Communications: California Advanced Services Fund.

(1) Existing law establishes the Governor's Office of Business and Economic Development, known as "GO-Biz," within the Governor's office to serve the Governor as the lead entity for economic strategy and the marketing of California on issues relating to business development, private sector investment, and economic growth. This bill would require the office to coordinate with other relevant state and local agencies and national organizations to explore ways to facilitate streamlining of local land use approvals and construction permit processes for projects related to broadband infrastructure deployment and connectivity. (2) Under existing law, the Public Utilities Commission has regulatory authority over public utilities, including telephone corporations. Existing law requires the commission to develop, implement, and administer the California Advanced Services Fund (CASF) to encourage deployment of high-quality advanced communications services to all Californians that will promote economic growth, job creation, and the substantial social benefits of advanced information and communications technologies. Existing law establishes 5 accounts, the Broadband Infrastructure Grant Account, the Rural and Urban Regional Broadband Consortia Grant Account, the Broadband Public Housing Account, the Broadband Adoption Account, and the Federal Funding Account, within the CASF. Existing law provides that the goal of the Broadband Infrastructure Grant Account is, by no later than December 31, 2026, to approve funding for infrastructure projects that will provide broadband access to no less than 98% of California households. Upon the accomplishment of that goal, existing law makes up to $30,000,000 remaining in the Broadband Infrastructure Grant Account available for infrastructure projects that provide last-mile broadband access to households to which no facility-based broadband provider offers broadband service at speeds of at least 10 megabits per second (mbps) downstream and one mbps upstream. Existing law authorizes the commission to impose a surcharge to collect $330,000,000 for deposit into the CASF beginning January 1, 2018, and continuing through the 2022 calendar year. Existing law specifies the amount of surcharge revenues to be deposited into each account within the CASF, subject to appropriation by the Legislature. Existing law authorizes the commission, in administering Broadband Infrastructure Grant Account, to require each infrastructure grant applicant to indicate steps taken to first obtain any available funding from the Connect America Fund program or similar federal public programs that fund broadband infrastructure. This bill would provide that the goal of the Broadband Infrastructure Grant Account is to approve funding for infrastructure projects that will provide broadband access to no less than 98% of California households by no later than December 31, 2032, rather than December 31, 2026. The bill would delete the provision making up to $30,000,000 available for infrastructure projects upon the accomplishment of that goal, as specified. The bill would authorize moneys appropriated from the CASF to be used to fund projects that deploy broadband infrastructure to unserved nonresidential facilities used for local and state emergency response activities, including fairgrounds. The bill would delete the commission's authorization to collect $330,000,000 for deposit into the CASF beginning January 1, 2018, and continuing through the 2022 calendar year. The bill would authorize the commission, through imposition of a surcharge, to collect up to $150,000,000 per year. The bill would delete the commission's authorization to require each infrastructure grant applicant to indicate steps taken to first obtain any available funding from federal public programs, as specified. (3) Under existing law, a violation of the Public Utilities Act or any order, decision, rule, direction, demand, or requirement of the commission is a crime. Because certain of the above provisions would be part of the act and a violation of a commission action implementing this bill's requirements would be a crime, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason. (4) This bill would become effective only if AB 14 of the 2021–22 Regular Session is enacted and takes effect on or before January 1, 2022. (5) This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.