Section 24-37.5-904 - Digital inclusion grant program - income-eligible household reimbursement program - creation - award criteria - digital inclusion grant program fund - definition - reporting - repeal(1)(a) The digital inclusion grant program is created for the purpose of advancing the state's digital inclusion priorities, which priorities include: (I) Increasing broadband usage and access to broadband throughout the state;(II) Improving the reliability and availability of broadband on tribal lands;(III) Enhancing digital literacy; and(IV) Making access to broadband more affordable.(b) The Colorado broadband office shall implement the grant program. During the 2020-21 state fiscal year, the broadband office shall award: (I) Grants totaling up to twenty million dollars to one or more Indian tribes or nations for the purpose of deploying additional infrastructure on tribal lands and providing devices to Indian tribes or nations; and(II) Grants totaling up to ten million dollars to one or more providers of telehealth services; except that, if pursuant to subsection (1.5)(e) of this section, the broadband office does not implement the reimbursement program created in subsection (1.5) of this section, the broadband office shall award grants totaling up to fifteen million dollars to one or more providers of telehealth services.(c) In reviewing grant applications and awarding grants pursuant to this section, the broadband office is encouraged to consult with the Colorado office of economic development created in section 24-48.5-101 (1), the department of local affairs, the department of regulatory agencies, the department of transportation, and any other agencies, organizations, or individuals with broadband expertise.(d) A grant award recipient other than an Indian tribe or nation shall not use the grant money for the deployment of last-mile broadband infrastructure.(e) With respect to grants awarded pursuant to subsection (1)(b)(I) of this section and from money transferred to the digital inclusion grant program fund from the economic recovery and relief cash fund created in section 24-75-228 (2)(a), grants may only be awarded for broadband projects that, pursuant to treasury department interim regulations implementing the federal "American Rescue Plan Act of 2021", Pub.L. 117-2, provide broadband infrastructure that is designed to provide service to unserved or underserved households and businesses and that is designed to, upon completion: (I) Reliably meet or exceed symmetrical one hundred megabits per second download and upload speeds; or(II) In cases where it is not practicable, because of the excessive cost of the project or geography or topography of the area to be served by the project, provide service meeting the standards set forth in subsection (1)(e)(I) of this section that: (A) Reliably meets or exceeds one hundred megabits per second download speed and is between at least twenty megabits per second and one hundred megabits per second upload speed; and(B) Is scalable to a minimum of one hundred megabits per second download speed and one hundred megabits per second upload speed.(f) If the treasury department modifies its interim regulations implementing the federal "American Rescue Plan Act of 2021", Pub.L. 117-2, grants awarded pursuant to subsection (1)(e) of this section may only be awarded for broadband projects that comply with the modified federal regulations.(g) As used in subsection (1)(e) of this section, "unserved or underserved households and businesses" means one or more households or businesses that are not currently served by a wireline connection that reliably delivers at least twenty-five megabits per second downstream and three megabits per second upstream.(1.5)(a) On or before January 1, 2022, and subject to subsections (1.5)(d) and (1.5)(e) of this section, the broadband office shall contract with a nonprofit organization, preferably a nonprofit organization that has an existing platform or system for administering grant money, has experience in administering income-qualified utility assistance programs, and has experience in verifying income for statewide assistance programs, to develop a program, referred to in this subsection (1.5) as the "program", to make access to broadband service more affordable by reimbursing Colorado subscribers for costs incurred in accessing broadband service. In choosing a nonprofit organization with which to contract, the broadband office need not comply with the "Procurement Code", articles 101 to 112 of this title 24. Households that are income eligible to participate in the program are those households that: (I) Have a household income that does not exceed the higher of two hundred percent of the federal poverty level or eighty percent of the area median income; or(II) Are located in critically unserved areas of the state. A household is eligible for reimbursement under this subsection (1.5)(a)(II) only:(A) For broadband service provided by a satellite provider; and(B) With respect to the household's primary residence.(b) A household meeting the criteria set forth in subsection (1.5)(a) of this section may apply to the program annually in the form and manner determined by the broadband office to request reimbursement to cover up to one-half of the cost of broadband service, not to exceed a total reimbursement of six hundred dollars per year. A household that receives reimbursement pursuant to this subsection (1.5)(b) must demonstrate that it still meets the criteria set forth in subsection (1.5)(a) of this section to receive reimbursement in a subsequent year.