Senate Bill S1279

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   1279
 
                        2023-2024 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             January 11, 2023
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by Sens. BAILEY, MAY, MYRIE -- read twice and ordered print-
   ed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee  on  Energy  and
   Telecommunications
 
 AN  ACT to require the public service commission to undertake a study on
   various approaches to increasing broadband access within  this  state;
   and providing for the repeal of such provisions upon expiration there-
   of
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. The public service commission shall, within thirty days  of
 the  effective date of this act, undertake a study on various approaches
 to increasing broadband access within this  state.  The  public  service
 commission  shall  study and make determinations on issues including but
 not limited to:  (i)  current  broadband  capacity  within  this  state,
 including  average  internet  access  speeds  statewide  and  in various
 regions of the state; (ii) regulatory and statutory barriers to  improv-
 ing  broadband  speeds; (iii) comparative state policies that have aided
 the increase in broadband speeds in other states, and whether such meas-
 ures would be similarly effective in this state; (iv) whether the use of
 public-private partnerships would aid in the goal of  increasing  broad-
 band speeds, and whether relevant businesses would be open to such part-
 nerships;  and (v) best practices recommended within the National Broad-
 band Plan issued by the Federal Communications  Commission  and  whether
 the  public  service commission can readily adopt and put into place any
 such recommendations.
   § 2. The public service commission may conduct any  hearings  or  take
 any  written testimony as it deems necessary in order to aid such study,
 and shall take all other steps necessary to provide a thorough  analysis
 of  all  issues  related to the provisions listed in section one of this
 act.
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD04410-01-3
 S. 1279                             2
              

 
   § 3. The public service commission shall issue  its  final  report  no
 later than one hundred eighty days after the effective date of this act.
 The commission shall issue its final report to the governor, the speaker
 of the assembly, the temporary president of the senate, and the chair of
 the  assembly committee on energy and the senate committee on energy and
 telecommunications, and post a copy of such report on its website.
   § 4. This act shall take effect immediately and shall expire one  year
 after the day on which this act shall have become a law.