Computer Technology Committee
Filed: 3/22/2007
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1 | AMENDMENT TO HOUSE BILL 754
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2 | AMENDMENT NO. ______. Amend House Bill 754 by replacing | ||||||
3 | everything after the enacting clause with the following:
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4 | "Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the High | ||||||
5 | Speed Internet Services and Information Technology Act. | ||||||
6 | Section 5. Findings. With respect to high speed Internet | ||||||
7 | services and information technology, the General Assembly | ||||||
8 | finds the following: | ||||||
9 | (1) The deployment and adoption of high speed Internet | ||||||
10 | services and information technology has resulted in | ||||||
11 | enhanced economic development and public safety for the | ||||||
12 | State's communities, improved health care and educational | ||||||
13 | opportunities, and a better quality of life for the State's | ||||||
14 | residents. | ||||||
15 | (2) Continued progress in the deployment and adoption | ||||||
16 | of high speed Internet services and information technology |
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1 | is vital to ensuring that this State remains competitive | ||||||
2 | and continues to create business and job growth. | ||||||
3 | (3) The State must encourage and support the | ||||||
4 | partnership of the public and private sectors in the | ||||||
5 | continued growth of high speed Internet and Information | ||||||
6 | technology for the State's residents and businesses. | ||||||
7 | (4) Local governmental entities play a role in
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8 | assessing the needs of their communities with respect to | ||||||
9 | high speed Internet services and information technology. | ||||||
10 | Section 10. Definitions. In this Act: | ||||||
11 | "Nonprofit organization" means an organization that (i) is | ||||||
12 | a nonprofit organization as described in Section 501(c)(3) of | ||||||
13 | the federal Internal Revenue Code of 1986 and exempt from tax | ||||||
14 | under Section 501(a) of that Code; (ii) has no part of the net | ||||||
15 | earnings of which inures to the benefit of any member, founder, | ||||||
16 | contributor, or individual; and (iii) has an established | ||||||
17 | competency and proven record of working with public and private | ||||||
18 | sectors to accomplish wide-scale deployment and adoption of | ||||||
19 | broadband and information technology in other states. | ||||||
20 | "Public-private partnership" means the Broadband | ||||||
21 | Deployment Council chaired by the Lieutenant Governor pursuant | ||||||
22 | to Executive Order 2005-9. | ||||||
23 | Section 15. Enlistment of a nonprofit organization. | ||||||
24 | (a) The Lieutenant Governor, with the advice of the |
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1 | Broadband Deployment Council, a public-private partnership | ||||||
2 | established under Executive Order 2005-9, shall enlist a | ||||||
3 | nonprofit corporation, as defined under Section 10 of this Act, | ||||||
4 | to implement a comprehensive, statewide high speed Internet | ||||||
5 | deployment strategy and adoption initiative with the purpose | ||||||
6 | of: | ||||||
7 | (1) ensuring that all State residents and businesses | ||||||
8 | have access to affordable and reliable high speed Internet | ||||||
9 | service; | ||||||
10 | (2) achieving improved technology literacy, increased | ||||||
11 | computer ownership, and home high speed Internet use among | ||||||
12 | State residents and businesses; | ||||||
13 | (3) establishing and empowering local grassroots | ||||||
14 | technology teams in each county to plan for improved | ||||||
15 | technology use across multiple community sectors; and | ||||||
16 | (4) establishing and sustaining an environment ripe | ||||||
17 | for high speed Internet access and technology investment | ||||||
18 | statewide. | ||||||
19 | (b) The public-private partnership shall include input and | ||||||
20 | cooperation among State and local agencies and bodies | ||||||
21 | representing economic development, local community | ||||||
22 | development, technology planning, education, and healthcare | ||||||
23 | and other relevant public and private entities. The private | ||||||
24 | entities within the partnership shall include providers of | ||||||
25 | broadband services, telecommunications carriers, technology | ||||||
26 | companies, telecommunications unions, community-based |
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1 | organizations, and other relevant private sector entities | ||||||
2 | necessary to achieve the objectives of this Act. | ||||||
3 | Section 20. Duties of the nonprofit organization. | ||||||
4 | (a) The high speed Internet deployment strategy and | ||||||
5 | adoption initiative to be performed by the nonprofit | ||||||
6 | organization shall include, but not be limited to, the | ||||||
7 | following actions: | ||||||
8 | (1) Create a geographic statewide inventory of high | ||||||
9 | speed Internet service and other relevant broadband and | ||||||
10 | information technology services. The inventory shall: | ||||||
11 | (A) identify geographic gaps in high speed | ||||||
12 | Internet service through a method of GIS mapping of | ||||||
13 | service availability and GIS analysis at the census | ||||||
14 | block level; and | ||||||
