(a) The commission, in collaboration with the third-party administrator, shall assist the office and provide to the office the locations for the statewide open-access middle-mile broadband network in a commission staff report, and shall update the locations from time to time as the commission deems appropriate.

(b) The commission shall identify statewide open-access middle-mile broadband network locations that will enable last-mile service connections and are in communities where there is no known middle-mile infrastructure that is open access, with sufficient capacity, and at affordable rates.

(c) The commission shall identify priority statewide open-access middle-mile broadband network locations, including areas that can be built expeditiously, areas with no known middle-mile network access, regions underserved by middle-mile networks, and regions without sufficient capacity to meet future middle-mile needs.

(d) In identifying priority statewide open-access middle-mile broadband network locations pursuant to subdivision (c), the commission shall prioritize locations that enable last-mile connections to residences unserved by 25 mbps downstream and 3 mbps upstream. The locations prioritized by the commission may also include entities that lack sufficient high-bandwidth connections, including, but not limited to, all of the following:

(1) Elementary and secondary schools.

(2) Community colleges and other institutions of higher education.

(3) Government entities.

(4) Healthcare institutions.

(5) Libraries.

(6) Public safety answering points and technologies to assist in the prevention or response to natural disasters, including, but not limited to, fairgrounds.

(7) Tribal lands.

(e) The commission, in collaboration with relevant stakeholders, shall identify state highway rights-of-way where installation of open-access middle-mile broadband infrastructure should be prioritized.

(1) In prioritizing state highway rights-of-way, the commission shall prioritize a geographically diverse group of projects in rural and urban areas of the state to achieve the greatest reductions in the amount of households unserved by broadband internet access service meeting federal and state standards.

(2) Upon identifying and prioritizing locations pursuant to this section, the commission shall transmit the list of priority projects to the Department of Transportation and publish the list on the commission’s internet website.

(f) (1) The commission shall solicit and receive public comments within 90 days of the effective date of this section with respect to both of the following:

(A) The current locations, routes, availability, technical performance characteristics, and other aspects of commercial sources of supply of middle-mile broadband network services.

(B) The locations, routes, technical performance characteristics, network design, regeneration points, interconnection points and tie-ins, and other design, technical, business, and operational considerations that would increase the attractiveness and usefulness of the statewide open-access middle-mile broadband network for commercial internet service providers.

(2) These public comments shall inform the locations for the statewide open-access middle-mile network provided to the office pursuant to subdivision (a).

(g) (1) The commission shall treat any confidential information obtained from the department pursuant to this section consistent with its processes and statutory requirements for maintaining confidential information otherwise received from communications service providers.

(2) The commission may share with the department any confidential information it receives from communications service providers that is related to the development and operation of the statewide open-access middle-mile broadband network, and the department shall not disclose that information.

(h) The office shall plan and develop the statewide open-access middle-mile broadband network using the information provided pursuant to subdivisions (a) to (d), inclusive.

(i) (1) In the planning and development of the statewide open-access middle-mile broadband network, the office shall consider technical advice received from entities, including, but not limited to, wireless communications service providers, wireline communications service providers, state agencies, local governments, nonprofit entities, tribes, educational institutions, organized labor groups, regional consortia, and, if applicable, a working group convened pursuant to paragraph (2).

(2) The office may convene a working group to provide additional advice pursuant to this subdivision.

(Added by Stats. 2021, Ch. 112, Sec. 3. (SB 156) Effective July 20, 2021.)