1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to telecommunications; enacting Minnesota 
  1.3             Broadband Access Availability Act; appropriating 
  1.4             money; amending Minnesota Statutes 2000, section 
  1.5             237.461, by adding a subdivision; proposing coding for 
  1.6             new law as Minnesota Statutes, chapter 238A. 
  1.7   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.8      Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 2000, section 237.461, is 
  1.9   amended by adding a subdivision to read: 
  1.10     Subd. 5.  [CIVIL PENALTY FOR COMMUNICATION PROVIDER SERVICE 
  1.11  FAILURES.] Notwithstanding any contrary provision of this 
  1.12  section, penalties recovered for specific quality failures by 
  1.13  communication providers regulated under chapter 238A must be 
  1.14  deposited in the state treasury and credited as provided in 
  1.15  section 238A.03. 
  1.16     Sec. 2.  [SHORT TITLE.] 
  1.17     This chapter may be referred to as the "Minnesota Broadband 
  1.18  Access Availability Act."  
  1.19     Sec. 3.  [238A.01] [DEFINITIONS.] 
  1.20     Subdivision 1.  [SCOPE.] The terms used in this chapter 
  1.21  have the meanings given them in this section. 
  1.22     Subd. 2.  [BROADBAND.] "Broadband" means, without regard to 
  1.23  transmission medium or technology, high-speed, switched 
  1.24  telecommunications capability that enables users to originate 
  1.25  and receive high-quality voice, data, graphics, and video 
  1.26  communications using any communications transmission 
  2.1   technology.  This includes minimum transmission speed for 
  2.2   residential use of 256 kilobits per second and for business use 
  2.3   512 kilobits per second. 
  2.4      Subd. 3.  [COMMUNICATIONS PROVIDER.] "Communications 
  2.5   provider" includes a communications service company, carrier, 
  2.6   utility, Internet service provider, or other provider offering 
  2.7   communications services using any communications transmission 
  2.8   technology.  
  2.9      Subd. 4.  [UNDERSERVED.] "Underserved" refers to any area 
  2.10  where broadband services are not available at a price less than 
  2.11  1.3 times the average price for comparable services available in 
  2.12  the metropolitan area, as defined in section 473.121, by reason 
  2.13  of geographic, economic, technological, or other practical 
  2.14  limitations. 
  2.15     Subd. 5.  [UNSERVED.] "Unserved" refers to any area where 
  2.16  broadband services are not available by reason of geographic, 
  2.17  economic, technological, or other practical limitations. 
  2.18     Sec. 4.  [238A.02] [ACCOUNT ESTABLISHED; PURPOSE.] 
  2.19     The broadband access availability account is established in 
  2.20  the special revenue fund.  Money deposited in the account is 
  2.21  appropriated to the commissioner of administration who shall 
  2.22  distribute the funds as set forth in section 238A.04 for the 
  2.23  purposes of (1) funding technologies, equipment, infrastructure, 
  2.24  and components capable of providing broadband 
  2.25  telecommunications, and (2) expanding, enhancing, or replacing 
  2.26  integrated systems with advanced telecommunications with 
  2.27  broadband capability. 
  2.28     Sec. 5.  [238A.03] [REVENUE SOURCES; COLLECTION.] 
  2.29     Subdivision 1.  [MONEY IN ACCOUNT.] Money in the broadband 
  2.30  access availability account consists of revenues collected from 
  2.31  the sources described in subdivisions 2, 3, and 4. 
  2.32     Subd. 2.  [SURCHARGE COLLECTED BY COMMUNICATIONS PROVIDER.] 
  2.33  A surcharge of $0.42 must be added to end-user bills issued by 
  2.34  communications providers on a monthly basis for each customer 
  2.35  access line or equivalent for voice, data, or video service, 
  2.36  including trunk equivalents as designated by the commission for 
  3.1   access charge purposes and including cable, cellular, and 
  3.2   nonwire access services.  The fee must be the same for all 
  3.3   customers.  Each communications provider offering service 
  3.4   subject to the surcharge shall collect and remit the surcharge 
  3.5   to the commissioner of revenue monthly before the 25th of each 
  3.6   month following the month of collection, except that a 
  3.7   communications provider may submit the fees quarterly if less 
  3.8   than $250 a month is due from that particular communications 
  3.9   provider.  The commissioner of revenue shall deposit the 
  3.10  receipts in the state treasury and credit them to the broadband 
  3.11  access availability account in the special revenue fund. 
  3.12     Subd. 3.  [VOLUNTARY CHECK-OFF.] An advisory and 
  3.13  solicitation must be added to end-user bills issued by 
  3.14  communications providers.  The advisory must advise and provide 
  3.15  the opportunity for end-users to add up to $1 to the bill 
  3.16  payment for deposit into the broadband access availability 
  3.17  account and must contain a description of the purpose of 
  3.18  expenditures from the account as set forth in section 238A.04.  
  3.19  Each bill must contain a check-off for the end-user to indicate 
  3.20  the amount to be contributed and deposited into the account.  
