16.99(5)
(5) "Universal service fund" means the trust fund established under
s. 25.95.
16.99(6)
(6) "Video link" means a 2-way interactive video circuit.
16.99 History
History: 1997 a. 27;
1999 a. 9 ss.
949 to
952,
2320 to
2322;
2001 a. 16,
57,
104,
105;
2003 a. 33 ss.
238n,
238p,
1036d to
1050d; Stats. 2003 s. 16.99.
16.993
16.993
Technology for educational achievement in Wisconsin; departmental duties. The department shall do all of the following:
16.993(1)
(1) In cooperation with school districts, cooperative educational service agencies, the technical college system board, and the board of regents of the University of Wisconsin System, promote the efficient, cost-effective procurement, installation, and maintenance of educational technology by school districts, cooperative educational service agencies, technical college districts, and the University of Wisconsin System.
16.993(2)
(2) Identify the best methods of providing preservice and in-service training for teachers related to educational technology.
16.993(3)
(3) Enter into cooperative purchasing agreements under
s. 16.73 (1) under which participating school districts and cooperative educational service agencies may contract for their professional employees to receive training concerning the effective use of educational technology.
16.993(4)
(4) In cooperation with the board of regents of the University of Wisconsin System, the technical college system board, the department of public instruction and other entities, support the development of courses for the instruction of professional employees who are licensed by the state superintendent of public instruction concerning the effective use of educational technology.
16.993(5)
(5) Provide telecommunications access to educational agencies under the program established under
s. 16.997.
16.993(6)
(6) No later than October 1 of each even-numbered year, submit a biennial report concerning the department's activities under this subchapter to the governor, and to the appropriate standing committees of the legislature under
s. 13.172 (3).
16.993(7)
(7) Purchase educational technology materials, supplies, equipment, and contractual services for school districts, cooperative educational service agencies, technical college districts, and the board of regents of the University of Wisconsin System under
s. 16.72 (8), and establish standards and specifications for purchases of educational technology hardware and software by school districts, cooperative educational service agencies, technical college districts, and the board of regents of the University of Wisconsin System.
16.993(8)
(8) Purchase educational technology equipment for use by school districts, cooperative educational service agencies, and public educational institutions in this state and permit the districts, agencies, and institutions to purchase or lease the equipment, with an option to purchase the equipment at a later date. This subsection does not require the purchase or lease of any educational technology equipment from the department.
16.993(9)
(9) Administer, modify, or rescind any grant or award made by the Wisconsin Advanced Telecommunications Foundation to fund a project described in s.
14.28 (3) (a) 1. to
5., 1999 stats., to the extent allowed under a contract for making the grant or award.
16.993(10)
(10) Coordinate an annual conference on educational technology, hosted by the governor, for elementary, secondary, and postsecondary educators and establish a schedule of fees for attending the conference, which fees may not exceed the actual costs incurred in conducting the conference. All fees collected under this subsection shall be credited to the appropriation account under
s. 20.505 (4) (hc).
16.993 History
History: 1997 a. 27,
237;
1999 a. 9;
2001 a. 16,
104;
2003 a. 33 ss.
238pm,
1053d to
1063; Stats. 2003 s. 16.993.
16.995
16.995 Educational technology infrastructure financial assistance. 16.995(1)(1) Financial assistance authorized. The department may provide financial assistance under this section to school districts from the proceeds of public debt contracted under
s. 20.866 (2) (zc) and to public library boards from the proceeds of public debt contracted under
s. 20.866 (2) (zcm). Financial assistance under this section may be used only for the purpose of upgrading the electrical wiring of school and library buildings in existence on October 14, 1997, and installing and upgrading computer network wiring. The department may not provide any financial assistance under this section after July 26, 2003.
16.995(2)
(2) Financial assistance applications, terms, and conditions. The department shall establish application procedures for, and the terms and conditions of, financial assistance under this section. The department shall make a loan to a school district or public library board, or to a municipality on behalf of a public library board, in an amount equal to 50% of the total amount of financial assistance for which the department determines the school district or public library board is eligible and provide a grant to the school district or public library board for the remainder of the total. The terms and conditions of any financial assistance under this section may include the provision of professional building construction services under
s. 16.85 (15). The department shall determine the interest rate on loans under this section. The interest rate shall be as low as possible but shall be sufficient to fully pay all interest expenses incurred by the state in making the loans and to provide reserves that are reasonably expected to be required in the judgment of the department to ensure against losses arising from delinquency and default in the repayment of the loans. The term of a loan under this section may not exceed 10 years.
16.995(3)
(3) Repayment of loans. The department shall credit all moneys received from school districts for repayment of loans under this section to the appropriation account under
s. 20.505 (4) (ha). The department shall credit all moneys received from public library boards or from municipalities on behalf of public library boards for repayment of loans under this section to the appropriation account under
s. 20.505 (4) (hb).
16.995(3m)
(3m) Public debt repayment. To the extent that sufficient moneys are available in the appropriation account under
s. 20.505 (4) (mp) after payment of the administrative expenses specified in
s. 20.505 (4) (mp), the department shall use those available moneys to reimburse
s. 20.505 (4) (es) and
(et) for the payment of principal and interest costs incurred in financing educational technology infrastructure financial assistance under this section and to make full payment of the amounts determined by the building commission under
s. 13.488 (1) (m).
