| Rural Broadband Enhancement
Act (Introduced in the House)
HR 2038 IH
107th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 2038
To amend the National
Telecommunications and Information Administration Organization Act to encourage
deployment of broadband service to rural America.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
May 25, 2001
Mr. STUPAK (for himself and
Mr. POMEROY) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee
on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committee on Agriculture,
for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case
for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of
the committee concerned
A BILL
To amend the National
Telecommunications and Information Administration Organization Act to encourage
deployment of broadband service to rural America.
Be it enacted by the
Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in
Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as
the `Rural Broadband Enhancement Act'.
SEC. 2. LOAN PROGRAM FOR DEPLOYMENT
OF BROADBAND SERVICE IN RURAL AREAS.
(a) IN GENERAL- Part C of
title I of the National Telecommunications and Information Administration
Organization Act (47 U.S.C. 901 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end
the following new section:
`SEC. 156. BROADBAND TELECOMMUNICATIONS
SERVICE.
`(a) PURPOSE- The purpose
of this section is to make loans and other extensions of credit to provide
funds for the costs of the construction, improvement, and acquisition of
facilities and equipment for the provision of broadband service in eligible
rural communities.
`(b) REQUIREMENT TO MAKE
LOANS AND OTHER EXTENSIONS OF CREDIT- The Rural Utilities Service of the
Department of Agriculture shall, in consultation with the NTIA, make loans
or other extensions of credit to eligible entities to provide funds for
the construction, improvement, or acquisition of facilities and equipment
(including consumer equipment) for the provision of broadband service in
eligible rural communities.
`(c) ELIGIBLE ENTITIES-
An entity eligible for a loan or other extension of credit under this section
is any non-Federal public or private entity, including an incorporated
or limited liability entity, cooperative, non-profit organization, or limited
dividend or mutual association, that submits a plan for a project meeting
the requirements of subsection (e).
`(1) IN GENERAL- For purposes
of this section, broadband service is any technology identified by the
Rural Utilities Service, in consultation with the NTIA, as having the capacity
to transmit data so as to enable a subscriber to such service to originate
and receive high-quality voice, data, graphics, or video.
`(2) MODIFICATION- The NTIA
shall, from time to time as advances in technology so warrant, review and
recommend modifications of rate-of-data transmission criteria for purposes
of the identification of technologies under paragraph (1).
`(e) PROJECT REQUIREMENTS-
`(1) IN GENERAL- A project
meeting the requirements of this subsection is any project determined to
have the capability--
`(A) to deliver broadband
service; and
`(B) to make access to broadband
service generally available throughout an eligible rural community.
`(2) ADDITIONAL CONSIDERATIONS-
For purposes of determining whether or not to make a loan or other extension
of credit for a project under this section, the following matters shall
also be taken into consideration:
`(A) The extent to which
the area to be served by the project is unserved or underserved by broadband
service.
`(B) The size of the area
to be served by the project.
`(C) The potential number
of subscribers to the broadband service available through the project.
`(3) TECHNOLOGICAL NEUTRALITY-
For purposes of determining whether or not to make a loan or other extension
of credit for a project under this section, the type of technology proposed
to be employed under the project may not be taken into consideration.
`(f) TERMS AND CONDITIONS-
A loan or other extension of credit under this section shall--
`(1) be made available in
accordance with the requirements of the Federal Credit Reform Act of 1990
(2 U.S.C. 661 et seq.);
`(2) bear interest at an
annual rate of not more than 2 percent per annum; and
`(3) have a term not to
exceed the useful life of the assets constructed, improved, or acquired
with the proceeds of the loan or extension of credit.
`(g) LIMITATION ON VALUE
OF LOANS AND CREDIT- The aggregate value of all loans and other extensions
of credit made under this section shall not exceed $3,000,000,000.
`(h) ELIGIBLE RURAL COMMUNITY
DEFINED- In this section, the term `eligible rural community' means any
incorporated or unincorporated place that--
`(1) has not more than 20,000
inhabitants, based on the most recent available population statistics of
the Bureau of the Census; and
`(2) is not located in an
area designated as a Metropolitan Area by the Office of Management and
Budget.
`(1) IN GENERAL- No loan
or other extension of credit may be made under this section after September
30, 2006.
`(2) CONSTRUCTION- Paragraph
(1) shall not affect the validity of any loan or extension of credit made
under this section before the date specified in that paragraph.'.
(b) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS-
There is hereby authorized to be appropriated for the Department of Commerce
such sums as may be necessary to cover the cost, as defined in section
502 of the Federal Credit Reform Act of 1990 (2 U.S.C. 661a), of loans
and other extensions of credit made under section 156 of the National Telecommunications
and Information Administration Organization Act, as added by subsection
(a).
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