UPDATE, September 12: Today, the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) approved $91 million for last-mile broadband projects. The grants will go to the City of Fort Bragg, the City of Ukiah, Comcast, Hankins Information Technology, Marin County, Round Valley Indian Tribe, and Surfnet.
Original Story Follows
The California Public Utilities Commission (PUC) has recommended seven entities for a total of $91 million in grants to cover some of the costs of constructing last mile broadband infrastructure. The commission may vote on whether to approve the awards next month.
Most of the funding is expected to go to cities and counties. But Comcast was recommended for two awards totaling approximately $14.1 million and local broadband provider Hankins Information Technology was recommended for a $10.4 million grant.
In addition, local provider Surfnet (not to be confused with the midwestern Surfnet) was the applicant for three awards totaling over $4.4 million. But funding would go to the California Broadband Alliance, a nonprofit organization working on broadband for California’s central coast.
If recommendations are approved, the alliance will own the network. Surfnet will be responsible for construction and will lease access to the network from the alliance. In addition, Surfnet will maintain the network for 10 years.
All potential awardees plan to deploy fiber broadband. A complete list of recommended California broadband awardees is as follows:
- City of Fort Bragg
- City of Ukiah
- Comcast
- County of Marin
- Hankins Information Technology
- Round Valley Indian Tribes
- Surfnet
Additional details can be found in this document.
Funding for the awards would come through the Last Mile Funding Account Grant Program. The program has a total budget of $2 billion, of which $435 million already has been awarded.
The state expects to cover 70% to 100% of the costs for all the California broadband projects other than one of the Comcast projects, for which the state will cover 50% of project costs. More than $4.6 billion has been requested through the program, according to the PUC.
Additional information about California broadband, including links to state funding resources, state specific Telecompetitor coverage and more, can be found on the Broadband Nation webpage for the state.
