At its April 28, 2021 meeting the ConnectMaine Board announced the opening of an application window for planning grants. Groups seeking financial support for planning activities aimed at development of local broadband infrastructure projects encouraged to apply. About $130,000 are available on a competitive basis. Deadline for submission of applications is May 27, 2021. Grant awards will be announced in late June. Full info is available in the grants section of the ConnectMaine website.
Wednesday, April 28, 2021
ConnectMaine Announces Planning Grant Applications Now Open
Broadband Redefined by ConnectMaine Authority
At its April 28, 2021 meeting the ConnectMaine Authority proposed a new definition of broadband internet service as 100 Mbps down and 100 Mbps up. This definition supersedes the previous 25 Mbps down and 3 Mbps up specification, which has been widely criticized as inadequate to meeting common residential and commercial needs of customers. This definition will guide ConnectMaine in evaluation of grant proposals for local expansion of service going forward. It is coupled with a definition of "un-served" that is to be applied to places where at least 50 Mbps down and 10 Mbps up are not available.
ConnectMaine will hold a hearing on this new definition within the next 30 days and also entertain written comments during that period. Final action on the change will take place at the Board's late May meeting.
Information on this matter should be up on the ConnectMaine website in the next couple days.
Monday, April 26, 2021
Bi-Partisan Bill to Further Universal Availability of Affordable Broadband in Maine Introduced in the Legislature
[The following is lightly edited from a news release published by Governor Mills' office on April 26, 2021.]
The legislation establishes the Maine Connectivity Authority to spearhead use of the large amount of Federal broadband funding coming to the state in the next several months, with the aim of expanding access to affordable broadband in all parts of the state.
Governor Janet Mills today unveiled legislation to establish the Maine Connectivity Authority, a new entity charged with achieving universal availability of high-speed broadband in Maine. The creation of the Authority comes as Maine is expected to receive as much as $129 million through the American Rescue Act Plan signed into law by President Biden last month that can be used for broadband expansion.
The Maine Connectivity Authority, which would be established under bipartisan legislation (LD 1484) sponsored by Senator Rick Bennett (R-Oxford) and co-sponsored by Representative Seth Berry (D-Bowdoinham) and the other Co-Chairs of the Legislature’s Broadband Caucus, would put Maine in the driver’s seat in expanding affordable broadband.
The Authority would use Maine’s Federal allocation of funding for broadband. Moreover, in a new approach distinct from but inclusive of the ConnectMaine Authority, it would be empowered to own physical broadband infrastructure, such as poles and wires, and hold equity in broadband projects. It would also be empowered to provide grants and loans and partner with the private sector and local communities to leverage investment and coordinate buildout of infrastructure. Taken together, the Authority positions Maine to take a more proactive approach to closing the digital divide in rural and hard-to-reach communities that will focus on meeting Maine’s current and future needs, rather than reacting in a piecemeal fashion with various private companies to construct a patchwork of infrastructure.
“High speed internet is as fundamental as electricity, heat, and water. It is no longer a luxury; it is a necessity. We need to have affordable, high-speed internet throughout our state, and with willpower we will get there,” said Governor Mills. “My Administration has made expanding access to broadband a priority, securing the first state-level investment in more than a decade and bringing high-speed internet access to more families and students across Maine. Taking this step to develop the Maine Connectivity Authority puts us on the best path forward to use the American Rescue Plan funds to expand internet access, especially in rural Maine, and to speed up our economic recovery from the pandemic.”
“This legislation has the promise of making every corner of Maine inviting and prosperous. Nobody will consider moving to a community without high-speed reliable internet. The very survival of many towns across our state is at stake with the decisions we make,” said Senator Bennett. “The pandemic has underscored the disparities of who gets to communicate and who doesn’t. Nobody should be left behind in the digital age. This includes small businesspeople trying to reach customers, students struggling to learn remotely, rural patients pursuing the state-of-the-art tele-health options, and older people trying to keep in touch with family during the pandemic. Their need is urgent, and the time is now for a bold, bipartisan initiative.”
“Fully funded and ably led, the Maine Connectivity Authority may one day be seen as a giant leap for Maine-kind, connecting us to jobs, to learning, to health care, and to one other,” said Representative Berry, who serves as co-chair of the Legislature’s Energy, Utilities and Technology Committee. “Thanks to President Biden and Congress, to Governor Mills and Senator Bennett, today we glimpse a more connected and prosperous future for Maine.”
The effort to create the Authority also comes at a time when the COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the need for accessible, affordable broadband. Last year, as the pandemic took hold, more Maine people began working from home, while businesses, educational institutions, health care providers and others began offering remote services. However, the lack of affordable and accessible broadband, especially in rural areas, limited the ability of Maine people to engage and adequately access services.
The Governor’s Economic Recovery Committee (ERC), charged with charting Maine’s economic recovery after the pandemic, urged the State to prioritize investment in affordable, high-speed broadband statewide to increase access to distance education, remote work, and telemedicine. Specifically, the ERC recommended convening public, private, and philanthropic stakeholders to map, prioritize, and complete program design for universal broadband in anticipation of new funding and advancing digital equity and inclusion by increasing access to broadband, computers, mobile devices, and expanded digital literacy training for historically underserved individuals and communities.
