Relating to broadband service, including matters under the purview of the office of the chief information officer, the empower rural Iowa broadband grant fund, and including effective date and applicability provisions

This bill relates to broadband service, including facilitating the availability of broadband service in unsecured and underserved areas, and administration of the empower rural Iowa broadband grant fund. The bill modifies the definition of “facilitate” for purposes of Code chapter 8B to mean a communications service provider’s ability to provide broadband service at or above the download and upload speeds specified in the definition of a targeted service area to a home, farm, school, or business within a commercially reasonable time and at a commercially reasonable price upon request. The bill modifies the definition of “targeted service area” to mean either of the following: a United States census bureau census block located in this state, including any crop operation located within the census block, or other geographic unit the office of the chief information officer sets by rule, within which no communications service provider offers or facilitates broadband service at or above the tier 1, tier 2, or tier download and upload speeds enumerated in the bill; or any geographic area, as the office sets by rule, that is materially underserved by broadband service such that tier 1, tier 2, and tier download and upload speeds are not meaningfully available. The bill defines “tier 1” as a maximum download speed of less than megabits per second and a maximum upload speed of less than three megabits per second. The bill defines “tier 2” as a minimum download speed of greater than or equal to megabits per second but less than megabits per second. The bill defines “tier 3” as a minimum download speed of greater than or equal to megabits per second but less than megabits per second. The bill modifies the definition of “underserved area” to mean any portion of a targeted service area within which no communications service provider facilitates broadband service meeting the tier speeds. The bill provides that the determination of whether a communications service provider facilitates broadband service meeting the tier 1, tier 2, or tier download and upload speeds shall be determined by reference to broadband availability maps or data sources that are identified by the office by rule. The bill requires the office to periodically make renewed determinations as to whether a communications service provider facilitates broadband service at or above those download and upload speeds. The bill establishes that the office is not required to make renewed determinations more frequently than once in any calendar year. The bill provides that, except as described below, grants from the empower rural Iowa broadband grant fund shall only be made to communications service providers that reduce or eliminate targeted service areas by installing broadband infrastructure that facilitates broadband service providing a minimum download speed of 100 megabits per second and a minimum upload speed of 100 megabits per second in targeted service areas. Current law requires the office to use the moneys in the fund for the grant program, including broadband mapping and administration.25.5 percent of the moneys in the fund at the beginning of the fiscal year to pay the costs associated with the administration of the grant program and the fiberoptic network conduit installation program. The bill requires the office to devote one full-time equivalent position to evaluate applications for grant awards under the fund. The bill strikes provisions relating to the application review process for applications for grants under the fund. Additionally, the bill strikes provisions relating to a review committee for the review and recommendation of grant awards. The bill also makes certain changes to what the office is to consider when reviewing an application for a grant from the fund and the weight the office is to afford to certain considerations. The bill provides a framework to determine the maximum amount of a grant that the office may award from the fund. The bill establishes that the amount of a grant awarded from the fund is a percentage of the communications service provider’s project costs, and the percentage is determined by the broadband service that is available in the targeted service area. The bill also authorizes the office to award grants from the fund to communications service providers that reduce or eliminate targeted service areas by installing broadband infrastructure that facilitates broadband service providing a minimum download speed of 100 megabits per second and a minimum upload speed of megabits per second. The bill requires that these projects result in the installation of broadband infrastructure in a targeted service area within which no communications service provider offers broadband service that provides download and upload speeds less than or equal to the tier download and upload speeds. The bill requires at least percent of the total amount of the grants the office awards from the fund to be allocated to projects that will result in the installation of broadband infrastructure in difficult to serve targeted service areas within which no communications service provider offers broadband service that provides download and upload speeds less than or equal to the tier download and upload speeds. The bill authorizes the office to adopt emergency rules to implement the provisions of the bill.11, subsection 7, which prohibits the office from awarding a grant from the fund on or after July 1, 2025.11 on or after the effective date of the bill.