Sec. 6104. Access to broadband telecommunications services in rural areas
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Section 601 of the Rural Electrification Act of 1936 ( 7 U.S.C. 950bb ) is amended— in subsection (a), by striking loans and and inserting grants, loans, and ; in subsection (b), by striking paragraph
(3)and inserting the following: The term rural area means any area described in section 3002 of the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act. ; in subsection (c)— in the subsection heading, by striking and inserting Loans and ; Grants, loans, and in paragraph (1), by inserting make grants and after Secretary shall ; by striking paragraph
(2)and inserting the following: In making grants, loans, or loan guarantees under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall— establish not less than 2, and not more than 4, evaluation periods for each fiscal year to compare grant, loan, and loan guarantee applications and to prioritize grants, loans, and loan guarantees to all or part of rural communities that do not have residential broadband service that meets the minimum acceptable level of broadband service established under subsection (e); give the highest priority to applicants that offer to provide broadband service to the greatest proportion of unserved rural households or rural households that do not have residential broadband service that meets the minimum acceptable level of broadband service established under subsection (e), as— certified by the affected community, city, county, or designee; or demonstrated on— the broadband map of the affected State if the map contains address-level data; or the National Broadband Map if address-level data is unavailable; and provide equal consideration to all qualified applicants, including those that have not previously received grants, loans, or loan guarantees under paragraph (1). After giving priority to the applicants described in subparagraph (A), the Secretary shall then give priority to projects that serve rural communities— with a population of less than 20,000 permanent residents; experiencing outmigration; with a high percentage of low-income residents; and that are isolated from other significant population centers. ; and by adding at the end the following: To be eligible for a grant under this section, the project that is the subject of the grant shall be carried out in a rural area. Except as provided in subparagraph (D), the amount of any grant made under this section shall not exceed 50 percent of the development costs of the project for which the grant is provided. The Secretary shall establish the grant rate for each project in accordance with regulations issued by the Secretary that shall provide for a graduated scale of grant rates that establish higher rates for projects in communities that have— remote locations; low community populations; low income levels; developed the applications of the communities with the participation of combinations of stakeholders, including— State, local, and tribal governments; nonprofit institutions; institutions of higher education; private entities; and philanthropic organizations; and targeted funding to provide the minimum acceptable level of broadband service established under subsection
(e)in all or part of an unserved community that is below that minimum acceptable level of broadband service. The Secretary may make grants of up to 75 percent of the development costs of the project for which the grant is provided to an eligible entity if the Secretary determines that the project serves a remote or low income area that does not have access to broadband service from any provider of broadband service (including the applicant). ; in subsection (d)— in paragraph (1)(A)— in the matter preceding clause (i), by striking loan or and inserting grant, loan, or ; by striking clause
(i)and inserting the following: demonstrate the ability to furnish, improve in order to meet the minimum acceptable level of broadband service established under subsection (e), or extend broadband service to all or part of an unserved rural area or an area below the minimum acceptable level of broadband service established under subsection (e); ; in clause (ii), by striking a loan application and inserting an application ; and in clause (iii)— by striking the loan application and inserting the application ; and by striking proceeds from the loan made or guaranteed under this section are and inserting assistance under this section is ; in paragraph (2)— in subparagraph (A)— in the matter preceding clause (i)— by striking the proceeds of a loan made or guaranteed and inserting assistance ; and by striking for the loan or loan guarantee and inserting of the eligible entity ; in clause (i), by striking is offered broadband service by not more than 1 incumbent service provider and inserting are unserved or have service levels below the minimum acceptable level of broadband service established under subsection
(e); and in clause (ii), by striking 3 and inserting 2 ; by striking subparagraph
