BILL REQ. #:  S-1439.1 

Read first time 02/06/09.   Referred to Committee on Environment, Water & Energy.

     AN ACT Relating to broadband adoption and deployment; amending RCW 28B.32.010, 28B.32.020, and 28B.32.030; adding a new section to chapter 82.04 RCW; adding a new section to chapter 82.29A RCW; adding new chapters to Title 43 RCW; recodifying RCW 28B.32.010, 28B.32.020, 28B.32.030, 28B.32.900, and 28B.32.901; repealing RCW 43.105.350; providing an effective date; and declaring an emergency.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 1   The legislature finds and declares the following:
     (1) The deployment and adoption of high-speed internet services and technology advancements enhance economic development and public safety for the state's communities, and offers improved health care, access to consumer and legal services, increased educational and civic participation opportunities, and a better quality of life for the state's residents.
     (2) Improvements in the deployment and adoption of high-speed internet services and the strategic inclusion of technology advancements and technology education are critical to ensuring that Washington remains competitive and continues to provide a skilled workforce, attract businesses, and stimulate job growth.
     (3) The state must encourage and support strategic partnerships of public, private, nonprofit, and community-based sectors in the continued growth and development of high-speed internet services and information technology for state residents and businesses. This includes ensuring digital inclusion in internet access, computer literacy, and information content, so that all Washingtonians are able to obtain and utilize broadband fully, regardless of location, economic status, literacy level, age, disability, size of business, or business entity structure.
     (4) In light of the importance of broadband deployment and adoption to the economy, health, safety, and welfare of the people of Washington, it is essential that the legislature authorize a broadband programs management structure and an advisory council capable of developing and ensuring the implementation of statewide broadband strategies.

Sec. 2   RCW 28B.32.010 and 2008 c 262 s 6 are each amended to read as follows:
     The community technology opportunity program is created to support the efforts of community technology programs throughout the state. The community technology opportunity program must be administered by the ((Washington State University extension, in consultation with the)) department of information services. The ((Washington State University extension)) department may contract for services in order to carry out the ((extension's)) department's obligations under this section.
     (1) In implementing the community technology opportunity program the administrator must, to the extent funds are appropriated for this purpose:
     (a) Provide organizational and capacity building support to community technology programs throughout the state, and identify and facilitate the availability of other public and private sources of funds to enhance the purposes of the program and the work of community technology programs. No more than fifteen percent of funds received by the administrator for the program may be expended on these functions;
     (b) Establish a competitive grant program and provide grants to community technology programs to provide training and skill-building opportunities; access to hardware and software; internet connectivity; assistance in the adoption of information and communication technologies in low-income and underserved areas of the state; and development of locally relevant content and delivery of vital services through technology.
     (2) Grant applicants must:
     (a) Provide evidence that the applicant is a nonprofit entity or a public entity that is working in partnership with a nonprofit entity;
     (b) Define the geographic area or population to be served;
     (c) Include in the application the results of a needs assessment addressing, in the geographic area or among the population to be served: The impact of inadequacies in technology access or knowledge, barriers faced, and services needed;
     (d) Explain in detail the strategy for addressing the needs identified and an implementation plan including objectives, tasks, and benchmarks for the applicant and the role that other organizations will play in assisting the applicant's efforts;
     (e) Provide evidence of matching funds and resources, which are equivalent to at least one-quarter of the grant amount committed to the applicant's strategy;
     (f) Provide evidence that funds applied for, if received, will be used to provide effective delivery of community technology services in alignment with the goals of this program and to increase the applicant's level of effort beyond the current level; and
     (g) Comply with such other requirements as the administrator establishes.
     (3) The administrator may use no more than ten percent of funds received for the community technology opportunity program to cover administrative expenses.
     (4) The administrator must establish expected program outcomes for each grant recipient and must require grant recipients to provide an annual accounting of program outcomes.

