act is to accomplish the goals of competition, affordability, | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
19 | and universal broadband service and to secure the State's | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
20 | telecommunications and economic future. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
21 | Section 10. Definitions. In this Act: | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
22 | "Authority" means the Illinois Broadband Deployment | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
23 | Authority established under this Act. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
24 | "Broadband" means any technology that provides | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
25 | bidirectional communications transmissions at speeds of at | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
26 | least one megabit per second (1 mbps). | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
27 | "Broadband deployment" means the spread of any technology | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
28 | that provides bidirectional communications transmissions at | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
29 | speeds of at least 1 mbps. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
30 | "Telecommunications infrastructure" means all of the | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
31 | physical components of the transmission of data and voice |
| |||||||
| |||||||
1 | communication. | ||||||
2 | Section 15. Illinois Broadband Deployment Authority. | ||||||
3 | (a) The Illinois Broadband Deployment Authority is created | ||||||
4 | as a body politic and corporate. The Authority shall consist of | ||||||
5 | a 12-member board of directors as follows: | ||||||
6 | (1) The Lieutenant Governor, who shall serve as both | ||||||
7 | the chairman and a voting member of the board. | ||||||
8 | (2) The Director of Commerce and Economic Opportunity, | ||||||
9 | or the Director's designee. | ||||||
10 | (3) The Executive Director of the Illinois Commerce | ||||||
11 | Commission, or the Executive Director's designee. | ||||||
12 | (4) The Secretary of Transportation, or the | ||||||
13 | Secretary's designee. | ||||||
14 | (5) The Executive Director of the Illinois Toll Highway | ||||||
15 | Authority, or the Executive Director's designee. | ||||||
16 | (6) The Director of the Illinois Finance Authority, or | ||||||
17 | the Director's designee. | ||||||
18 | (7) Two members appointed by the Governor. | ||||||
19 | (8) One member appointed by each of the following: the | ||||||
20 | Senate President, the Senate Minority Leader, the Speaker | ||||||
21 | of the House, and the House Minority Leader. | ||||||
22 | Appointments to the board shall be made with consideration | ||||||
23 | of the geographic, gender, and racial diversity of the State. | ||||||
24 | The board shall include members representing rural areas, | ||||||
25 | underserved urban areas, consumer interests, community | ||||||
26 | interests, and commercial interests, including competitive | ||||||
27 | local exchange carriers. Members of the board of directors | ||||||
28 | shall serve 2-year terms. The board of directors shall meet at | ||||||
29 | least quarterly. The board shall have the power to make and | ||||||
30 | amend bylaws for its operation. | ||||||
31 | All members shall serve without compensation but may be | ||||||
32 | reimbursed for actual expenses incurred by them in the | ||||||
33 | performance of the duties of the Authority. | ||||||
34 | (b) The board of directors may seek input from State | ||||||
35 | agencies not represented on the board, including, but not |
| |||||||
| |||||||
1 | limited to, the State Board of Education and the Illinois | ||||||
2 | Century Network Policy Committee and the Department of Central | ||||||
3 | Management Services, if input from those agencies is needed by | ||||||
4 | the board to make decisions about the activities of the | ||||||
5 | Authority. | ||||||
6 | (c) The General Assembly shall appropriate to the Authority | ||||||
7 | the funding necessary to select only those employees necessary | ||||||
8 | for the activities of the Authority, to fund the daily | ||||||
9 | operations of the Authority, and to cover the travel expenses | ||||||
10 | of the Authority. | ||||||
11 | Section 20. Powers and duties. The Authority shall have all | ||||||
12 | of the following powers and duties: | ||||||
13 | (1) To seek and distribute private, State, and federal | ||||||
14 | funding, including grants, loans, or general | ||||||
15 | appropriations, for the purpose of broadband deployment. | ||||||
16 | (2) To continually assess and catalog the | ||||||
17 | telecommunications infrastructure of the State of Illinois | ||||||
18 | for the purpose of determining the present and future needs | ||||||
19 | of the State with respect to realizing the goals of | ||||||
20 | competition, affordability, universal service, and | ||||||
21 | securing the State's telecommunications and economic | ||||||
22 | future. This includes creating and maintaining a | ||||||
23 | comprehensive map of the telecommunications infrastructure | ||||||
24 | in the State. For this purpose, the Authority shall have | ||||||
25 | the power to collect data from facilities-based | ||||||
26 | telecommunications companies operating in the State. The | ||||||
27 | comprehensive map may be created by the Authority or | ||||||
28 | contracted to another entity by the Authority.
| ||||||
29 | (3) To encourage and participate in the coordination of | ||||||
30 | private and public telecommunications development, | ||||||
31 | including local and State efforts to realize the goals of | ||||||
32 | competition, affordability, universal service, and | ||||||
33 | securing the State's telecommunications and economic | ||||||
34 | future.
| ||||||
35 | (4) To work with the Department of Commerce and |
| |||||||
| |||||||
1 | Economic Opportunity, the Illinois Commerce Commission, | ||||||
2 | the Department of Transportation, the Illinois Toll | ||||||
3 | Highway Authority, the Illinois Finance Authority, the | ||||||
4 | State Board of Education, and the Illinois Century Network | ||||||
5 | Policy Committee for the purpose of ensuring consistent and | ||||||
6 | efficient deployment of telecommunications services | ||||||
7 | throughout Illinois.
| ||||||
8 | (5) To seed and fund local and regional broadband | ||||||
9 | initiatives throughout the State for the purpose of | ||||||
10 | supporting broadband demand by educating underserved | ||||||
11 | populations in applications using computers and broadband | ||||||
12 | connectivity.
| ||||||
13 | (6) To work with and distribute funding to private and | ||||||
14 | public telecommunications projects in matters related to | ||||||
15 | the construction, acquisition, improvement, or expansion | ||||||
16 | of telecommunications infrastructure. This includes, but | ||||||
17 | is not limited to, acting as a liaison between broadband | ||||||
18 | deployment projects and any entity controlling rights of | ||||||
19 | way and other easements necessary for a given broadband | ||||||
20 | project.
| ||||||
21 | (7) To give priority for financial and technical | ||||||
22 | support to competitive local exchange carriers in areas in | ||||||
23 | which a majority of market share is held by community | ||||||
24 | antenna television services and incumbent local exchange | ||||||
25 | carriers.
| ||||||
26 | (8) To enter into joint ventures and partnerships and | ||||||
27 | to make contracts for the purposes set forth in this Act. | ||||||
28 | (9) To select employees to carry out the daily | ||||||
29 | operations of the Authority. | ||||||
30 | Section 25. Repeal; dissolution of Authority. This Act is | ||||||
31 | repealed and the Illinois Broadband Authority is dissolved on | ||||||
32 | January 1, 2010.
|