§ 8077 - Establishment of minimum technical service characteristic objectives - Vermont Statutes

§ 8077. Establishment of minimum technical service characteristic objectives

(a) The department of public service shall, as part of the state telecommunications plan prepared pursuant to section 202d of this title, identify minimum technical service characteristics which ought to be available as part of broadband services commonly sold to residential and small business users throughout the state. For the purposes of this chapter, "broadband" means high speed Internet access. The department shall consider the performance characteristics of broadband services needed to support current and emerging applications of broadband services. The department shall review and update the minimum characteristics established under this section no less than every three years starting in 2009. In the event such review is conducted separately from an update of the state telecommunications plan pursuant to subsection 202d(f) of this title, the department shall issue revised minimum characteristics as an amendment to the plan.

(b) The authority shall give priority in its activities toward projects which expand the availability of broadband services that meet the minimum technical services characteristics established by the state telecommunications plan.

(c) Until the department of public service adopts minimum service characteristics under subsection (a) of this section, the authority shall give priority to the expansion of broadband services which deploy equipment capable of a data transmission rate of not less than three megabits per second and offer a service plan with a data transmission rate of not less than 1.5 megabits per second in at least one direction to unserved areas. (Added 2007, No. 79, § 1, eff. June 9, 2007; 2009, No. 54, § 51, eff. June 1, 2009.)