Today Assemblyman Jim Wood chaired the first meeting of the “Select Committee on the Digital Divide in Rural California”. The committee, called for and organized by Wood earlier this year, aims to shine a spotlight on the lack of digital infrastructure in rural California.
Assemblyman Wood said, “In light of the recent fiber break leaving thousands of North Coast residents without communication services this committee is particularly timely. We need people to understand that our concerns are not about downloading movies and streaming TV shows. This is about kids having access to education, doctors having access to patient information, businesses having the resources they need to operate in a 21st century economy, and residents having access to emergency services in times of need.”
The 7 member bi-partisan committee convened at the Capitol on Tuesday morning for the first of several meetings before the end of the year. Representatives from AT&T, Frontier, government agencies, and numerous statewide telecommunications stakeholder groups testified and answered questions covering the resources available to rural communities, the laws and policies governing technology infrastructure, and possible solutions for improved delivery and maintenance of networks moving forward.
“These bi-partisan efforts are exactly what is needed to deliver results. I am very grateful to the participants today for delivering all of this information and for laying a solid foundation for this committee to move full steam ahead”, said Wood.
Next Committee hearing will be in Sacramento on December 15th.
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Elected in 2014, Assemblymember Jim Wood (D- Healdsburg) represents the 2nd Assembly District, which includes all of Del Norte, Trinity, Humboldt and Mendocino counties, plus northern and coastal Sonoma County, including the northern half of Santa Rosa.
CONTACT: Liz Snow, O) 916-319-2002