Bill > S2275

This bill establishes a special commission to study the state of telecommunications and broadband infrastructure in the Commonwealth, including various technologies like fiber-to-the-premises, cable, wireless, and landline. The commission's goal is to recommend a comprehensive strategy for managing, maintaining, improving, and expanding the telecommunications network to ensure reliable and competitive broadband access for residents, businesses, and competitive local exchange carriers (companies that offer telephone and internet services). The commission will review competition and pricing, consumer expectations, national and international approaches to communication capabilities, network reliability and interoperability, available technology speeds, access issues, and census data. Its members will include representatives from the Department of Telecommunications and Cable (who will chair the commission), the Massachusetts Communications Association, the Massachusetts Broadband Institute, the Massachusetts Municipal Association, the Massachusetts Technology Leadership Council, a telecommunications union, and appointees from the governor, including a telecommunications company executive, a telecommunications policy professor, and a competitive local exchange carrier executive. The commission is required to submit a report of its findings and any proposed legislative or regulatory changes by March 1, 2017.