La. Admin. Code tit. 4 § XXI-309
Current through Register Vol. 50, No. 9, September 20, 2024
Section XXI-309 - Project Area(s) and Locations to be ServedA. Every application shall include the following. 1. Mapping and Descriptions a. Data and information relating to areas proposed to be served is required in order to confirm that the project is serving eligible areas, to accurately score the application; and track progress and completion of the project if awarded. If documentation is deemed insufficient, the office reserves the right to request additional supporting documentation. If the proposed project would result in the provision of broadband service to areas that are not eligible for funding, those ineligible areas shall be identified in the application along with the eligible areas. An applicant is allowed to propose construction of broadband infrastructure to GUMBO-ineligible locations if the proposed project includes GUMBO-eligible locations, and the applicant reports this intention. An applicant may not use any GUMBO grant funding to build to these ineligible locations. Broadband infrastructure deployment to ineligible areas must result as a natural byproduct of broadband infrastructure deployment to eligible areas, and an applicant is not allowed to use any GUMBO grant funding for deployment to ineligible areas. Any potential grant awardee proposing to build broadband infrastructure to GUMBO-ineligible areas will be subjected to additional and rigorous auditing and control standards to ensure compliance with all applicable state and federal law. In no instance shall the number of ineligible locations proposed exceed 25 percent of the number of GUMBO-eligible locations contained within an application.b. Data and information included shall be relevant to the proposed project area and include the number of prospective broadband recipients that will be served and have access to broadband as a result of the project. For the proposed area to be served, the total cost per prospective broadband recipient must be provided, as well as the GUMBO cost per prospective broadband recipient.c. The office reserves the right to request any additional data and technical information the office deems necessary.d. Additionally, applicants may also submit applications for areas where transmission speeds are advertised as reliably meeting or exceeding 100:20 Mbps, if indisputable data is available to establish, to the satisfaction of the office, at its sole discretion, that delivered transmission speeds are reliably less than 100:20 Mbps. Such data should be statistically significant and fully support the application. In no instance should such data provide conflicting data points.e. Data Submission Requirements i. Address-Level Data-data shall be submitted at the address level. Such individual addresses shall be submitted in shapefile and table format, and shall be inclusive of longitudinal and latitudinal coordinates, specific to each individual address. Should such an address be assigned a specific geolocator number or other specific identifier by the federal government prior to submission to the office, relative to federal broadband availability mapping efforts, such identifier shall be included with each address. Such addresses shall also be denoted by individual points within the shapefile. Locations projected to be served must be digitally submitted in a GIS shapefile or kml file format and should be georeferenced to either the Louisiana North State Plane NAD83 (US Feet) coordinate system or the Louisiana South State Plane NAD83 (US Feet) coordinate system. Service to any prospective broadband recipient should be referenced. Data and information submitted through mapping files shall match the information and data entered into the application. Any discrepancy in the data and information entered into the application and submitted in any associated files, including mapping files, may be grounds for administrative rejection of the application, without the opportunity for remedy by the applicant. The Office may provide a common data dictionary prior to the opening of any grant application period.f. Additional Data Sets i. To assist in clarifying or providing for a greater level of detail regarding the areas and locations to be served by a proposed project, additional data sets may be provided within the application. These data sets should serve as supporting information to the required data listed above and should not be submitted as an alternative. This information will be evaluated as supporting information, only. Examples of additional data include, but are not limited to:
* Scrubbed data (no raw data) from citizen survey results or demand aggregation results, with speed tests. This data must identify the areas that have less than 100:20 service.
* Affidavits from citizens or other individuals certifying one or more of the following:
* they are not able to receive broadband service; or
* the only available service is cellular or satellite; or
* the only broadband service available by the existing providers is less than 100:20 service.
2. Assessment of the Current Level of Broadband Access in the Proposed Deployment Area a. The application requires an assessment of the current level of broadband access in the proposed deployment area. Within this section of the application, the applicant should describe what they believe to be the current level of service within the area and provide the data source or methodology used to capture this information. Raw data may be submitted as part of the assessment.3. Attestation of Project Area Eligibility a. Applicants are required to sign the statement of attestation to attest to the office that the project area identified within the application is eligible as of the close of the applicable application period, as defined by Louisiana Revised Statutes 51:2370.1 through 2370.16 and this Part, to the best of their knowledge. The attestation statement and signature shall be included as part of the application.La. Admin. Code tit. 4, § XXI-309
Promulgated by the Office of the Governor, Division of Administration, Office of Broadband Development and Connectivity, LR 47, Amended LR 47, Amended LR 481507 (6/1/2022), Amended LR 48, Amended LR 49AUTHORITY NOTE: Promulgated in accordance with R.S. 51:2370-2370.16.