Senate finance panel advances SB152 to expand broadband affordability program

The Senate Finance Committee advanced a committee substitute for SB152, a bill to sustain broadband repair and expansion funding and to create a state low-income telecommunications assistance program intended to replace lost federal benefits. Sponsor Senator Michael Padilla told the panel New Mexico has won “a $382,000,000 federal grant coming into New Mexico” and described the substitute as removing a sunset and leaving $18 million a year for repair and maintenance and $12.5 million a year for expansion while enabling the affordability fund to increase from $10 million to as much as $45 million in subsequent years.

Why it matters: Committee supporters said the program addresses affordability — which officials called the largest barrier to subscription — and would support education, telehealth and workforce participation across rural and tribal areas. Jeff Lopez, director of the Office of Broadband Access and Expansion, told the committee “the single largest barrier to households subscribing to broadband is affordability.” Industry and rural providers including the Greater Albuquerque Chamber of Commerce, New Mexico Exchange Carrier Group and Smith Bagley (Cellular One) testified in favor, urging a due pass recommendation.

What the substitute does: Committee testimony and the director’s walk-through described technical corrections in the substitute: removing language that unintentionally swept mobile services into a category requested to be struck, clarifying definitions of unserved and underserved areas to include fixed and mobile services, authorizing the Public Regulation Commission (PRC) to approve alternate mechanisms to determine household eligibility, and removing drafting artifacts and misplaced subsections.

Opposition and consumer protections: CTIA, the wireless industry trade association, told the committee it supported affordable connectivity but encouraged additional amendments to preserve the state’s existing regulatory structure and to cap fee pressure on wireless consumers; CTIA recommended a cap approach and asked the PRC’s role and fee methodology be clarified before final action. Senator Padilla and PRC/office staff said they had accepted some CTIA-requested language into the substitute and would continue stakeholder engagement.

Procedure and outcome: The committee debated and then placed the substitute before the body for consideration; senators on the record voted in favor and the chair announced a due-pass recommendation on the committee substitute for SB152. The transcript records individual senator votes and the chair’s announcement that the substitute passed the committee stage.

Next steps: With a committee due-pass recommendation, the substitute will be reported out of the Senate Finance Committee and proceed toward the next stage in the legislative process.