16.995(4)
(4) Funding for financial assistance. The department, subject to the limits of
s. 20.866 (2) (zc) and
(zcm), may request that the building commission contract public debt in accordance with
ch. 18 to fund financial assistance under this section.
16.995 History
History: 1997 a. 27,
41;
1999 a. 9;
2001 a. 16,
104;
2003 a. 33 ss.
238q,
1068d to
1072d; Stats. 2003 s. 16.995.
16.997
16.997
Educational telecommunications access program. 16.997(1)(1) Except as provided in
s. 196.218 (4t), the department shall promulgate rules establishing an educational telecommunications access program to provide educational agencies with access to data lines and video links.
16.997(2)
(2) The rules promulgated under
sub. (1) shall do all of the following:
16.997(2)(a)
(a) Allow an educational agency to make a request to the department for access to either one data line or one video link, except that any educational agency may request access to additional data lines if the agency shows to the satisfaction of the department that the additional data lines are more cost-effective than a single data line and except that a school district that operates more than one high school or a public library board that operates more than one library facility may request access to both a data line and a video link and access to more than one data line or video link.
16.997(2)(b)
(b) Establish eligibility requirements for an educational agency to participate in the program established under
sub. (1), including a requirement that a charter school sponsor use data lines and video links to benefit pupils attending the charter school and a requirement that Internet access to material that is harmful to children, as defined in
s. 948.11 (1) (b), is blocked on the computers of secured correctional facilities that are served by data links and video links subsidized under this section.
16.997(2)(c)
(c) Establish specifications for data lines and video links for which access is provided to an educational agency under the program established under
sub. (1).
16.997(2)(d)
(d) Require an educational agency to pay the department not more than $250 per month for each data line or video link that is provided to the educational agency under the program established under
sub. (1), except that the charge may not exceed $100 per month for each data line or video link that relies on a transport medium that operates at a speed of 1.544 megabits per second.
16.997(2)(f)
(f) Ensure that secured correctional facilities that receive access under this section to data lines and video links use them only for educational purposes.
16.997(2g)
(2g) An educational agency that is provided access to a data line under the program established under
sub. (1) may not do any of the following:
16.997(2g)(b)
(b) Request access to an additional data line for purposes of providing access to bandwidth to a political subdivision under a shared service agreement under
sub. (2r) (a).
16.997(2r)(a)(a) A public library board that is provided access to a data line under the program established under
sub. (1) may enter into a shared service agreement with a political subdivision that provides the political subdivision with access to any excess bandwidth on the data line that is not used by the public library board, except that a public library board may not sell, resell, or transfer in consideration for money or anything of value to a political subdivision access to any excess bandwidth. A shared service agreement under this paragraph is not valid unless the agreement allows the public library board to cancel the agreement at any time after providing notice to the political subdivision.
16.997(2r)(b)
(b) A political subdivision that obtains access to bandwidth under a shared service agreement under
par. (a) may not receive compensation for providing any other person with access to the bandwidth.
16.997(2r)(c)
(c) A public library board shall provide the department with written notice within 30 days after entering into or modifying a shared service agreement under
par. (a).
16.997(3)
(3) The department shall prepare an annual report on the status of providing data lines and video links that are requested under
sub. (2) (a) and the impact on the universal service fund of any payment under contracts under
s. 16.974.
16.997(4)
(4) If the federal communications commission promulgates or modifies rules that provide rate discounts for telecommunications services to educational agencies under
47 USC 254, the governor shall submit a report to the joint committee on finance that includes any recommended changes to statutes or rules with respect to funding the program established under
sub. (1).
16.997(6)(a)(a) From the appropriation under
s. 20.505 (4) (s) or
(tm), the department may award an annual grant to a school district or private school that had in effect on October 14, 1997, a contract for access to a data line or video link, as documented by the department. The department shall determine the amount of the grant, which shall be equal to the cost incurred by the state to provide telecommunications access to a school district or private school under a contract entered into under
s. 16.971 (13) or
(15) less the amount that the school district or private school would be paying under
sub. (2) (d) if the school district or private school were participating in the program established under
sub. (1), except that the amount may not be greater than the cost that a school district or private school incurs under the contract in effect on October 14, 1997. A school district or private school receiving a grant under this subsection is not eligible to participate in the program under
sub. (1). No grant may be awarded under this subsection after December 31, 2005.
16.997(6)(b)
(b) Notwithstanding
par. (a), the department may award a school district that operates more than one high school and that had in effect on October 14, 1997, a contract for access to more than one data line or video link an annual grant for each data line or video link serving each high school covered by that contract.
16.997 History
History: 1999 a. 9 ss.
2318,
2323 to
2329;
2001 a. 16;
2003 a. 33 ss.
238r,
1073d to
1088d; Stats. 2003 s. 16.997.
16.997 Annotation
The provision, under s. 196.218 (4r) [now ss. 44.70 to 44.73], of subsidized links to all schools public and private, including religious schools, on a neutral basis does not violate the establishment clause of the 1st amendment of the United States constitution. Unrestricted direct cash grants, under sub. (4r) (g) [now sub. (6)], to religious organizations do violate the establishment clause. Freedom From Religion Foundation, Inc. v. Bugher,
55 F. Supp. 2d 962 (1999).