Sec. 3   RCW 28B.32.020 and 2008 c 262 s 7 are each amended to read as follows:
     The definitions in this section apply throughout this chapter unless the context clearly requires otherwise.
     (1) "Administrator" means the community technology opportunity program administrator designated by the ((Washington State University extension)) department.
     (2) "Community technology programs" means ((a program, including a digital inclusion program, engaged in diffusing information and communications technology in local communities, particularly in underserved areas. These programs may include, but are not limited to, programs that provide education and skill-building opportunities, hardware and software, internet connectivity, and development of locally relevant content and delivery of vital services through technology)) programs that are engaged in diffusing information and communications technology in local communities, particularly in unserved and underserved areas of the state. These programs may include, but are not limited to, programs that provide education and skill-building opportunities, hardware and software, internet connectivity, development of locally relevant content, and delivery of vital services through technology. Community technology programs are usually provided by nonprofit or public agencies in public community settings, including youth and community centers, small business and workforce training centers, mutual assistance associations and settlement houses, low-income housing units, libraries, or schools opened for community programs.
     (3) "Department" means the department of information services.

Sec. 4   RCW 28B.32.030 and 2008 c 262 s 8 are each amended to read as follows:
     The Washington community technology opportunity account is established in the state treasury. Donated funds from private and public sources may be deposited into the account. Expenditures from the account may be used only for the operation of the community technology opportunity program as provided in RCW 28B.32.010 (as recodified by this act). Only the administrator or the administrator's designee may authorize expenditures from the account.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 5   The definitions in this section apply throughout this chapter unless the context clearly requires otherwise.
     (1) "Broadband" means a high-speed, high capacity transmission medium, using land-based, satellite, wireless, or any other mechanism, that can carry either signals or transmit data, or both, over long distances by using a wide range of frequencies with a minimum download speed greater than or equal to seven hundred sixty-eight kilobits per second and an upload speed greater than two hundred kilobits per second.
     (2) "Council" means the advisory council on digital inclusion created in section 9 of this act.
     (3) "Department" means the department of information services.
     (4) "High-speed internet" means broadband.
     (5) "Underserved areas" means areas in which high-speed internet download speeds are less than seven hundred sixty-eight kilobits per second and upload speeds are less than two hundred kilobits per second.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 6   The authority for overseeing broadband adoption and deployment efforts in the state is vested in the department of information services. The department may apply for and oversee implementation of federally funded or mandated broadband programs and may adopt rules to administer the programs. These programs may include but are not limited to the following:
     (1) Contracting for and purchasing a completed map of privately controlled, leased, or owned broadband infrastructure. The map may include, but is not limited to, adoption information, availability information, types of technology used, the physical location of broadband infrastructure, and available speed tiers for high-speed internet;
     (2) Tracking residential, nonprofit organization and business adoption of computers, high-speed internet, and related information technology;
     (3) Working with communities to identify barriers to the adoption of broadband service and related information technology services by individuals, nonprofit organizations, and businesses;
     (4) Identifying broadband demand opportunities in communities by working cooperatively with local organizations, government agencies, and businesses;
     (5) Creating, implementing, and administering programs to improve computer ownership, technology literacy, and high-speed internet access for populations not currently served or underserved in the state. This may include programs to provide low-income families, community-based nonprofit organizations, nonprofit entities, and public entities that work in partnership with nonprofit entities to provide increased access to computers and broadband, with reduced cost internet access;
     (6) Administering the community technology opportunity program under chapter 28B.32 RCW (as recodified by this act); and
     (7) Creating additional programs to spur the development of high-speed internet resources in the state, which may include, but is not limited to:
     (a) Applying for and receiving funding in the form of grants or donations which may be deposited into the Washington community technology opportunity account created in RCW 28B.32.030 (as recodified by this act);
     (b) Establishing technology literacy and digital inclusion programs and establishing low-cost hardware and software purchasing programs;
     (c) Developing last-mile technology loan programs targeting small businesses or businesses located in unserved and underserved areas; and
     (d) Including community technology organizations in state hardware and software purchasing programs.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 7   A new section is added to chapter 82.04 RCW to read as follows:
     (1) For the purposes of this section, "telecommunications company" has the same meaning as defined in RCW 80.04.010.
     (2) A telecommunications company shall be allowed a credit against taxes due under this chapter in an amount equal to fifty percent of contributions made in any fiscal year directly to the Washington community technology opportunity account created in RCW 28B.32.030 (as recodified by this act). The credit shall be taken in a form and manner as required by the department. The telecommunications company must make the contribution before claiming a credit authorized under this section. The credit under this section shall not exceed two hundred thousand dollars per fiscal year per telecommunications company. The credit may not exceed the tax that would otherwise be due under this chapter. Refunds shall not be granted in the place of credits.
     (3) Except as provided under subsection (4) of this section, a tax credit claimed under this section may not be carried over to another year.
     (4) Any amount of tax credit otherwise allowable under this section not claimed by a telecommunications company in any calendar year may be carried over and claimed against the tax liability for the next succeeding calendar year. Any credit remaining unused in the next succeeding calendar year may be carried forward and claimed against the tax liability for the second succeeding calendar year; and any credit not used in that second succeeding calendar year may be carried over and claimed against the tax liability for the third succeeding calendar year, but may not be carried over for any calendar year thereafter.
     (5) Credits are available on a first in-time basis. The department shall disallow any credits, or portion thereof, that would cause the total amount of credits claimed under this section during any calendar year to exceed five hundred thousand dollars. The department shall provide written notice to any telecommunications company that has claimed tax credits in excess of the five hundred thousand dollar limitation in this subsection. The notice must indicate the amount of tax due and provide that the tax be paid within thirty days from the date of such a notice. The department shall not assess penalties and interest as provided in chapter 82.32 RCW on the amount due in the initial notice if the amount due is paid by the due date specified in the notice, or any extension thereof.
     (6) To claim a credit under this section, a telecommunications company must electronically file with the department all returns, forms, and any other information required by the department, in an electronic format as provided or approved by the department. Any return, form, or information required to be filed in an electronic format under this section is not filed until received by the department in an electronic format. As used in this subsection, "returns" has the same meaning as "return" in RCW 82.32.050.
     (7) No application is necessary for the tax credit. The telecommunications company must keep records necessary for the department to verify eligibility under this section.
     (8) The department may not allow any credit under this section before July 1, 2009.
     (9) The right to earn tax credits under this section expires June 30, 2018.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 8   A new section is added to chapter 82.29A RCW to read as follows:
     Taxes collected under RCW 82.29A.030 from a telecommunications company, as defined in RCW 80.04.010, as a result of the company's leasehold interest in publicly owned property must be deposited in the Washington community technology opportunity account established in RCW 28B.32.030 (as recodified by this act) and used to fund the community technology opportunity program under chapter 28B.32 RCW (as recodified by this act).

