California fights "preposterous" Trump admin demand to scrap state broadband laws
State tries to obtain broadband funds despite rejecting Trump admin condition.
California is accepting $1.42 billion in broadband grant funding from the Trump administration, but the state is not accepting the Trump administration's demand that it stop enforcing a net neutrality law and other telecom regulations.
California's stand against the Trump administration could result in multiple legal battles involving the state, federal government, and Internet providers seeking government funds. Although California told the federal government it would accept the money, it is reserving the right to challenge the condition imposed by the US. The state could delay or cancel plans to distribute broadband grants depending on how the process unfolds.
The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) decided last year that states must agree not to enforce any rate regulation or net neutrality rule on ISPs that receive money from the $42 billion Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program. California had to decide whether to accept its share of the fund despite that restriction. California is slated to spend $1.42 billion to deploy broadband to 270,571 locations, and may ultimately receive up to $1.86 billion from BEAD for a mix of deployment and non-deployment projects.
This story was first published by Ars Technica. Read the original report