Three years ago, California did something truly remarkable and forward looking by approving historic legislation that allocated a record $6 billion to bring equitable and affordable high-speed broadband service to all its citizens.
The multiyear investment aimed to close the digital divide by building the largest “middle-mile” and “last-mile” high-speed broadband internet project in the nation.
However, with the state facing a record $44.9 billion budget deficit this year, Gov. Gavin Newsom plans to cut $2 billion for the program he previously championed.
California lawmakers must not backtrack on that commitment. We must continue this investment and reconsider a state bond, as the Legislature did in 2021, to fully fund and complete the unfinished work.
I was invited to speak at the July 2021 bill-signing ceremony of Senate Bill 156 with Newsom at Traver Joint Elementary School in rural Tulare County. The landmark package included $3.25 billion to build an open-access, state-owned “middle-mile” network, $2 billion for “last-mile” broadband connections to homes and businesses, and $750 million for a Loan Loss Reserve Fund to help local governments and nonprofits secure financing for additional broadband infrastructure.
The California Department of Technology quickly went to work to map the 10,000 miles of broadband fiber infrastructure, known as the Statewide Middle Mile Network Map, after receiving public input from across the state.
But due to inflation and increasing construction costs, the original funding would only allow the state to finish 7,800 of the promised 10,000 miles. Last August, the Department of Technology placed the remaining miles in a “Phase 2” portion of the plan, subject to future funding. Digital equity organizations soon raised alarm over the plan that delayed investments in low-income communities such as portions of South Los Angeles, East Oakland, the Central and Coachella Valleys, and even in my own county of Monterey.
In response, the Newsom administration pledged support to fully fund all 10,000 miles and placed an additional $1.5 billion into his January proposed budget. Of that $1.5 billion, $250 million would be included in the next fiscal year’s budget and the remaining $1.25 billion in the 2025-26 budget. Many saw this move as the governor keeping his pledge to get all the promised work across the finish line.
However, when Newsom’s May revision of the budget was released, the $1.5 billion was completely removed, to the dismay of many across the state. Additional broadband funding was reduced for last-mile projects and the loan loss reserve, for a total $2 billion in reductions.
This is an unacceptable regression considering that over 2 million Californians remain unconnected to the internet. Even among those with access, 15.4 million Californians are still stuck in one-provider monopolies, many of whom are from lower-income, Latino, African American, tribal and rural communities.
As if that were not compelling enough, the federal Affordable Connectivity Program that provided a $30 to $75 monthly subsidy to 2.9 million Californians ended last month, making the mission of providing universal access to high-speed broadband only more daunting.
As a former state assemblymember who served during severe budget deficits after the Great Recession, I certainly understand that this year’s budget situation is a very difficult one. But California made a promise to expand broadband for all, and we must complete the full 10,000 miles as quickly as possible and not leave unconnected and underconnected communities waiting.
Luis A. Alejo is a Monterey county supervisor, former state assemblymember and a board member of the California Middle Mile Advisory Committee and the California State Association of Counties.