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 9   (1) The department shall reconvene the high-speed internet work group previously established by chapter 262, Laws of 2008. The work group is renamed the advisory council on digital inclusion, and is an advisory group to the department. The council must include, but is not limited to, volunteer representatives from community technology organizations, telecommunications providers, higher education institutions, K-12 education institutions, public health institutions, public housing entities, and governmental entities that are engaged in community technology activities.
     (2) The council shall prepare a report by January 15th of each year and submit it to the department, the governor, and the appropriate committees of the legislature. The report must contain:     
     (a) An analysis of how support from public and private sector partnerships, the philanthropic community, and other not-for-profit organizations in the community, along with strong relationships with the state board for community and technical colleges, the higher education coordinating board, and higher education institutions, could establish a variety of high-speed internet access alternatives for citizens;
     (b) Proposed strategies for continued broadband deployment and adoption efforts, as well as further development of advanced telecommunications applications;
     (c) Recommendations on methods for maximizing the state's research and development capacity at universities and in the private sector for developing advanced telecommunications applications;
     (d) An identification of regulatory barriers that hinder the advancement of technology entrepreneurship in the state and recommendations on incentives to stimulate the demand for and development of these applications and services; and
     (e) An evaluation of programs designed to advance digital literacy and computer access that are made available by the federal government, local agencies, telecommunications providers, and business and charitable entities.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 10   If any part of this act is found to be in conflict with federal requirements that are a prescribed condition to the allocation of federal funds to the state, the conflicting part of this act is inoperative solely to the extent of the conflict and with respect to the agencies directly affected, and this finding does not affect the operation of the remainder of this act in its application to the agencies concerned. Rules adopted under this act must meet federal requirements that are a necessary condition to the receipt of federal funds by the state.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 11   Sections 1, 5, 6, 9, and 10 of this act constitute a new chapter in Title 43 RCW.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 12   RCW 28B.32.010, 28B.32.020, 28B.32.030, 28B.32.900, and 28B.32.901 are reach recodified as a new chapter in Title 43 RCW.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 13   RCW 43.105.350 (Request for information from providers -- Limitation) and 2008 c 262 s 3 are each repealed.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 14   If any provision of this act or its application to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the remainder of the act or the application of the provision to other persons or circumstances is not affected.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 15   This act is necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health, or safety, or support of the state government and its existing public institutions, and takes effect July 1, 2009.