UPDATE New Mexico’s Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham signed House Bill 10: the Connect New Mexico Act into law, instituting a centralized fund to deliver broadband statewide over three years. The Los Alamos Daily Post reported that the bill creates the Connect New Mexico fund and the Connect New Mexico council, focusing on unserved and underserved areas, including rural communities, and coordinating with the state’s broadband office.
Inside Towers previously reported on the bill’s components, proposed by five female legislators. The bill’s sponsors worked for months to “determine what access, policy and legislative issues need to be addressed to achieve statewide broadband,” said sponsor Rep. Christine Chandler.
Another sponsor, Rep. Natalie Figueroa, added, “New Mexico has a serious internet access problem, and it’s widening the economic and education gaps in our communities. The Connect New Mexico Act creates a fund to draw down matching federal monies to implement a comprehensive plan to provide every corner of our state with access to the high-speed broadband that’s essential to life today.”
Other sponsors added that New Mexico’s urban communities are not suffering from the digital divide like rural areas. Uplifting residents out of poverty requires the tools (broadband) to remain connected and competitive in today’s society, said bill sponsor Rep. Susan Herrera. Access to affordable high-speed internet is another factor that the bill supports, said sponsor and Rep. Candie Sweetser.
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