A bill that would have created additional reporting requirements around the state’s Middle-Mile Broadband Initiative (MMBI) was vetoed by Gov. Gavin Newsom this week.
Assembly Bill 2708, authored by Assemblymember Jim Patterson, R-Fresno, would have set new expectations for the California Department of Technology (CDT) in its annual MMBI report to the Legislature.
This included “the total cost to complete the statewide open-access middle-mile broadband network, the total available funding for the statewide open-access middle-mile broadband network, and the projected completion date for the statewide open-access middle-mile broadband network.”
The initiative was launched in July 2021 with the signing of Senate Bill 156, which dedicated $3.25 billion to build a statewide open-access middle-mile broadband network.
In his veto message, Newsom cited redundancy and the creation of unnecessary work for the agency.
“The recently adopted 2024-25 Budget augmented funding for the MMBI and codified new and additional oversight and reporting requirements on CDT for the development and operation of the MMBI,” the governor wrote. “This bill is redundant to these efforts and creates an unnecessary ongoing workload for CDT without providing additional accountability or transparency to taxpayers.”
The governor signed a total of 58 other bills into law; he vetoed one other bill.
Governor Vetoes Broadband Reporting Requirements Bill
Citing unnecessary work and redundancy, Gov. Gavin Newsom vetoed a bill that would have put new annual reporting mandates around the state’s Middle-Mile Broadband Initiative.
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