TX Govt Code § 490I.0105 (2021)
2021 Texas Statutes|Government Code|Title 4 - Executive Branch|Subtitle F - Commerce and Industrial Development|Chapter 490I - Broadband Development Office|Section 490I.0105. Broadband Development Map

Sec. 490I.0105.  BROADBAND DEVELOPMENT MAP.  (a)  The broadband development office shall create, update annually, and publish on the comptroller's Internet website a map classifying each designated area in this state as:(1)  an eligible area, if:(A)  fewer than 80 percent of the addresses in the designated area have access to broadband service; and(B)  the federal government has not awarded funding under a competitive process to support the deployment of broadband service to addresses in the designated area; or(2)  an ineligible area, if:(A)  80 percent or more of the addresses in the designated area have access to broadband service; or(B)  the federal government has awarded funding under a competitive process to support the deployment of broadband service to addresses in the designated area.(b)  The comptroller by rule may determine the scope of a designated area under Subsection (a).(c)  After creation of the initial map described in Subsection (a), the office may evaluate the usefulness of the standards for eligible and ineligible areas outlined in Subsection (a) and, if appropriate, make a recommendation to the legislature to revise the standards.(d)  The map required by Subsection (a) must display:(1)  the number of broadband service providers that serve each designated area;(2)  for each eligible area, an indication of whether the area has access to Internet service that is not broadband service, regardless of the technology used to provide the service; and(3)  each public school campus in this state with an indication of whether the public school campus has access to broadband service.(e)  The office must create, update, and publish the map in a manner consistent with the most current mapping methodology adopted by the Federal Communications Commission.(f)  Except as provided by Subsection (g), the office shall use information available from the Federal Communications Commission to create or update the map.(g)  If information from the Federal Communications Commission is not available or not sufficient for the office to create or update the map, the office may request the necessary information from a political subdivision or broadband service provider, and the subdivision or provider may report the information to the office.  The office may not require a subdivision or provider to report information in a format different from the format required by the most current mapping methodology adopted by the Federal Communications Commission.(h)  Information a broadband service provider reports to the office under Subsection (g) and information provided by the Federal Communications Commission, if not publicly available, is confidential and not subject to disclosure under Chapter 552.(i)  The office may contract with a private consultant or other appropriate person who is not associated or affiliated with a commercial broadband provider, including a local governmental entity, to provide technical or administrative assistance to the office for the purpose of creating or updating the map.(j)  The office may release information reported under Subsection (g) to a contractor providing services under Subsection (i).  The contractor shall:(1)  keep the information confidential; and(2)  return the information to the office on the earliest of the following dates:(A)  the date the contract expires;(B)  the date the contract is terminated; or(C)  the date the mapping project for which the contractor is providing services is complete.(k)  A person who contracts under Subsection (i) may not provide services for a broadband provider in this state before the second anniversary of the last day the contract is in effect.(l)  The office shall establish criteria for determining whether a designated area should be reclassified as an eligible area or an ineligible area.  The criteria must include an evaluation of Internet speed test data and information on end user addresses.  The criteria may also include community surveys regarding the reliability of Internet service, where available.(m)  A designated area that is classified as an ineligible area on account of the existence of federal funding to support broadband service deployment in the area may be reclassified as an eligible area if:(1)  funding from the federal government is forfeited or the recipient of the funding is disqualified from receiving the funding; and(2)  the designated area otherwise meets the qualifications of an eligible area.(n)  A broadband service provider or political subdivision may petition the office to reclassify a designated area on the map as an eligible area or ineligible area.  The office shall provide notice of the petition to each broadband service provider that provides broadband service to the designated area and post notice of the petition on the comptroller's Internet website.(o)  Not later than the 45th day after the date that a broadband provider receives notice under Subsection (n), the provider shall provide information to the office showing whether the designated area should or should not be reclassified.(p)  Not later than the 75th day after the date that a broadband provider receives notice under Subsection (n), the office shall determine whether to reclassify the designated area on the map and update the map as necessary.  A determination made by the office under this subsection is not a contested case for purposes of Chapter 2001.(q)  The office is not required to create, update, or publish a map under this section if the Federal Communications Commission produces a map that:(1)  enables the office to identify eligible and ineligible areas, as described by Subsection (a); and(2)  meets the requirements of Subsection (d).|Added by Acts 2021, 87th Leg., R.S., Ch. 625 (H.B. 5), Sec. 5, eff. June 15, 2021.|