15 | (B) provide a baseline assessment of statewide | ||||||
16 | high speed Internet deployment in terms of percentage | ||||||
17 | of households with high speed Internet availability. | ||||||
18 | (2) Track and identify, through customer interviews | ||||||
19 | and surveys and other publicly available sources, | ||||||
20 | statewide residential and business adoption of high speed | ||||||
21 | Internet, computers, and related information technology | ||||||
22 | and any barriers to adoption. | ||||||
23 | (3) Build and facilitate in each county or designated | ||||||
24 | region a local technology planning team with members | ||||||
25 | representing a cross section of the community, including, |
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1 | but not limited to, representatives of business, K-12 | ||||||
2 | education, health care, libraries, higher education, | ||||||
3 | community-based organizations, local government, tourism, | ||||||
4 | parks and recreation, and agriculture. Each team shall | ||||||
5 | benchmark technology use across relevant community | ||||||
6 | sectors, set goals for improved technology use within each | ||||||
7 | sector, and develop a tactical business plan for achieving | ||||||
8 | its goals, with specific recommendations for online | ||||||
9 | application development and demand creation. | ||||||
10 | (4) Work collaboratively with high speed Internet | ||||||
11 | providers and technology companies across the State to | ||||||
12 | encourage deployment and use, especially in underserved | ||||||
13 | areas, through the use of local demand aggregation, mapping | ||||||
14 | analysis, and the creation of market intelligence to | ||||||
15 | improve the business case for providers to deploy. | ||||||
16 | (5) Establish programs to improve computer ownership | ||||||
17 | and Internet access for disenfranchised populations across | ||||||
18 | the State. | ||||||
19 | (b) The nonprofit organization may apply for federal grants | ||||||
20 | consistent with the objectives of this Act. | ||||||
21 | (c) The Lieutenant Governor shall use the funds in the High | ||||||
22 | Speed Internet Services and Information Technology Fund to | ||||||
23 | provide grants to the nonprofit organization enlisted under | ||||||
24 | this Act. | ||||||
25 | (d) The nonprofit organization shall be organized under, be | ||||||
26 | subject to, and have all the powers and duties of a |
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1 | non-for-profit corporation under the General Not for Profit | ||||||
2 | Corporation Act of 1986, including the power to obtain or to | ||||||
3 | raise funds other than the grants that the nonprofit | ||||||
4 | organization receives from the Lieutenant Governor under this | ||||||
5 | Act. | ||||||
6 | (e) The nonprofit organization and its Board of Directors | ||||||
7 | shall exist separately and independently from the Office of the | ||||||
8 | Lieutenant Governor and any other governmental entity, but | ||||||
9 | shall work cooperatively with the Office of the Lieutenant | ||||||
10 | Governor, the public-private partnership, and other public or | ||||||
11 | private entities that it deems appropriate in carrying out its | ||||||
12 | duties. | ||||||
13 | (f) Any information provided to the nonprofit organization | ||||||
14 | or any other entity pursuant to this Act shall, if designated | ||||||
15 | by the entity providing the information, be deemed | ||||||
16 | confidential, proprietary, and a trade secret and be treated as | ||||||
17 | such. | ||||||
18 | Section 25. Scope of authority. Nothing in this Act shall | ||||||
19 | be construed as giving the Lieutenant Governor, the Broadband | ||||||
20 | Development Council, the nonprofit organization, or other | ||||||
21 | entities any additional authority, regulatory or otherwise, | ||||||
22 | over providers of telecommunications, broadband, and | ||||||
23 | information technology.
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24 | Section 30. High Speed Internet Services and Information |
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1 | Technology Fund. | ||||||
2 | (a) There is created in the State treasury a special fund | ||||||
3 | to be known as the High Speed Internet Services and Information | ||||||
4 | Technology Fund, to be used, subject to appropriation, by the | ||||||
5 | Lieutenant Governor for purposes of providing grants to the | ||||||
6 | nonprofit organization enlisted under this Act. | ||||||
7 | (b) On June 30, 2007, all moneys in the Digital Divide | ||||||
8 | Elimination Infrastructure Fund which have not already been | ||||||
9 | distributed or ordered distributed by the Illinois Commerce | ||||||
10 | Commission shall be transferred to the High Speed Internet | ||||||
11 | Services and Information Technology Fund. Nothing contained in | ||||||
12 | this subsection (b) shall affect the validity of grants issued | ||||||
13 | under this Act before June 30, 2007. | ||||||
14 | Section 35. Repealer. This Act is repealed on January 1, | ||||||
15 | 2012. | ||||||
16 | Section 90. The State Finance Act is amended by adding | ||||||
17 | Section 5.675 as follows: | ||||||
18 | (30 ILCS 105/5.675 new) | ||||||
19 | Sec. 5.675. The High Speed Internet Services and | ||||||
20 | Information Technology Fund.
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21 | Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon | ||||||
22 | becoming law.".
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