To: Board of Supervisors
From: Supervisor Estelle Fennell
Agenda Section: Consent
SUBJECT:
title
Letter of Support to the California Public Utility Commission for Supplemental Funding to the Karuk Tribe for their Broadband Middle Mile and Last Mile Application (Supervisor Estelle Fennell)
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RECOMMENDATION(S):
Recommendation
That the Board of Supervisors:
1. Authorize the Board Chair to sign a letter of support for the $10,820,150 request from the California Advanced Service Fund (CASF) Infrastructure Account for the Karuk Tribe to complete the Klamath River Rural Broadband Initiative (KRRBI) Project in Humboldt County.
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SOURCE OF FUNDING:
California Advanced Service Fund (CASF)
DISCUSSION:
This funding request is needed to supplement the previously approved 2013 CASF funding amount of $6,602,422 to deploy high-speed broadband services to 616 unserved households and numerous anchor institutions on the Karuk and Yurok homelands and to extend a middle-mile fiber optic route to a robust interconnection point. The additional funding enables the Karuk Tribe to cover costs associated with: (1) extending the middle-mile infrastructure to an interconnection point in McKinleyville (adding approximately 21.8 miles to the previously approved route of 82.3 miles); (2) providing the project with the appropriate level of management, permitting, engineering and environmental review; and (3) increased labor costs from changes to prevailing wage laws that were not in effect when the original grant was approved in 2013.
The Board also supports the request for a waiver from the program rules governing reimbursements for projects. The reimbursement procedures pursuant to CASF Infrastructure Account rules, based on increments of 25 percent of project costs, is modified to allow for reimbursements on accumulated billings of $1,000,000, in order to provide necessary cash flow for successful completion of the KRRBI Project.
FINANCIAL IMPACT:
N/A
STRATEGI...
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