Not for the light-hearted. The following notes are excerpted from a kickoff conversation between the American Library Association Washington Office Staff and the Chief Officers of State Library Agencies (COSLA - that is, State Librarians).

ARRA 2009 Broadband Initiative Kick-off

Tuesday, March 10, 2009

10:00am EDT

Important Links:

§ The link to the Broadband Opportunities Online Program Grants webpage is:

http://www.ntia.doc.gov/broadbandgrants/

§ The link to the March 10^th agenda: http://www.ntia.doc.gov/broadbandgrants/Agenda_090310.pdf

§ Link to the transcript (PDF) of the meeting: http://www.ntia.doc.gov/broadbandgrants/090310/transcript_090310.pdf

From the US Secretary of Agriculture: Tom Vilsack

§ Emphasis at USDA on creating a transparent and participatory process to get the best ideas, followed by quick implementation of those solutions

§ USDA Commitment is $2.8 billion

• They are anxious to leverage the resources beyond that amount

§ 60 years ago the Dept. of Agriculture overcame the challenge of the expansion of rural telephone access, the challenge today is to bring up to date technology to all of America

From the former Department of Commerce Assistant Secretary for Trade Development, now the Acting Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission: Michael Copps

§ The International Telecommunications Union recently released the ranking of broadband among the nations; America ranked 17^th

§ FCC plays the role of turning the ARRA commitment into a workable, national strategy

§ The next full FCC meeting will be held April 8^th

• Hopes to kick off an open, participatory process to leverage the data and expertise they need to present the national broadband strategy to Congress

§ The FCC has one year to complete the strategy

§ The FCC, working with NTIA, will utilize a new tool: the national broadband map

• This will aid in the continued measurement of progress with the broadband efforts

§ The goal of the national strategy is to bring high-speed broadband to all citizens

§ The FCC released a public notice asking for comment on how there can be better interagency coordination of broadband initiatives in order to develop a report on rural broadband strategy by May 2009

From the Senior Advisor and Acting Chief of Staff of the Department of Commerce: Rick Wade

§ Five goals for the administration’s broadband stimulus funding

• To begin to close the broadband gap across America
• Stimulate investment by requiring companies to take federal money to invest their own funds as well
• Create jobs
• Take steps to ensure schools, universities, libraries, community centers, hospitals and job training centers have high-speed access

§ Congress asked for a focus on funding for high-speed access to those community anchor institutions

• Encourage demand for broadband by helping more people understand the effect broadband can have on their lives

§ The broadband program represents a critical component of the economic recovery package

From the Associate Administrator for NTIA: Dr. Bernadette McGuire-Rivera

§ There is a shared concern over terminology, including the definitions of served, unserved, nondiscrimination, interconnection, etc

• There will be a series of public meetings scheduled to discuss these terms
• There is also a public notice posted on the Federal Register that goes through 15 questions and details what they are looking for public input on

§ Public Meetings

• March 16^th at the US Department of Commerce Main Auditorium
• March 17^th in Las Vegas, NV
• March 18^th in Flagstaff, AZ
• March 19^th at the US Department of Commerce Main Auditorium
• March 23^rd at the US Department of Commerce Main Auditorium
• March 24^th at the US Department of Commerce Main Auditorium

§ Agendas for each of these meetings will be issued soon

§ Different topics will be discussed at each meeting

§ NTIA is responsible for $4.7 billion

• Up to $350 million of that can be spent on broadband mapping and planning
• At least $200 million will be spent on public computer center capacity grants
• At least $250 million for innovative programs to encourage sustainable broadband adoption
• The Act specifically sets aside $10 million for audits and oversights, which is for the Inspector General

§ The program purposes are to provide access in unserved areas, provide improved access in underserved areas, provide access for public safety agencies, and to stimulate broadband demand, economic growth and job creation and to provide education awareness, training, access equipment, and support

§ The Act specifies that NTIA consult the states and coordinate with the FCC and RUS

§ All grants must be awarded by September 30, 2010

§ NTIA is obligated to establish contractual obligations for adherence to the nondiscrimination and network interconnection obligations established by the NTIA in coordination with the FCC

§ NTIA will report to Congress every three months

§ NTIA will establish a database of all applications, recipients and quarterly reports submitted by the recipients

§ Eligibility for a grant

• Need to be a state or political subdivision or territory
• Indian tribes, native Hawaiian organizations, nonprofit foundations, corporations, institutions and associations are also eligible
• If it is determined to be of public interest, broadband service providers and infrastructure providers are also eligible

§ Notice of fund availability (NOFA)

• The NOFAs will go out in three waves

§ Each of the three waves represent an approximation of 1/3 of the available money

• The first NOFA will go out between April and June of this year
• The second round will go out between October and December of this year
• The third round will go out between April and June of 2010

§ The grant application will need to include a detailed budget

§ The law requires that you demonstrate that this project would not have been implemented in the time period without federal assistance

§ You will be required to disclose any additional federal or state funding that you have applied for and already have

§ It is okay to apply to both the NTIA grant program and the USDA RUS grant program, but you can’t have both organizations pay for the same piece of equipment

§ According to the law, at least one grant must be awarded to each state

From the Assistant Administrator for Telecommunication Programs for the United States Department of Agriculture: David Villano

§ This is the 60^th anniversary of USDA’s telecommunications program

• In the past 60 years USDA has awarded over $20 billion in telecommunications loans and grants in rural America

§ USDA currently administers four major telecommunication loan and grant programs

• Infrastructure loan program
• Broadband loan program
• Community connect grants
• Distance learning and telemedicine loans and grants

§ USDA will use their $2 billion+ share to create a fifth program to aid in the deployment of broadband service to rural America

• The intention is to deploy the allotment as both grants and loans

§ Key elements of the USDA distribution of funds

• 75% of the area to be served by the project has to be in a rural area without sufficient access to high-speed broadband service to facilitate rural economic development
• Priority is given to projects that will give end users a choice of more than one service provider
• USDA would like to provide help to areas that have the highest proportion of rural residents without access to broadband service
• Looking for projects that commence immediately upon approval and can be completed in a relatively short time frame

§ Will participate with NTIA in the upcoming public meetings to gain a better understanding of the public’s opinion on how to deploy the broadband funding

§ The USDA plans to get the funds out within 60 days of the public comments

§ USDA will publish a series of at least 3 NOFAs (notice of fund availability), similar to NTIA

• The first NOFA should be published within the next 60-90 days
• Subsequent NOFAs will be published thereafter
• Each NOFA will have the amount of funds that they are making available at that time
• Each NOFA will have the applicant, the area, the project eligibility requirements, an explanation of the whole application process, the time frame applicants will need to submit an application
• Each NOFA will also contain the scoring criteria and the reporting requirements if funding is awarded

From the Acting Senior Legal Advisor to Michael Copps: Scott Deutchman

§ Will seek input from the private and public sector, consumers, government agencies

§ Will be looking at a cross section of issues including health care, education, cyber security, energy, etc

§ Will be reporting on the progress of the programs

§ The chairman of the FCC will provide Congress with a report on a rural broadband strategy by May 22, 2009

• A public notice seeking comment was released on March 10, 2009: http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DA-09-561A1.doc
  • · Comments are due March 25^th
• The report from FCC to Congress should include recommendations on promoting interagency coordination of broadband policy and rural broadband initiatives

SEE ALSO: Broadband Stimulus Funding; Broadband Stimulus Funding, Part 3