Regular Session 2019-2020 Senate Resolution 0047 P.N. 0951

PRIOR PRINTER'S NO. 656

PRINTER'S NO. 951

THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA

SENATE RESOLUTION

No.

Session of

2019

INTRODUCED BY PHILLIPS-HILL, YAW, GORDNER, HUTCHINSON, COSTA,

BAKER, AUMENT, STEFANO, WHITE, BROWNE, HAYWOOD AND

BARTOLOTTA, APRIL 29, 2019

SENATOR PHILLIPS-HILL, COMMUNICATIONS AND TECHNOLOGY, AS

AMENDED, JUNE 12, 2019

A RESOLUTION

Establishing a legislative task force on the delivery of high-

speed broadband services and directing the Joint State

Government Commission to establish an advisory committee to

conduct a study on the delivery of high-speed broadband

services in unserved areas and underserved areas of this

Commonwealth and to report its findings and recommendations

to the Senate.

WHEREAS, Effective economic development today requires

unprecedented levels of collaboration and communication among

State and local government, business, education, health care,

tourism and community leaders; and

WHEREAS, High-speed Internet access has become an essential

element of economic vitality; and

WHEREAS, High-speed broadband availability increases

individual worker productivity, breaks down the traditional

geographic barriers to jobs and careers in high-paying fields

and connects Pennsylvania businesses to international markets

around the world; and

WHEREAS, Small towns and rural communities across this

Commonwealth are the cradle of the best of American ingenuity,

potential and values; and

WHEREAS, Without sufficient access to broadband and a high

level of use of available technology, these small towns and

rural communities and their residents will remain

technologically and economically isolated and competitively

disadvantaged; and

WHEREAS, The availability of high-speed broadband in

Pennsylvania is continuing to increase across multiple

technological platforms, but certain locations and communities

are either underserved, having insufficient broadband speeds to

fully leverage the benefits of the technology, or are unserved

altogether; and

WHEREAS, TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENTS HAVE ENABLED NUMEROUS

COMPETITIVE PROVIDERS TO ENTER THE VOICE AND BROADBAND

MARKETPLACE USING MULTIPLE TECHNOLOGIES, AND MOST CONSUMERS HAVE

THE ABILITY TO CHOOSE AND PURCHASE SERVICES FROM REGULATED AND

UNREGULATED PROVIDERS; AND

WHEREAS, TODAY, TRADITIONAL LANDLINE VOICE PROVIDERS HAVE

LESS THAN 12% OF THE TOTAL VOICE SUBSCRIPTIONS IN THIS

COMMONWEALTH BUT ARE STILL REQUIRED TO MAINTAIN A NETWORK THAT

CAN PROVIDE VOICE SERVICE TO EVERY CUSTOMER IN THE PROVIDER'S

SERVICE TERRITORY; AND

WHEREAS, WHILE REGULATION OF TRADITIONAL LANDLINE VOICE

SERVICES HAS REMAINED RELATIVELY UNCHANGED IN THIS COMMONWEALTH

DESPITE THESE DRAMATIC CHANGES IN THE INDUSTRY, THE TECHNOLOGIES

THAT CONSUMERS USE TO COMMUNICATE HAVE FUNDAMENTALLY ALTERED THE

MARKETPLACE AND CONTINUE TO DO SO; AND

WHEREAS, MODERNIZATION OF REGULATIONS AND STATUTES HAS

ALREADY BEEN UNDERTAKEN IN MAY STATES AS CONSUMERS HAVE

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TRANSITIONED FROM LANDLINE VOICE SERVICES TO PRODUCTS OFFERED BY

UNREGULATED OR LIGHTLY REGULATED ENTITIES; AND

WHEREAS, THE PROVISION OF BROADBAND SERVICE ACROSS THIS

COMMONWEALTH MUST RECOGNIZE THAT BECAUSE OF TECHNOLOGICAL AND

COMPETITIVE DEVELOPMENTS, THE APPROPRIATE METHOD TO SUPPORT AND

INCENTIVIZE FURTHER EXPANSION OF BROADBAND SHOULD BE TECHNOLOGY

AND POLICY NEUTRAL; AND

WHEREAS, Eliminating unserved areas and underserved areas in

this Commonwealth will provide educational, economic, health,

governance and public safety benefits to all residents; and

WHEREAS, The basic requirements for successfully expanding

the benefits of high-speed broadband to all residents of this

Commonwealth are:

(1) access to computers, whether privately owned or

leased or provided at public locations as a public benefit;

(2) access to reliable broadband services at affordable

prices and at speeds required for current and future

applications; and

(3) knowledge to effectively use those computers and the

Internet;

and

WHEREAS, High-speed broadband infrastructure:

(1) allows communities to engage the world with their

goods and services;

(2) allows industries which are reliant upon traditional

manufacturing to use the Internet to expand their markets and

make their operations even more efficient;

(3) promotes the use of agricultural technology to help

farmers:

(i) maintain online field, mapping, water

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management, livestock and accounting records; and

