ROBERT L. EHRLICH, JR., Governor                            S.B. 487

(4) coordinate State government telecommunication systems and
services by reviewing requests by units of State government for telecommunication
equipment, systems, or services;

(5) advise units of State government about planning, acquisition, and
operation of telecommunication equipment, systems, or services; and

(6) provide radio frequency coordination for State and local governments
in accordance with regulations of the Federal Communications Commission.

(b) The Department [may] SHALL make arrangement for [a user] ALL USERS
other than a unit of State government to have access to and use of State
telecommunication equipment, systems, and [services and shall charge the user any
appropriate amount to cover the cost of installation, maintenance, and operation of
the telecommunication equipment, system, or service provided] SERVICES:

(1) OFFERING TO LOCAL GOVERNMENTS AND THEIR UNITS A PLATFORM
OF BACKBONE SERVICES ON A STANDARD SCHEDULE OF FLAT RATES, AND MAKING
SUPPLEMENTAL INTENSIVE HIGH BANDWIDTH SERVICES AVAILABLE TO THOSE
GOVERNMENTS AND UNITS AT ADDITIONAL COST; AND

(2) OFFERING BROADBAND SERVICES, INCLUDING SUPPLEMENTAL
INTENSIVE HIGH BANDWIDTH SERVICES, AVAILABLE TO OTHER USERS ACCORDING
TO AN APPROPRIATE SCHEDULE OF CHARGES OR USING ANY OTHER APPROPRIATE
METHOD TO RECOVER THE COSTS OF PROVIDING SERVICES TO THESE USERS.

3-705.

(a) The General Assembly declares that:

(1) it is the policy of the State to foster BROADBAND telecommunication
and computer networking [among State and local governments, their agencies, and
educational institutions in] THROUGHOUT the State;

(2) the current alignment of [interagency and educational]

telecommunication and computer networking in the State, based in part on the
arrangement of Local Access and Transport Areas (LATAs), does not serve all areas of
the State equally, but instead creates a disparity between rural and urban regions;

(3)     rates for the intrastate inter-LATA telephone communications
needed for effective integration of telecommunication and computer resources are
prohibitive for many smaller governments, agencies, and [institutions] OTHER
PERSONS;

(4)     there is a need to improve access, especially in rural areas, to
efficient telecommunication and computer network connections;

(5) IMPROVED ACCESS TO HIGH SPEED TELECOMMUNICATION AND
COMPUTER NETWORKING CONNECTIONS IN DESIGNATED GROWTH AREAS,
PARTICULARLY IN UNSERVED AND UNDERSERVED PARTS OF THE STATE, WILL
FOSTER ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT IN APPROPRIATE AREAS, FURTHERING THE GOAL
OF EQUITABLE DEVELOPMENT IN THE STATE BY:

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