Louisiana Revised Statutes 51:2370.26 – Funding; match requirement
Terms Used In Louisiana Revised Statutes 51:2370.26
- Broadband service: means deployed mass-market retail internet access service with a minimum of one hundred megabits per second, or Mbps, download and at least twenty megabits per second upload transmission speeds. See Louisiana Revised Statutes 51:2370.22
- Local government: means a parish, municipality, or school board. See Louisiana Revised Statutes 51:2370.22
- Office: means the office of broadband development and connectivity within the division of administration. See Louisiana Revised Statutes 51:2370.22
- Partnership: A voluntary contract between two or more persons to pool some or all of their assets into a business, with the agreement that there will be a proportional sharing of profits and losses.
- Project: means an undertaking by an eligible grant recipient to construct and deploy infrastructure for the provision of broadband service. See Louisiana Revised Statutes 51:2370.22
A. A grant recipient is required to provide matching funds in accordance with state law and rules promulgated by the office. A grant recipient shall contribute from its own funds a minimum of twenty-five percent of the total estimated cost of the project, to be validated by the office, unless granted a written waiver by the office.
B.(1) A local government may contribute funding or in-kind contributions for use on an eligible project in accordance with the provisions of this Subpart. The contribution of funding by local government for an eligible project in accordance with the provisions of this Subpart shall not be considered a partnership for providing a covered service in accordance with the Local Government Fair Competition Act, La. Rev. Stat. 45:844.41 et seq.
(2) A local government shall not make or grant any undue or unreasonable preference or advantage to itself or to any provider of broadband service.
(3) A local government shall apply without discrimination as to itself and to any broadband service provider the local government’s ordinances, rules, and policies, including those relating to access to public right-of-way, permitting, and any bonding requirements.
Acts 2023, No. 383, §1.