(c) With regard to the nonprofit organization with which the broadband office contracts to administer the program, the broadband office shall direct that the nonprofit organization: (I) Use a portion of the money transmitted to the nonprofit organization for implementing the program to cover its direct and indirect costs in administering the program; and(II) Periodically report to the broadband office, in a form and manner determined by the broadband office, regarding its administration of the program.(d) The broadband office, in consultation with the nonprofit organization with which it contracts to implement the program, may explore alternative mechanisms for payment assistance for income-eligible households if the broadband office determines that a reimbursement program is not cost-effective. If the broadband office adopts an alternative mechanism for providing payment assistance under this subsection (1.5)(d), the broadband office shall include a description of the mechanism chosen as part of its reporting requirements under subsection (1.5)(g) of this section.(e) If the broadband office does not find a nonprofit organization with which to contract to implement the program, the program shall not be implemented and the broadband office shall use the money allocated for implementation of the program to award additional grants for telehealth services under subsection (1)(b)(II) of this section.(f)(I) The broadband office and the nonprofit with which it contracts may use up to five million dollars of the money transferred pursuant to subsection (1)(e) of this section to the digital inclusion grant program fund from the economic recovery and relief cash fund created in section 24-75-228 (2)(a) to implement the program, including the money required to cover the broadband office's and the nonprofit organization's administrative costs incurred in implementing the program. The broadband office and the nonprofit organization may use up to five hundred thousand dollars per year to cover their direct and indirect costs in administering the program.(II) All money used for implementation of the program must be obligated and spent in accordance with section 24-75-226 (4)(d).(g) On or before February 1, 2022, and on or before February 1 each year thereafter, the broadband office shall submit a written report to the governor and the general assembly's joint budget committee and joint technology committee regarding the broadband office's implementation of the program. Reports submitted pursuant to this subsection (1.5)(g) must include:(I) The number of households receiving assistance under the program in the previous calendar year; and(II) Recommendations on how to make the program more successful, including any legislative changes needed to improve the success of the program.(h) This subsection (1.5) is repealed, effective September 1, 2026.(2)(a) The digital inclusion grant program fund is hereby created in the state treasury and consists of money the state received from the federal coronavirus state fiscal recovery fund created in the federal "American Rescue Plan Act of 2021", Pub.L. 117-2; money transferred to the fund from the ARPA refinance state money cash fund pursuant to section 24-75-226.5; and any money that the general assembly may appropriate to the fund. Within three days after June 28, 2021, the state treasurer shall transfer thirty-five million dollars from the economic recovery and relief cash fund created in section 24-75-228 (2)(a) to the fund for use by the broadband office for the purpose of reviewing and awarding grants under the grant program. The money in the fund is subject to appropriation by the general assembly.(b) On June 1, 2023, the state treasurer shall transfer eight million dollars from the digital inclusion grant program fund to the revenue loss restoration cash fund created in section 24-75-227.(3)(a) On or before January 1, 2022, and notwithstanding section 24-1-136 (11)(a)(I), the Colorado broadband office shall submit a written report to the governor and the general assembly's joint budget committee and joint technology committee regarding the broadband office's implementation of the grant program. After submitting the initial report, the broadband office shall submit subsequent reports regarding the grant program to the same parties within six months after the end of any state fiscal year in which the broadband office awards one or more grants from the fund.(b) Reports submitted pursuant to this subsection (3) must include: (I) For each project awarded grant money under the grant program:(A) A description of the project;(B) A summary of the progress made on the project;(C) The estimated completion date for the project or, if already completed, the date of completion;(D) A map of the area to be served or already served by the project;(E) The percentage of customers who activated broadband through the broadband network provided by the project after a broadband connection was created under the project to their home or entity and the measurable speeds made available to them;(F) The type of technology deployed or used for broadband provided through the project; and(G) The number of households, community anchor institutions, municipalities, and counties served by the project;(II) The number of applicants to the grant program, the amounts of grant money requested by each applicant, the number of grants awarded under the grant program, and the amounts of grant money awarded to each applicant under the grant program; and(III) The amount of money expended from the fund versus the amount of money obligated but not yet expended from the fund.Amended by 2024 Ch. 429,§ 23, eff. 6/5/2024.Amended by 2023 Ch. 101,§ 1, eff. 4/20/2023.Amended by 2021 Ch. 357, § 2, eff. 6/29/2021.Added by 2021 Ch. 371, § 7, eff. 6/28/2021. For the legislative declaration in SB 21-060, see section 1 of chapter 357, Session Laws of Colorado 2021.