  3.21  Each communications provider shall collect and remit the 
  3.22  check-off amount to the commissioner of revenue monthly before 
  3.23  the 25th day of each month following the month of collection, 
  3.24  except that a communications provider may submit the fees 
  3.25  quarterly if less than $250 a month is due from that particular 
  3.26  communications provider.  The commissioner of revenue shall 
  3.27  deposit the receipts in the state treasury and credit them to 
  3.28  the broadband access availability account in the special revenue 
  3.29  fund. 
  3.30     Subd. 4.  [FINES ASSESSED BY COMMISSION.] Costs and fines 
  3.31  assessed against communications providers under section 237.295 
  3.32  or 237.461 for specific quality of service failures must be 
  3.33  deposited in the state treasury and credited to the broadband 
  3.34  access availability account. 
  3.35     Sec. 6.  [238A.04] [DISTRIBUTION OF FUNDS.] 
  3.36     Subdivision 1.  [GENERAL REQUIREMENTS.] Money must be 
  4.1   distributed from the account according to this section. 
  4.2      Subd. 2.  [K-12 SCHOOLS.] (a) The proceeds of the mandatory 
  4.3   surcharge collected according to section 238A.03, subdivision 2, 
  4.4   and deposited each month must be transferred to the commissioner 
  4.5   of the department of children, families, and learning to be used 
  4.6   for the installation, upgrade, and ongoing costs of broadband 
  4.7   infrastructure to be used by K-12 public school districts and 
  4.8   libraries.  To the extent technologically feasible, public 
  4.9   school districts shall provide for the costs of private K-12 
  4.10  schools located within the district.  
  4.11     (b) Money may only be distributed to school districts and 
  4.12  libraries according to criteria established jointly by the 
  4.13  commissioner of children, families, and learning and the 
  4.14  commissioner of administration upon advice and counsel of the 
  4.15  Minnesota Education Telecommunication Council.  Criteria must 
  4.16  include, but need not be limited to:  
  4.17     (1) promotion of networking connectivity and 
  4.18  interoperability between and among school districts, libraries, 
  4.19  or institutions of higher education; 
  4.20     (2) promotion of collaborations and partnerships and the 
  4.21  shared use of networks and facilities between and among school 
  4.22  districts, libraries, institutions of higher education, or other 
  4.23  public or private telecommunications users, including community 
  4.24  and business cooperatives; and 
  4.25     (3) application by school districts or libraries for 
  4.26  federal E-rate reimbursement for telecommunications services. 
  4.27     Subd. 3.  [COMMUNITY PROJECTS AND STATEWIDE 
  4.28  PARTNERSHIPS.] Up to ten percent of all other money collected 
  4.29  according to section 238A.03, subdivisions 3 and 4, and 
  4.30  deposited each month is appropriated to the commissioner of 
  4.31  trade and economic development to be used as matching grants to 
  4.32  community telecommunications development projects and to 
  4.33  statewide industry marketing partnerships. 
  4.34     Subd. 4.  [UNSERVED AND UNDERSERVED AREAS.] (a) The 
  4.35  remaining balance of the money deposited each month must be 
  4.36  appropriated to the commissioner of trade and economic 
  5.1   development to be used for grants to be awarded to 
  5.2   communications providers to support the deployment of broadband 
  5.3   service in areas of the state that are unserved or underserved 
  5.4   by broadband telecommunications.  
  5.5      (b) Eligible grant recipients, without regard to 
  5.6   transmission media or technology, must be creditworthy 
  5.7   communications providers that furnish evidence to the reasonable 
  5.8   satisfaction of the department of trade and economic development 
  5.9   and the department of administration that, without the grant, 
  5.10  deployment of broadband services in the unserved or underserved 
  5.11  areas (i) is not cost-justified, (ii) would place an undue 
  5.12  burden on existing communications service end-users or 
  5.13  shareholders, (iii) is not technologically feasible due to 
  5.14  geography or subscription levels, or (iv) would not occur due to 
  5.15  other practical considerations. 
  5.16     (c) In addition to paragraph (b), preference must be given 
  5.17  to one or more communications providers that request the lowest 
  5.18  grant amounts in order to implement the service and provide for 
  5.19  the greatest number of subscribers to be covered at the lowest 
  5.20  service prices. 
  5.21     Subd. 5.  [COMPETITIVE AWARD PROCESS.] Grants from the 
  5.22  account according to subdivisions 3 and 4 must be awarded by the 
  5.23  commissioner of trade and economic development upon concurrence 
  5.24  of the commissioner of administration, according to a 
  5.25  competitive grant process.  The commissioner of trade and 
  5.26  economic development and the commissioner of administration 
  5.27  shall jointly create criteria for the award of grants.  
  5.28     Sec. 7.  [238A.06] [EFFECTIVE DATE; SUNSET.] 
  5.29     This act is effective August 1, 2002.  Distribution of 
  5.30  funds from the broadband access availability account under 
  5.31  section 5 must begin no sooner than the end of the sixth month 
  5.32  following its effective date.  This act expires June 1, 2007, 
  5.33  and any remaining funds cancel to the general fund.