Broadband affordability plan; Department of Housing and Community Development to develop, report.

Department of Housing and Community Development;broadband affordability plan. Directs the Department of Housingand Community Development to develop the Commonwealth Digital Affordabilityand Cost-Effectiveness to address broadband affordability and equity.The bill requires that the Plan include (i) an overview of wherein the Commonwealth broadband and other digital connectivity is unaffordable;(ii) recommendations on how best to leverage federal grants addressingbroadband affordability to best execute the Plan; (iii) best practicesfor establishing a grant program or its equivalent to address digital affordability, taking into account existing federal funds and programs;(iv) a strategy to expand the affordability of broadband by retrofittingall affordable housing projects with broadband installations andother necessary infrastructure improvements; and (v) recommendations,including recommendations for a public outreach plan, on how to takeadvantage of the $14 billion Affordability Connectivity Program ofthe federal Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act to support a permanent$30-a-month broadband subsidy for low-income households, NationalTelecommunications and Information Administration programs, and theU.S. Department of Agriculture Reconnect program. The bill requiresthe Department to report the Plan to the Governor and the General Assembly by December 1, 2022.