Anonymous
By the County of Santa Barbara
The internet is a critical part of everyday life. Yet one in five Californians, including many across Santa Barbara County do not have access to affordable, reliable broadband service, devices, and the skills to use them. Going without a reliable broadband connection can affect the ability to land a better job, provide a better education to the next generation or fully access medical care. The gap between those with broadband connections and those without is known as the “digital divide.” The California State Digital Equity Plan aims to close the digital divide.
Over the next few months, the California Department of Technology will be leveraging a federal planning grant to develop a state Digital Equity Plan. When completed, the plan has the ability to deliver hundreds of millions of dollars in federal funding to California and ensure our residents have affordable, high-speed internet access, as well as the skills and tools needed to participate in the digital economy.
To produce a Digital Equity Plan that works for all Californians, we need our community members to take the California Digital Equity Survey by June 30, 2023. The survey results will help determine how much federal funding will be allocated to California.
Our state needs to hear especially from those who struggle most with accessing the internet. This includes English language learners, veterans, immigrants, adults over 60 years old, people who live in rural areas, individuals with disabilities, minorities, and those living at or below the federal poverty level. The survey is available in 13 languages and is mobile friendly.
To take the survey, please click here: California State Digital Equity Plan: Public Survey
The discontinued free internet programs in the 1990s and 2000s has shown that the government is not a good ISP.
I took the survey, it took about 15 minutes.
Community owned ISP are highly desirable. Stop letting private companies profit off your ignorance.
https://www.techdirt.com/2020/06/23/fastest-isp-america-is-community-owned-operated/
https://www.connectcalifornia.com/internet-service/municipal-broadband-providers
https://www.ppic.org/blog/building-a-community-owned-broadband-network-in-imperial-county/
Counterpoint: Cox isn’t a good ISP either.
Bad news: Survey links to provide your feedback are flooded (an excellent demo of the need for this initiative). Good news: This direct link to the official CA PDF of the survey form is fast and working perfectly – https://monocounty.ca.gov/sites/default/files/fileattachments/county_administration/page/33024/pr_digitalequitysurvey_05.30.23_final.pdf
I was wrong: not a PDF. The pdf link is just a pdf that includes a link to the online survey. In short, you need an active and reliable internet connection to fill out the state’s survey about the availability, reliability and affordability of your net connection. If anyone has found a PDF someone can print to fill out and snail mail, please post it here. I’m sad to learn that CA doesn’t seem to have made this survey readily available so far, especially for those who most need solid net access. That said, as niK0777 the interactive online survey doesn’t take long to complete, and doing so will be helpful for CA getting and effectively applying federal funds for online infrastructure. Years ago there was a local group named SCTA that advocated for community internet here, and maybe some vestiges of it will re-activate to advocate for a non-profit alternative broadband service.