SENATE RESOLUTION 19

(By Senators Blair, Unger, Beach, Sypolt, Palumbo, Plymale, Stollings, Hamilton, Takubo, Hardesty, Boso, Jeffries, and Maynard)

[Introduced January 23, 2019]

Designating January 23, 2019, as West Virginia for Broadband Day at the Capitol.

Whereas, The broadband industry strives to educate business leaders, economic development entities, and policymakers about the value of broadband and assist them in their efforts to enact effective decisions to expand Internet access to all West Virginians, thereby advancing the future prosperity and diversity of our beautiful Mountain State; and

Whereas, Broadband access means West Virginians have more access to communicate. Today, broadband connectivity access means accessing a wide range of services and products used to enhance people’s everyday lives and their daily communications; and

Whereas, Access to broadband connectivity enhances public safety, drives economic development, contributes to better living conditions through telehealth opportunities, and encourages educational, cultural, and entertainment opportunities; and

Whereas, West Virginia’s broadband connections are growing throughout the Mountain State. A 2016 study provided that over the course of 18 months, 134,000 households had new or improved broadband speeds thanks to statewide investments from providers. Moreover, 16,900 households received entirely new broadband opportunities, while an additional 117,000 households gained improved speeds; and

Whereas, Since the year 2011, access to a wired connection of at least 10 mbps has improved throughout West Virginia from 44.5 percent to 91.3 percent. And, the West Virginia Broadband Program has received almost $5 million in federal grant awards for West Virginia’s Broadband Initiative since 2010; and

Whereas, Projects relating to broadband infrastructure have received almost $130 million, accounting for 3.7 percent of all federal infrastructure grants in West Virginia; and

Whereas, Due to the rugged terrain of West Virginia, more and more people are connecting to broadband wirelessly. Small cell and 5G technology are part of that story; and

Whereas, The United States Chamber of Commerce has reported that small cell and 5G technology have the ability to be an economic game changer for the West Virginia and United States economies because of the benefits it will bring. That study reported that 5G and small cell networks have the capability to add 3,000,000 new jobs and $5 billion in overall GDP; and

Whereas, Fifty-five hundred West Virginians are directly employed with an annual payroll of $74 million; and

Whereas, The broadband industry is proud of the work that has been done and is being done across the state to further broadband access and find ways to address connectivity challenges; and

Whereas, The broadband industry encourages people to become more aware of the new technologies like small cell and 5G that will enable more West Virginia businesses and their employees to connect to a global economy; therefore, be it

Resolved by the Senate:

That the Senate hereby designates January 23, 2019, as West Virginia for Broadband Day at the Capitol; and, be it

Further Resolved, That the Clerk is hereby directed to forward a copy of this resolution to the appropriate representatives of Broadband Day at the Capitol.