In a reaction to Governor Gretchen Whitmer rejecting a similar House Bill, the Michigan State Senate has approved legislation to expand broadband access to underserved areas of the state.
Whitmer vetoed the House Bill claiming it did not provide enough coverage at high enough speeds. The Senate bill meets the speed requirements demanded by the governor in her veto explanation. The speed required is a minimum download speed of 25 megabits per second and upload speeds of at least 3.0 megabits per second.
The legislation is actually a tax bill that provides tax exemptions for entities that invest in broadband equipment to increase availability and speeds. The tax incentives are hoped to bring internet to the rural and urban areas that are lacking reliable service.
According to non-partisan state bill analysis, 94.5% of Michigan households already have the desired connectivity. Still, the need for reliable and fast internet service has affected 100% of the state as both work and school have been forced to go online for at least some of the time during the pandemic.
The bill has been presented to the Governor for approval.
Reporting for WGRT – Jennie McClelland
