[1st-mile-nm] Fwd: Senate compromise stimulus bill

[Richard Lowenberg]

Forwarded by DC-based colleague, Stephen Ronan.

Despite reducing the appropriations committee's 9 billion dollars for the
Broadband Technology Opportunities Program down to 7 billion dollars, the
compromise Senate bill, after the past few days of negotiations, continues to
include the following provisions unchanged: "not less than 200 million shall be
available for competitive grants for expanding public computer center capacity,
including at community colleges and public libraries; not less than
$250,000,000 shall be available for competitive grants for innovative programs
to encourage sustainable adoption of broadband service".

And the bill continues to provide that 50% of the funds be used to support
projects in rural communities , and continues to allocate the funds originally
to NTIA control, with the possibility of its transferring some of the funds to
USDA.

The bill also continues to include "up to" 350 million to be "expended pursuant
to Public Law 110-385... and for the purpose of developing and maintaining a
broadband inventory map."

I don't yet find any changes in the broadband tax credits as they had appeared
in S. 350 passed by the Senate Finance Committee under Senator Baucus'
chairmanship. Those provisions had seemed extraordinarily favorable to Verizon
relative to potential competitors: ...
http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/01/30/senate-looks-to-stimulate-verizon/

A .pdf of the compromise bill is available at:
http://big.assets.huffingtonpost.com/senatestimamendment.pdf
See pp 8, 11-12, 37-39, 48-57, 498-519



-- 
Richard Lowenberg
1st-Mile Institute
P.O. Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-989-9110;   505-603-5200 cell
rl at 1st-mile.com  www.1st-mile.com

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