(ii) develop machinery that can operate virtually on

its own; and

(4) allows professionals in rural communities to work or

run businesses from their homes;

and

WHEREAS, High-speed broadband brings educational

opportunities, improved health care, more effective government

services and a better quality of life to all residents of this

Commonwealth; and

WHEREAS, Companies selling technology-intensive products and

services, or companies with technologically advanced operations,

generally provide faster growth in employment and income than

companies without such capabilities; and

WHEREAS, Studies show that as much as 85% of the growth in

per capita income over the past 150 years has resulted from

technological change; and

WHEREAS, Technology-intensive private sector jobs on average

pay wages which are 85% to 95% higher than wages paid for

private sector jobs that are not technology-intensive; and

WHEREAS, The President and Congress, in the effort to make

broadband or high-speed access to the Internet available to all

Americans, based on the belief that every American needs to have

access to broadband to have the doors of economic and social

opportunity open to them, required the Federal Communications

Commission to:

(1) develop a forward-looking national broadband plan to

ensure that all Americans have access to broadband

capability;

(2) contribute to efforts of the United States

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Department of Commerce and the United States Department of

Agriculture to award $7.2 billion in grants, loans and loan

guarantees to hasten the introduction of the facilities

needed to provide broadband and educate consumers to use this

infrastructure; and

(3) collect and report far more detailed and

comprehensive information on the status of broadband

deployment, adoption and use, including how broadband service

in the United States compares to broadband service in other

countries;

and

WHEREAS, The Commonwealth's efforts to secure the

availability of high-speed broadband throughout urban, suburban

and rural areas of this Commonwealth has been fragmented,

resulting in a lack of coordination among multiple State

agencies and commissions overseeing various broadband-related

programs, projects and Federal and State funding; therefore be

RESOLVED, That the Senate establish a legislative task force

on the delivery of high-speed broadband services; and be it

further

RESOLVED, That the task force be comprised of the chairperson

and minority chairperson of the Communications and Technology

Committee of the Senate or a designee of the chairperson or

minority chairperson; and be it further

RESOLVED, That the Senate direct the Joint State Government

Commission to assist the task force and conduct a study on the

delivery of high-speed broadband services in unserved areas and

underserved areas of this Commonwealth; and be it further

RESOLVED, That the Joint State Government Commission, as part

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of its study, establish an advisory committee consisting of

approximately 25 members from across this Commonwealth,

including:

(1) the Secretary of Agriculture or a designee;

(2) the Secretary of Community and Economic Development

or a designee;

(3) the Deputy Secretary for Technology and Innovation

in the Department of Community and Economic Development or a

designee;

(4) the Secretary of Education or a designee;

(5) the Secretary of Health or a designee;

(6) the Secretary of Labor and Industry or a designee;

(7) the Secretary of Policy and Planning or a designee;

(8) the executive director of the Pennsylvania Office of

Broadband Initiatives or a designee;

(9) the executive director of the Governor's Center for

Local Government Services of the Pennsylvania Municipal

League or a designee;

(10) the chairperson of the Pennsylvania Public Utility

Commission or a designee;

(11) the vice chairperson of the Pennsylvania Public

Utility Commission or a designee;

(12) the Small Business Advocate or a designee;

(13) the Consumer Advocate or a designee;

(14) the director of the Center for Rural Pennsylvania

or a designee;

(15) representatives of broadband service providers and

any related cable, wireless or other technology industries or

associations within this Commonwealth; and

(16) representatives of other departments, agencies,

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boards, commissions or entities that the Joint State

Government Commission deems appropriate in conducting the

study under this resolution;

and be it further

RESOLVED, That the Joint State Government Commission develop

reports in collaboration with the advisory committee which, at a

minimum, include the following:

(1) background information which addresses the matters

set forth in this resolution;

(2) recommendations to:

(i) TO improve the delivery of high-speed broadband

services to unserved areas and underserved areas of this

Commonwealth; and

(ii) TO extend the benefits of advanced high-speed

broadband technology to every community in this

Commonwealth through collaborative partnerships with

governmental and private sector stakeholders; and

COMMONWEALTH THROUGH:

(A) COLLABORATIVE PARTNERSHIPS WITH

GOVERNMENTAL AND PRIVATE SECTOR STAKEHOLDERS; AND

(B) OTHER MEANS OF EXTENDING THE BENEFITS OF

ADVANCED HIGH-SPEED BROADBAND TECHNOLOGY IN THIS

COMMONWEALTH; AND

(III) FOR MECHANISMS AND POSSIBLE PROGRAMS FOR

FUNDING THE EXPANSION OF BROADBAND AVAILABILITY,

INCLUDING HARMONIZATION OF FUNDING OPTIONS WITH ANY

EXISTING FEDERAL OR OTHER STATE PROGRAMS; AND

(3) proposed legislation which relates to the proposed

recommendations and specifically addresses the delivery of

high-speed broadband services to rural high-cost areas of

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this Commonwealth; INCLUDING:

(I) MODERNIZING TELECOMMUNICATIONS POLICIES,

REGULATIONS AND STATUTES REGARDLESS OF TECHNOLOGY AND THE

ELIMINATION OF OUTDATED AND UNNECESSARY REGULATIONS; AND

(II) ELIMINATING BARRIERS TO THE EXPANSION OF

BROADBAND AVAILABILITY;

and be it further

RESOLVED, That the Joint State Government Commission may, as

it deems necessary, hold informational meetings to receive

testimony from professionals or consumers with expertise or

knowledge in the matters described in this resolution; and be it

further

RESOLVED, That the Joint State Government Commission issue an

initial report of its findings and recommendations to the Senate

no later than one year after the adoption of this resolution;

and be it further

RESOLVED, That the Joint State Government Commission issue

four additional annual reports of its findings and

recommendations to the Senate, each of which shall be issued no

later than one year after the issuance of the immediately prior

report.

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