US state looks to go wireless

27.02.2007
South Carolina State Rep. Dwight Loftis led the introduction last week of a resolution to create a commission that would create a statewide broadband , perhaps the first in the nation.

A Republican legislator from Greenville since 1996, Loftis joined House Speaker Bobby Harrell and 53 other representatives in introducing the resolution to create the South Carolina Wireless Technology and Communications Commission. He described the vision in an interview with Computerworld.

Many regions and cities are creating wireless networks for public uses. What is the motivation in South Carolina? The No. 1 motivation is economic development. In South Carolina, we have a healthy business corridor, along Interstate 85, as well as a healthy economy on the coast with the tourist trade. However, in between I-85 and the coast, there are other large areas, and a lot of it is rural, that have lost textile manufacturing. One problem of the economic conditions there is a lack of infrastructure, and this concept provides them with a virtual infrastructure.

Is funding for the commission envisioned, assuming the idea is approved by the legislature and the governor? We do have some funding for expenses, probably up to US$500,000, which is far more than is needed and only on an if-needed basis.

Who would sit on the commission? It would have 13 members, with two members of the House, two from the Senate and two appointed by each body from the private sector, with one more from the private sector appointed by the governor. There is also the secretary of Commerce and the chairman of the South Carolina Educational Television Endowment. Two members are nonvoting members and advisory: the state CIO and the executive director of the Office of Regulatory Staff.

How would the network operate? We've looked at some models in other areas, including what is being considered in Rhode Island. The most promising is a public/private partnership. South Carolina already has the tower facilities to cover the state. The state also has licenses for 60 frequencies in the 800Mhz band. With rural broadband, we could have distance learning whether it is [kindergarten or the elderly]. The state would create contracts with the private sector by leveraging assets with the vendor or vendors. We hope to leverage the state assets to entice the private sector to put in transmitters.