Public Act 0740 95TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HB0314 Enrolled LRB095 04839 HLH 24900 b

Public Act 095-0740

AN ACT concerning State government.

Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, represented in the General Assembly:

Section 5. The Eliminate the Digital Divide Law is amended by changing Sections 5-5 and 5-30 as follows:

(30 ILCS 780/5-5)

Sec. 5-5. Definitions; descriptions. As used in this Article:

"Community-based organization" means a private not-for-profit organization that is located in an Illinois community and that provides services to citizens within that community and the surrounding area.

"Senior citizen home" means an Illinois-based residential facility for people who are over the age of 65. The term "senior citizen home" includes, but is not limited to, convalescent homes, long-term care facilities, assistive living facilities, and nursing homes.

"Community technology centers" provide computer access and educational services using information technology. Community technology centers are diverse in the populations they serve and programs they offer, but similar in that they provide technology access to individuals, communities, and populations that typically would not otherwise have places to use computer and telecommunications technologies.

"Department" means the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity.

"National school lunch program" means a program administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and state agencies that provides free or reduced price lunches to economically disadvantaged children. A child whose family income is between 130% and 185% of applicable family size income levels contained in the nonfarm poverty guidelines prescribed by the Office of Management and Budget is eligible for a reduced price lunch. A child whose family income is 130% or less of applicable family size income levels contained in the nonfarm income poverty guidelines prescribed by the Office of Management and Budget is eligible for a free lunch.

"Telecommunications services" provided by telecommunications carriers include all commercially available telecommunications services in addition to all reasonable charges that are incurred by taking such services, such as state and federal taxes.

"Other special services" provided by telecommunications carriers include Internet access and installation and maintenance of internal connections in addition to all reasonable charges that are incurred by taking such services, such as state and federal taxes.

(Source: P.A. 94-793, eff. 5-19-06.)

(30 ILCS 780/5-30)

Sec. 5-30. Community Technology Center Grant Program.

(a) Subject to appropriation, the Department shall administer the Community Technology Center Grant Program under which the Department shall make grants in accordance with this Article for planning, establishment, administration, and expansion of Community Technology Centers and for assisting public hospitals, libraries, and park districts in eliminating the digital divide. The purposes of the grants shall include, but not be limited to, volunteer recruitment and management, training and instruction, infrastructure, and related goods and services, including case management, administration, personal information management, and outcome-tracking tools and software for the purposes of reporting to the Department and for enabling participation in digital government and consumer services programs, for Community Technology Centers and public hospitals, libraries, and park districts. No Community Technology Center may receive a grant of more than $75,000 under this Section in a particular fiscal year.

(b) Public hospitals, libraries, park districts, and State educational agencies, local educational agencies, institutions of higher education, senior citizen homes, and other public and private nonprofit or for-profit agencies and organizations are eligible to receive grants under this Program, provided that a local educational agency or public or private educational agency or organization must, in order to be eligible to receive grants under this Program, provide computer access and educational services using information technology to the public at one or more of its educational buildings or facilities at least 12 hours each week. A group of eligible entities is also eligible to receive a grant if the group follows the procedures for group applications in 34 CFR 75.127-129 of the Education Department General Administrative Regulations.

To be eligible to apply for a grant, a Community Technology Center, public hospital, library, or park district must serve a community in which not less than 40% of the students are eligible for a free or reduced price lunch under the national school lunch program or in which not less than 30% of the students are eligible for a free lunch under the national school lunch program; however, if funding is insufficient to approve all grant applications for a particular fiscal year, the Department may impose a higher minimum percentage threshold for that fiscal year. Determinations of communities and determinations of the percentage of students in a community who are eligible for a free or reduced price lunch under the national school lunch program shall be in accordance with rules adopted by the Department.

Any entities that have received a Community Technology Center grant under the federal Community Technology Centers Program are also eligible to apply for grants under this Program.

The Department shall provide assistance to Community Technology Centers in making those determinations for purposes of applying for grants.

The Department shall encourage Community Technology Centers to participate in public and private computer hardware equipment recycling initiatives that provide computers at reduced or no cost to low-income families, including programs authorized by the State Property Control Act. On an annual basis, the Department must provide the Director of Central Management Services with a list of Community Technology Centers that have applied to the Department for funding as potential recipients of surplus State-owned computer hardware equipment under programs authorized by the State Property Control Act.

(c) Grant applications shall be submitted to the Department on a schedule of one or more deadlines established by the Department by rule.

(d) The Department shall adopt rules setting forth the required form and contents of grant applications.

(e) There is created the Digital Divide Elimination Advisory Committee. The advisory committee shall consist of 7 members appointed one each by the Governor, the President of the Senate, the Senate Minority Leader, the Speaker of the House, and the House Minority Leader, and 2 appointed by the Director of Commerce and Economic Opportunity, one of whom shall be a representative of the telecommunications industry and one of whom shall represent community technology centers. The members of the advisory committee shall receive no compensation for their services as members of the advisory committee but may be reimbursed for their actual expenses incurred in serving on the advisory committee. The Digital Divide Elimination Advisory Committee shall advise the Department in establishing criteria and priorities for identifying recipients of grants under this Act. The advisory committee shall obtain advice from the technology industry regarding current technological standards. The advisory committee shall seek any available federal funding.

(f) There is created the Digital Divide Elimination Working Group. The Working Group shall consist of the Director of Commerce and Economic Opportunity, or his or her designee, the Director of Central Management Services, or his or her designee, and the Executive Director of the Illinois Commerce Commission, or his or her designee. The Director of Commerce and Economic Opportunity, or his or her designee, shall serve as chair of the Working Group. The Working Group shall consult with the members of the Digital Divide Elimination Advisory Committee and may consult with various groups including, but not limited to, telecommunications providers, telecommunications-related technology producers and service providers, community technology providers, community and consumer organizations, businesses and business organizations, and federal government agencies.

(g) Duties of the Digital Divide Elimination Working Group include all of the following:

(1) Undertaking a thorough review of grant programs available through the federal government, local agencies, telecommunications providers, and business and charitable entities for the purpose of identifying appropriate sources of revenues for the Digital Divide Elimination Fund and attempting to update available grants on a regular basis.

(2) Researching and cataloging programs designed to advance digital literacy and computer access that are available through the federal government, local agencies, telecommunications providers, and business and charitable entities and attempting to update available programs on a regular basis.

(3) Presenting the information compiled from items (1) and (2) to the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity, which shall serve as a single point of contact for applying for funding for the Digital Divide Elimination Fund and for distributing information to the public regarding all programs designed to advance digital literacy and computer access.

(Source: P.A. 94-734, eff. 4-28-06.)