Public Act 103-0483
 
SB0851 EnrolledLRB103 03309 RPS 48315 b


  
    AN ACT concerning State government.
  
 
    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
 
represented in the General Assembly:
  


 
    Section 5. The Broadband Advisory Council Act is amended  
by changing Section 20 and  by adding Section 30 as follows:
 
    (220 ILCS 80/20)

    Sec. 20. Powers and duties of the Council generally. 

    (a) The Council shall:
        (1) explore any and all ways to expand the 
    availability to end-user customers of broadband services 
    using available technologies, including, but not limited 
    to, wireline, wireless, fixed wireless, and satellite 
    applications;
        (2) identify barriers to broadband adoption among the

    residents and small businesses of Illinois;

        (3) research ways to eliminate barriers to adoption

    through measures such as: digital literacy programs;

    programs to assist older citizens in using broadband

    Internet access; programs to facilitate adoption by

    disabled citizens; and programs to encourage collaborative

    efforts among public universities, community colleges,

    libraries, public housing, and other institutions;

        (4) assess the availability of broadband for 
    low-income households compared to the availability of 
    broadband for other households;

        (5) explore the potential for increased use of




    broadband service for the purposes of education, career

    readiness, workforce preparation, and alternative career

    training;

        (6) explore the potential for increased use of

    broadband services to facilitate aging in place;

        (7) explore ways for encouraging State and municipal

    agencies, including public housing authorities, to expand

    the use of broadband services for the
purpose of better 
    serving the public, including audio and
video streaming, 
    voice-over Internet protocol,
teleconferencing, and 
    wireless networking;

        (8) cooperate and assist in the expansion of 
    electronic
instruction and distance education services; 
    and

        (9) as the Federal Communications Commission updates

    the benchmark downstream data rates and upstream data 
    rates, publish the revised
data rates in the Illinois 
    Register within 60 days after the
federal update; and .
        (10) evaluate the expansion of the Illinois Century 
    Network to Illinois public schools, public libraries, and 
    State-owned correctional institutions or facilities, 
    including issuing recommendations for increasing agency 
    staffing, infrastructure development, price modeling, and 
    providing download speeds of at least one gigabyte per 
    second and upload speeds of at least one gigabyte per 
    second. 
    (b) In addition to the powers set forth elsewhere in this

Act, the Council is hereby granted the powers necessary to

carry out the purpose and intent of this Act, as enumerated
in 
this Section, including, but not limited to:
        (1) promoting awareness of public facilities that have




    community broadband access that can be used for distance

    education and workforce development; and

        (2) advising on deployment of e-government portals 
    such
that all public bodies and political subdivisions 
    have
websites and encourage one-stop government access and 
    that
all public entities stream audio and video of all 
    public
meetings.

    (c) The Council shall also:

        (1) monitor the broadband-based development efforts of

    other states in areas such as business,
education, aging 
    in place, and health;

        (2)receive input provided on a voluntary basis from 
    all Illinois broadband stakeholders and advise the 
    Governor and the General Assembly on policies related to 
    broadband in Illinois, provided that no stakeholders shall 
    be required to publicly disclose competitively sensitive 
    information or information that could compromise network 
    security or undermine the efficacy of reasonable network 
    management practices, and that any such information 
    voluntarily disclosed shall be protected from public 
    disclosure; and

        (3) serve as the broadband advocate to State agencies

    and other State entities to communicate the broadband 
    needs
of citizens and organizations that do not have 
    access to
broadband service or to broadband service 
    adequate for
their needs.

    (d) The Council shall exercise its powers and authority to

(1) advise and make recommendations to the General Assembly 
and
the Governor on bringing broadband service to unserved and 
underserved rural and urban areas and improving broadband

service statewide, (2) advise and make
recommendations to the 
General Assembly and the Governor on
facilitating broadband 
adoption by all citizens, and (3)
propose statutory changes 
that may enhance and expand broadband in the State.

    (e) The Council shall report to the General Assembly on or

before January 1 of each year. The report to the General 
Assembly shall be filed with the Clerk of the House of 
Representatives and the Secretary of the Senate in electronic 
form only, in the manner that the Clerk and the Secretary shall 
direct. The report shall include the
action that was taken by 
the Council during the previous year
in carrying out the 
provisions of this Act. The Council
shall also make any other 
reports as may be required by the
General Assembly or the 
Governor.

(Source: P.A. 100-833, eff. 1-1-19.)
 
    (220 ILCS 80/30 new)
    Sec. 30. Illinois Century Network Study.
    (a) The Council shall study the feasibility of connecting 
all Illinois public schools, public libraries, and State-owned 
correctional facilities to the Illinois Century Network by 
January 1, 2030. The purpose and scope of the study is limited 
to connecting all public schools, public libraries, and 
State-owned correctional facilities to the Illinois Century 
Network, with a goal to give all public schools, public 
libraries, and State-owned correctional institutions or 
facilities access to reliable, gigabit-level broadband service 
by January 1, 2030. The Office of Broadband within the 
Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity shall support 
and assist the Council in the development of the study.
    (b) The feasibility study required under subsection (a) 
shall explore:
        (1) efforts among other states and units of local 
    government to connect public schools, public libraries, 
    and correctional facilities to a public broadband service;
        (2) the current state of broadband service connection 
    for all public schools, public libraries, and State-owned 
    correctional facilities, including connection speeds, type 
    of technology, and whether the network is serviced by the 
    Illinois Century Network currently;
        (3) models for expanding the Illinois Century Network 
    solely for the purpose of connecting all Illinois public 
    schools, public libraries, and State-owned correctional 
    facilities;
        (4) the resources necessary to expand the Illinois 
    Century Network across the State of Illinois to all 
    Illinois public schools, public libraries, and State-owned 
    correctional facilities;
        (5) the benefits of the Illinois Century Network in 
    Illinois public schools, public libraries, and State-owned 
    correctional facilities;
        (6) potential sources of funding for the expansion of 
    the Illinois Century Network to Illinois public schools, 
    public libraries, and State-owned correctional facilities;
        (7) additional staff and contracting needs that would 
    be necessary to expand the Illinois Century Network to all 
    Illinois public schools, public libraries, and State-owned 
    correctional facilities;
        (8) options for partnering with units of local 
    government in Illinois that have taken steps toward 
    offering public broadband service for the purpose of 
    connecting all Illinois public schools, public libraries, 
    and State-owned correctional facilities to the Illinois 
    Century Network; and
        (9) any other factors that are necessary for the 
    exploration of the feasibility of expanding the Illinois 
    Century Network to all Illinois public schools, public 
    libraries, and State-owned correctional facilities.
    The feasibility study shall offer recommendations based on 
the results of the study and shall offer options for the 
expansion of the Illinois Century Network, including a 
timeline, staffing needs, financial resources needed, and 
suggested rates for broadband service.
    (c) The Council shall issue a report on its findings, 
recommendations, options for expansion, and any recommended 
legislation to the General Assembly by January 1, 2024.
 

    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon 
becoming law.


Effective Date:  8/4/2023