Governor de Jongh has sent the 29th Legislature a bill that would enable the territory to secure the federal funds needed to complete development of its high-speed Internet infrastructure. The legislation will empower the Virgin Islands Next Generation Network (viNGN), a corporate subsidiary of the Public Finance Authority, to oversee completion of the “middle mile” fiber network by June 2013. The critical infrastructure project, made possible through a public/private partnership, will deliver much faster Internet service than is currently available in the territory.

The governor's plan calls for the Virgin Islands government to issue a $42,500,000 bond as a 30 percent matching contribution to several federal grants made available through the Broadband Technology Opportunity Program of the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, both facets of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

The broadband initiative will bring high-speed Internet into homes, schools and businesses, a project the governor has described as “critical to the economic, education, and social development of the Virgin Islands.” The bill was submitted Feb. 24 to the 29th Legislature. “Faster, more reliable Internet service is essential for our schools, libraries, medical and health care providers, university campuses, research centers, and community centers, especially those located in or near public housing complexes which provide access to information and support services for those most in need of them,” the governor said.

He noted that right now many Virgin Islanders do not have any access to broadband Internet; the rest are under served. “The Virgin Islands currently has one of the poorest and most expensive communications network in the United States,” he wrote in a letter introducing the legislation to Senate President Ronald Russell. In that letter, the governor emphasized that in addition to business and education benefits, the broadband expansion is vital for public safety agencies, including the Virgin Islands Territorial Emergency Management Agency (VITEMA) operations center, the Police Department, the Fire Service, and the E-911 Public Safety Answering Point.

The proposed legislation establishes a partnership between the Public Finance Authority, and the Virgin Islands Water and Power Authority, allowing cross purchases of communications and power services between the two independent instrumentalities of the Virgin Islands government. It will enable the broadband initiative to use WAPA assets, such as conduits, utility poles and easement space in facilities—critical infrastructure and services with in-kind value of $15,500,000 that WAPA will contribute by the second quarter of 2011. The ability for cross purchases of communications and power services between the PFA and WAPA was integral to the approval of the federal grants.

The PFA applied for and received all four of the U.S. Commerce Department's grants to finance a portion of the territory's Broadband Expansion Project. The Virgin Islands is the only state or territory to receive all four grants, an achievement recognizing the territory's embrace of forming a truly comprehensive broadband development project. The proposed legislation also makes a necessary amendment to Virgin Islands law authorizing WAPA to construct, own and operate telecommunication equipment needed to implement the Broadband Expansion Project.

“Ultimately, this historic build-out of essential infrastructure development will enhance the desirability of the Virgin Islands as a business location, and enable students and businesses to do distance learning or working, accessing global consumer or financial markets,” the governor said, adding more affordable and widespread broadband service will foster economic growth, create jobs, expand educational opportunities for children and adults, enhance health care delivery and improve public safety.

Governor de Jongh convened the first board of directors meeting of the viNGN on Feb. 1 to guide the development process. He urged legislators to vote on the bill as soon as they can, noting in his letter to Senator Russell that “swift implementation for this legislation is of paramount importance to all in the Virgin Islands.”

The four major grants awarded in 2010 through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act total some $70 million to implement a core fiber ring network on all four islands, to renovate or establish computer centers, and to provide training for educational and economic development.