Bill Text: HI SR66 | 2023 | Regular Session | Introduced

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Bill Title: Requesting The Hawaii Broadband And Digital Equity Office To Increase Access To Wi-fi In Public Parks Throughout The State.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2023-03-15 - Referred to LBT. [SR66 Detail]

Download: Hawaii-2023-SR66-Introduced.html

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THE SENATE	S.R. NO.	66
THIRTY-SECOND LEGISLATURE, 2023
STATE OF HAWAII

SENATE RESOLUTION

 

 

requesting the hawaii broadband and digital equity office to increase access to wi-fi in public parks THROUGHOUT THE STATE.

 

 

 

     WHEREAS, access to the Internet is essential for life in the twenty-first century, which is increasingly reliant on digital technology; and

 

     WHEREAS, the coronavirus pandemic 2019 highlighted the importance of digital connectivity, as people were forced to depend on the Internet to connect with basic educational, occupational, and health care services; and

 

     WHEREAS, as the State exits the pandemic, many businesses and government organizations are continuing to expand options for accessing services remotely to increase efficiency and improve public health; and

 

     WHEREAS, rural and neighbor island communities often lack the same basic infrastructure that urban residents enjoy, making the development of systems for remotely accessing public services an urgent matter of social and economic equity; and

 

     WHEREAS, while federal programs have been offered to assist low-income families in paying for broadband technology, many working families remain unable to afford the increasing monthly cost of internet service because of Hawaii's high cost of living; and

 

     WHEREAS, numerous cities have begun installing Wi-Fi in public parks to support internet access for underserved communities, including the cities of Los Angeles, California and Indianapolis, Indiana; and

 

     WHEREAS, in 2016, the Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs designated the location of one hundred new Spectrum Wi-Fi hotspots at public parks, civic and community centers, and other gathering places as part of a court order approving the transfer of Oceanic Time Warner Cable to Charter Communications; and

 

     WHEREAS, the State has identified strengthening digital equity as a strategic imperative in the development of a modern economy for local residents and future generations; now, therefore,

 

     BE IT RESOLVED by the Senate of the Thirty-second Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2023, that the Hawaii Broadband and Digital Equity Office is requested to increase access to Wi-Fi in public parks throughout the State; and

 

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Resolution be transmitted to the Governor, Lieutenant Governor, State Broadband Coordinator, and Mayor of the City and County of Honolulu, and Mayors of the Counties of Hawaii, Maui, and Kauai.

 

 

 

	OFFERED BY:	_____________________________

Report Title: 

Broadband and Digital Equity Office; Wi-Fi; Public Parks