(B)and inserting the following: The Secretary may increase the household percentage requirement under subparagraph (A)(i) if— more than 25 percent of the costs of the project are funded by grants made under this section; or the proposed service territory includes 1 or more communities with a population in excess of 20,000. The Secretary may reduce the household percentage requirement under subparagraph (A)(i)— to not less than 15 percent, if the proposed service territory does not have a population in excess of 5,000 people; or to not less than 18 percent, if the proposed service territory does not have a population in excess of 7,500 people. ; and in subparagraph (C)— in the subparagraph heading, by striking and inserting 3 ; and 2 in clause (i), by inserting the minimum acceptable level of broadband service established under subsection
(e)in after service to ; in paragraph (3)— in subparagraph (A), by striking loan or and inserting grant, loan, or ; and in subparagraph (B), by adding at the end the following: Information submitted under this subparagraph shall be— certified by the affected community, city, county, or designee; and demonstrated on— the broadband map of the affected State if the map contains address-level data; or the National Broadband Map if address-level data is unavailable. ; in paragraph (4)— by striking Subject to paragraph (1), and inserting the following: Subject to paragraph
(1)and subparagraph (B), ; by striking loan or and inserting grant, loan, or ; and by adding at the end the following: The Secretary may carry out pilot programs in conjunction with interested entities described in subparagraph
(A)(which may be in partnership with other entities, as determined appropriate by the Secretary) to address areas that are unserved or have service levels below the minimum acceptable level of broadband service established under subsection (e). ; in paragraph (5)— in the matter preceding subparagraph (A), by striking loan or and inserting grant, loan, or ; and in subparagraph (C), by inserting , and proportion relative to the service territory, after estimated number ; in paragraph (6), by striking loan or and inserting grant, loan, or ; in paragraph (7), by striking a loan application and inserting an application ; and by adding at the end the following: The Secretary— shall require any entity receiving assistance under this section to submit quarterly, in a format specified by the Secretary, a report that describes— the use by the entity of the assistance, including new equipment and capacity enhancements that support high-speed broadband access for educational institutions, health care providers, and public safety service providers (including the estimated number of end users who are currently using or forecasted to use the new or upgraded infrastructure); and the progress towards fulfilling the objectives for which the assistance was granted, including— the number and location of residences and businesses that will receive new broadband service, existing network service improvements, and facility upgrades resulting from the Federal assistance; the speed of broadband service; the price of broadband service; any changes in broadband service adoption rates, including new subscribers generated from demand-side projects; and any other metrics the Secretary determines to be appropriate; shall maintain a fully searchable database, accessible on the Internet at no cost to the public, that contains, at a minimum— a list of each entity that has applied for assistance under this section; a description of each application, including the status of each application; for each entity receiving assistance under this section— the name of the entity; the type of assistance being received; the purpose for which the entity is receiving the assistance; and each quarterly report submitted under subparagraph (A); and such other information as is sufficient to allow the public to understand and monitor assistance provided under this section; shall, in addition to other authority under applicable law, establish written procedures for all broadband programs administered by the Secretary that, to the maximum extent practicable— recover funds from loan defaults; deobligate awards to grantees that demonstrate an insufficient level of performance (including failure to meet build-out requirements, service quality issues, or other metrics determined by the Secretary) or wasteful or fraudulent spending; and award those funds, on a competitive basis, to new or existing applicants consistent with this section; and consolidate and minimize overlap among the programs; with respect to an application for assistance under this section, shall— promptly post on the website of the Rural Utility Service— an announcement that identifies— each applicant; the amount and type of support requested by each applicant; and a list of the census block groups or proposed service territory, in a manner specified by the Secretary, that the applicant proposes to service; provide not less than 15 days for broadband service providers to voluntarily submit information about the broadband services that the providers offer in the groups or tracts listed under clause (i)(II) so that the Secretary may assess whether the applications submitted meet the eligibility requirements under this section; and if no broadband service provider submits information under clause (ii), consider the number of providers in the group or tract to be established by reference to— the most current National Broadband Map of the National Telecommunications and Information Administration; or any other data regarding the availability of broadband service that the Secretary may collect or obtain through reasonable efforts; and may establish additional reporting and information requirements for any recipient of any assistance under this section so as to ensure compliance with this section. ; in subsection (e)— by redesignating paragraph