The Authority will pursue these goals. More specifically, under the legislation, the Authority is charged with ensuring:
- that effective, accessible connectivity be universally available in the state;
- that there be secure, affordable, reliable, competitive and sustainable forward-looking infrastructure that can meet future needs;
- and that all residents, businesses and institutions in Maine be able to take full advantage of the economic, health, educational, and other opportunities available through connectivity services.
The legislation creates a Board of Directors to govern the Authority, which will be comprised of seven members appointed to three-year terms. Four members will be appointed by the Governor, one by the Senate President, and by the Speaker of House. The Commissioner of the Department of Economic and Community Development will also hold a seat.
“High-speed broadband is crucial to Maine’s economic future. It will offer options for businesses to start or expand in rural areas,” said Heather Johnson, Commissioner of the Department of Economic and Community Development. “As we look to grow our workforce and bring new people and new jobs to our state, stable funding provided by the American Rescue Plan allows us to optimize a model that aligns to leverage the private sector’s construction and growth planning. This new authority provides a stable ownership of the process of building out the infrastructure needed.”
“The ERC recommended that the State focus on improving access to broadband,”said Joshua Broder, CEO of Tilson and Co-Chair of the Governor’s Economic Recovery Committee. “The pandemic has highlighted the struggle for people who don’t have functional broadband. This new Authority will focus on two of the key issues: infrastructure access and affordability. I applaud this bipartisan effort to support proactive, affordable, high-speed access for all Maine people.”
The legislation is scheduled for a public hearing tomorrow, Tuesday, April 27, 2021 before the Legislature’s Committee on Energy, Utilities and Technology.
The creation of the Authority is the next step forward in Governor Mills’ commitment to expanding access to affordable broadband in Maine, one of her top priorities. Last year, the Governor secured the approval of a $15 million bond proposal for broadband, the first new investment in internet expansion in more than a decade, and her Administration is also spearing a broadband mapping initiative to facilitate the expansion of broadband into areas with inadequate service.
Last year, the Governor also dedicated $5.6 million in CARES Act Coronavirus Relief Funds in partnership with private internet providers to buildout permanent internet infrastructure to more than 730 students across rural Maine. The initiative built on the Mills Administration’s previous work to secure mobile hotspots and learning devices for nearly 24,000 students across Maine after schools suspended in-classroom instruction and adopted remote learning earlier this year.
The original news release from Governor Mills' office
A copy of the proposed legislation
Thursday, April 22, 2021
Consolidated Announces Broadband Expansion Plans For Maine
Consolidated Communications today publicized its plans to extend fiber broadband to 11,500 Mainers starting in early 2022. This activity is underwritten by $31 million from the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund (RDOF) reverse auction held last fall. The firm has six years to complete the expansion work it proposed. Midcoast Maine communities included in the published list include Belfast and Winterport. No towns in Knox or Lincoln County were included. The story includes some general statements by the firm in regard to modernization of its network.
Bangor Daily April 22 2021 Article
For further info about RDOF awards in Maine, see my December 8, 2020 blog post
Searsport Broadband Committee Favors Publicly Owned Expansion Option
A March 31, 2021 article in the Village Soup Waldo Edition contains interesting notes on points to consider between a municipally owned broadband expansion and working to subsidize expansion by an existing provider (either Spectrum or Consolidated Communications in this case).
https://knox.villagesoup.com/p/the-race-is-on-to-gather-towns-grants-for-expanded-broadband/1888082
Further details, as of April 22:
Midcoast Towns Look at LCI Fiber Initiatives and Midcoast Internet Consortium Publicly Owned Approach
An April 15 article in the Village Soup Knox Edition reviews discussions in multiple midcoast towns. What is the best model for providing modern broadband to everyone in a community? Support for subsidizing the expansion of an existing provider's local network? A regional non-profit utility that would fund and own the network in its entirety? I single-town publicly owned broadband utility that contracts for provider services?
With the prospect of substantial federal and state broadband funding an imminent reality, the choices for unserved and under-served communities have taken on increased urgency. This article offers some very current and very local grist for that discussion.
https://knox.villagesoup.com/p/the-race-is-on-to-gather-towns-grants-for-expanded-broadband/1888082
Hope Joins with LCI in ConnectMaine Infrastructure Grant Application
The Village Soup Knox Edition reports that the Hope Select Board voted unanimously to support the Connect Maine Infrastructure Grant application of LCI Fiber. Reservations were expressed, however, with respect LCI's wish to require that broadband subscribers also pay for landline telephone service. Mention was also made of concern over the a mandatory subscription commitment on the part of customers.
Notwithstanding this endorsement, the Select Board also maintains interest in the poossibility of providing broadband to the community through the mechanism of the non-profit Midcoast Internet Consortium.
https://knox.villagesoup.com/p/hope-board-approves-lci-broadband-grant-effort/1888510
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