Bishop Paiute Tribe becomes first community lit on California’s middle‑mile broadband network

The Bishop Paiute Tribe celebrated becoming the first community connected to California’s new middle‑mile broadband network at a light‑up event in Bishop, officials said. Tribal leaders, state technology officials and Gov. Gavin Newsom spoke about the project’s history, scale and expected benefits for education, telehealth and economic opportunity.

Chairwoman Emma Williams said the tribe’s broadband effort began in 2009 and advanced through projects including Digital 395, fiber to tribal buildings in 2020 and awards from the Capital Projects Fund and Tribal Broadband Connectivity programs. "We are the first tribe in California to connect to California's middle mile broadband network," Williams said, and she thanked state leaders and tribal staff who helped make the connection possible. She said fiber‑to‑the‑home construction is planned to be completed next year and the tribe is on a path to operate a tribal ISP for homes by 2028.

State Chief Information Officer Leanna Bailey‑Crimmins called the tribe the network’s first customer and emphasized local control: the tribe "will be able to serve their own community on their own terms," she said, noting workforce development opportunities and partnerships between state and tribal entities.

Secretary Nick Maduro framed the connection as part of the administration’s Broadband for All initiative, saying the middle‑mile network will span more than 8,000 miles and that the state project represents a roughly $3.2 billion investment. Maduro said the network will bring high‑speed service to more than a million Californians who presently lack access and add competition that could lower prices for many more. He credited tribal partners, the California Department of Technology, the Public Utilities Commission and Caltrans for enabling the build.

Christina Snyder Ashjian, the governor’s Tribal Affairs Secretary, said the administration’s 2020 executive order and subsequent broadband action plan prioritized inclusion of tribal lands in both middle‑ and last‑mile planning. She and other state officials praised the Bishop Paiute Tribe’s leadership in adopting the infrastructure.

Phil Fowler, IT director for the tribe, thanked tribal council and the local IT team for implementing connections to tribal facilities and described the project as a continuation of tribal communications traditions. Matt Rantanen of Golden State Net, the third‑party administrator to the California Department of Technology, said state law SB 156 helped align the middle‑mile initiative and noted it was fitting that a tribe would be the first lit entity.

Younger community members also spoke: Levaya Littleleaf Williams, co‑president of the tribe’s youth council, described internet access as central to education, cultural preservation and staying connected with family across distances.

Event remarks repeatedly distinguished middle‑mile infrastructure — the backbone that carries bulk traffic long distances — from last‑mile service that connects individual homes. Officials said last‑mile partners, supported by the California Public Utilities Commission and local providers, will be required to complete customer connections. No formal votes or motions were recorded at the event.

Photographs and a ceremonial signing followed the remarks; speakers described the event as the start of broader deployments across rural and tribal California.