Bill > HCR018

This concurrent resolution honors Vermont's communications union districts (CUDs) for their innovative approach to addressing rural broadband access. The resolution recognizes that reliable broadband is a critical utility essential for economic development, education, telehealth, remote work, and community strengthening. In 2015, Vermont established a legal framework for creating CUDs to solve the rural broadband crisis, with each district governed by a board representing member towns. Currently nine CUDs exist, which have successfully reduced the number of addresses without adequate internet service from 100,000 to 20,000 through creative financing methods including municipal revenue bonds, grants from the Vermont Community Broadband Fund, and public-private partnerships. The resolution specifically commends the leadership, staff, and volunteers of these CUDs for their extraordinary dedication in building fiber-optic infrastructure in rural and remote areas, and it directs the Secretary of State to send copies of the resolution to each CUD, the Vermont Community Development Board, and Governor Philip B. Scott as a formal recognition of their important work.

https://legislature.vermont.gov/bill/status/2026/H.C.R.18