Utah Broadband Outreach Center

U.C.A. 63N-12-301

The Utah Broadband Outreach Center works with private sector broadband providers and other stakeholders to encourage the expansion of broadband networks in urban and rural Utah .

The center works to ensure residents and business have broadband access to participate in economic development, education, healthcare, transportation and other vital activities . The center facilitates these efforts by supporting private sector deployment, teaching best practices to local communities, providing guidance to policy makers and making broadband access data available to businesses and the public .

FY2016 Summary

Projects: At the end of FY 2015, the Broadband Outreach Center launched locate .utah .gov, which supports corporate recruitment and business expansion efforts by mapping commercial broadband, utility and transportation resources, and recreation opportunities . In FY 2016, the interactive tool earned an Achievement Award from the Center for Digital Government . Locate .utah .gov site displays information on where Enterprise Zone tax credits are available . The site allows developers and site selectors to evaluate potential locations and customize reports that summarize available infrastructure .

Broadband worked with businesses, cities, counties and private sector providers to refine data, address access issues and provide planning support. The center also evaluated changes to federal policies that would impact Utah’s broadband industry and provided comments on federal land permitting, federal funding resources for rural broadband providers, and broadband access for low-income housing, schools and libraries . Finally, the center redesigned and relaunched the Utah Broadband Map with improved functionality . Events: Director Kelleigh Cole presented on a White House Panel discussing federal land access issues and policies to enable rural expansion . The center convened an advisory council to collaborate on adoption and deployment . In FY 2016, approximately 31 broadband providers and related businesses, 13 state agencies, four federal agencies, five nonprofits/member organizations, and members of the state legislature participated in the council . The center held the 2015 Broadband Tech Summit to facilitate statewide discussions on economic development, school and library access, federal lands coordination, cybersecurity, network utilization, public safety and federal policy .

Outcomes

The Utah Broadband Outreach Center successfully helped businesses, communities and providers improve broadband services statewide . Akamai’s

First Quarter 2016 State of the Internet report cited Utah as the fastest average Internet connection speed in the West and No . 5 overall .

The following chart shows broadband speeds available to addressed properties in Utah . These services come primarily from private sector providers .

Because the FCC discontinued maintenance of the National Broadband Map, the center’s became the sole source for residents and businesses to publicly access broadband availability data . In September 2015, locate .utah . gov was awarded a Digital Government Achievement award in the government-to-business category from the Center for Digital Government .

Moving Forward

During FY2017, the Broadband Outreach Center seeks to: • Work with additional communities (particularly cities with rapidly expanding populations) to develop strategies to encourage private sector investment . • Work with county governments to include broadband-specific language in the resource management plans that were mandated through H .B 323 (2015 General Session) . • Conduct data submission rounds (fall and spring) to update residential and commercial broadband maps . • Work on a strategy to support corporate recruitment efforts to market

Utah’s infrastructure to businesses considering expansion and relocation . • Continue convening the Utah Broadband Advisory Council and Utah

Broadband Summit .

For additional information about the Utah Broadband Outreach Center, visit broadband .utah .gov or contact Program Director Kelleigh Cole at kcole@utah .gov or 801-538-8831 .