West Virginia Passes Middle-Mile Network Broadband Plan

The West Virginia Senate passed a bill to create a new state broadband middle-mile network and another to legalize fantasy football and other online fantasy games. The broadband bill creates a state-owned 2,000-plus-mile Broadband Middle Mile Infrastructure. Middle mile is a network of cables and towers, a kind of interstate highway, from which last-mile connections to homes and businesses are made.

This network will be fiber optic cable and open to any provider that wants to tie into it to provide last-mile service. The provider would pay fees reflecting construction and maintenance costs for the privilege of access. The state may purchase existing fiber, of at least 144 strands, to incorporate into the network. Funds for the project — grants, loans, bonds — will go into a special account created by the Water Development Authority and disbursed by the Broadband Enhancement Counsel. The authority will establish zones around the state and bid out construction jobs in each zone.