(2)as paragraph (3); and by striking paragraph
(1)and inserting the following: Subject to paragraph (2), for purposes of this section, the minimum acceptable level of broadband service for a rural area shall be at least— a 4-Mbps downstream transmission capacity; and a 1-Mbps upstream transmission capacity. At least once every 2 years, the Secretary shall review, and may adjust, the minimum acceptable level of broadband service established under paragraph
(1)to ensure that high quality, cost-effective broadband service is provided to rural areas over time. In making an adjustment to the minimum acceptable level of broadband service under subparagraph (A), the Secretary may consider establishing different transmission rates for fixed broadband service and mobile broadband service. ; in subsection (f), by striking make a loan or loan guarantee and inserting provide assistance ; in subsection (g), by striking paragraph
(2)and inserting the following: In determining the term and conditions of a loan or loan guarantee, the Secretary may— consider whether the recipient would be serving an area that is unserved; and if the Secretary makes a determination in the affirmative under subparagraph (A), establish a limited initial deferral period or comparable terms necessary to achieve the financial feasibility and long-term sustainability of the project. ; in subsection (j)— in the matter preceding paragraph (1), by striking loan and loan guarantee ; in paragraph (1)— by inserting grants and after number of ; and by inserting , including any loan terms or conditions for which the Secretary provided additional assistance to unserved areas before the semicolon at the end; in paragraph (2)— in subparagraph (A), by striking loan ; and in subparagraph (B), by striking loans and and inserting grants, loans, and ; in paragraph (3), by striking loan ; in paragraph (5), by striking and at the end; in paragraph (6), by striking the period at the end and inserting ; and ; and by adding at the end the following: the overall progress towards fulfilling the goal of improving the quality of rural life by expanding rural broadband access, as demonstrated by metrics, including— the number of residences and businesses receiving new broadband services; network improvements, including facility upgrades and equipment purchases; average broadband speeds and prices on a local and statewide basis; any changes in broadband adoption rates; and any specific activities that increased high speed broadband access for educational institutions, health care providers. and public safety service providers. ; and by redesignating subsections
(k)and
(l)as subsections
(l)and (m), respectively; by inserting after subsection
(j)the following: As a condition of receiving a grant, loan, or loan guarantee under this section, a recipient of assistance shall provide to the Secretary address-level broadband buildout data that indicates the location of new broadband service that is being provided or upgraded within the service territory supported by the grant, loan, or loan guarantee— for purposes of inclusion in the semiannual updates to the National Broadband Map that is managed by the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (referred to in this subsection as the Administration ); and not later than 30 days after the earlier of— the date of completion of any project milestone established by the Secretary; or the date of completion of the project. Effective beginning on the date the Administration receives data described in paragraph (1), the Administration shall use only address-level broadband buildout data for the National Broadband Map. The Secretary shall submit to the Administration any correction to the National Broadband Map that is based on the actual level of broadband coverage within the rural area, including any requests for a correction from an elected or economic development official. Not later than 30 days after the date on which the Administration receives a correction submitted under subparagraph (A), the Administration shall incorporate the correction into the National Broadband Map. If the Secretary has submitted a correction to the Administration under subparagraph (A), but the National Broadband Map has not been updated to reflect the correct by the date on which the Secretary is making a grant or loan award decision under this section, the Secretary may use the correction submitted under that subparagraph for purposes of make the grant or loan award decision. ; subsection ( l ) (as redesignated by paragraph (9))— in paragraph (1)— by striking $25,000,000 and inserting $50,000,000 ; and by striking 2012 and inserting 2018 ; and in paragraph (2)(A)— in clause (i), by striking and at the end; in clause (ii), by striking the period at the end and inserting ; and ; and by adding at the end the following: set aside at least 1 percent to be used for— conducting oversight under this section; and implementing accountability measures and related activities authorized under this section. ; and in subsection
(m)(as redesignated by paragraph (9))— by striking loan or and inserting grant, loan, or ; and by striking 2012 and inserting 2018 .
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Sec. 6104
Access to broadband telecommunications services in rural areas
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