CPUC Invests $12.7 Million in Broadband Infrastructure and Access for Unserved California Households
The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) last week approved $12,689,849.72 in grant funding to build high-speed broadband Internet infrastructure and access to unserved Californians. The awards, under the California Advanced Services Fund (CASF) broadband infrastructure grant program administered by the CPUC, will serve households in Lassen, Modoc, Kern, Riverside, San Bernardino and Ventura counties, and include affordable subscription options.
These grants make significant contributions toward meeting the goal of Assembly Bill 1665 to provide high-speed Internet service to 98 percent of Californians in each region in order to promote economic growth, job creation, and the substantial social benefits of advanced information and communications technologies. Collectively, the grants—primarily for fiberoptic infrastructure investments—will provide high-speed Internet service to 542 unserved households.
The grants were awarded to:
- Frontier Communications for the Phase I Northeast Project in the amount of $10,912,972.96 (Resolution T-17671)
- Frontier Communications for the Taft Cluster Project in the amount of $399,701.79 (Resolution T-17668)
- Charter Communications for the Country Squire Mobile Home Park, Highland Orchid Drive and Silver Wheel Ranch Mobile Home Park Projects in the amount of $1,377,174.97 (Resolution T-17680)
This decision follows the CPUC’s Dec. 5, 2019, decision that provided $12.1 million in grant funding to build high-speed broadband Internet infrastructure and access for households in Lassen, Plumas, and Santa Cruz counties.
The CASF is funded by a surcharge rate on revenues collected by telecommunications carriers from end-users for intrastate telecommunications services.
Details of the approved projects can be found at the www.cpuc.ca.gov/General.aspx?id=8246.
More information on the CASF program is available at www.cpuc.ca.gov/casf.
The CPUC regulates services and utilities, safeguards the environment, and assures Californians’ access to safe and reliable utility infrastructure and services. For more information on the CPUC, please visit www.cpuc.ca.gov.
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