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Omnibus Telecommunications Reform Act of 2007

by: bankbane

Tue Apr 10, 2007 at 14:23:11 PM EDT


(Good question at the end. Anybody want to take that one on? - promoted by lipris)

With "Speaker" Brodsky on the front page, I wanted to draw attention to a bill he introduced with many co-sponsors to reform telecommunications law in New York. The summary of this bill (A3980) can be found at: http://assembly.stat...
bankbane :: Omnibus Telecommunications Reform Act of 2007
Essentially the bill creates the New York State Broadband Development Authority with the duty of monitoring and controlling broadband corporations, to prevent "redlining" and eliminate the digital divide. It allows statewide cable franchising, while purporting to protect public access and it establishes "net neutrality" language.

On first reading this looks like a fairly progressive bill; but I'd like to ask the telecommunications experts among us to weigh in with potential pitfalls. Is this the "Verizon Monopoly Protection Act" or is this the best way to protect and monitor access to broadband technology across the state?

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Hmmm. Sounds good. (4.00 / 1)
There's a structural hurdle for upstate in the patchy broadband service up there. Eliot campaigned on changing that and ensuring universal statewide broadband, so my guess would be that this is the legislative vehicle to achieve this.

Spitzer Budget (4.00 / 1)
set aside $5 million for rural and inner city broadband access. They will already be trying to do that through ESDC, so I'm not sure if Brodsky's effort is coordinated with Spitzer or not.  Brodsky did propose a less wide-sweeping bill in 2006.

[ Parent ]
Great concept... (4.00 / 2)
It is, interestingly enough, not just an upstate thing, either.  I was amazed to learn that cable/broadband access is unavailable in some very dense, urban areas-- for the same reason that there are no banks or grocery stores: residents there are poor (and may not buy services), and the companies have concerns about theft of services and/or vandalism. So, they invest in infrastructure elsewhere, where their business models tell them profits will be higher. 

Brodsky, of anyone, knows the dangers involved in setting up yet another NYS Authority.... but, they were, as they say, "Robert Moses's power tool" for accomplishing mega-scale public works.  Maybe this is a job for that kind of entity.  I wonder how this bill works in conjunction with federal telecommunications laws-- it seems that, over the past several years, municipalities have been losing clout with the cable companies, due to weaker federal laws...


It covers all bases (4.00 / 2)
This bill is VERY comprehensive. It makes sure all areas are covered and no area is "redlined" and left out of high speed deployment; it allows statewide video franchising while preserving Local rights (including revenues, services to municipalities, and more); it has important service quality provisions and other consumer and worker protections.  High speed broadband is no longer a luxury. It is a necessity like electricity and highways.  There must be public policy to make sure it gets built, and gets built right.

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