Amendment #691 to H5500

School Connectivity Grant Program

Mr. Vaughn of Wrentham moves to amend the bill by adding the following:-

SECTION XX. Chapter 71 of the General Laws is hereby amended by inserting after section 102 the following section:—

Section 103. (a) The Department of Elementary and Secondary Education shall establish a School Connectivity and Cellular Emergency Access Grant Program. The purpose of said program shall be to assist public school districts in upgrading internal cellular signal strength and emergency communication infrastructure within school buildings.

(b) Grants shall be awarded to school districts for costs associated with:

1.The installation of signal boosters, distributed antenna systems (DAS), or bi-directional amplifiers (BDA);

2.Infrastructure audits to identify "dead zones" within school facilities; and

3.The integration of cellular-based emergency alert systems that remain operational during primary network failures.

(c) Priority shall be given to districts that demonstrate a significant lack of reliable cellular coverage in high-occupancy areas such as cafeterias, gymnasiums, and basement-level classrooms.

Amendment to Item XXX:

"provided further, that not less than $2,500,000 shall be expended for the establishment and administration of a competitive grant program for school districts to upgrade internal cellular connectivity and emergency communication infrastructure as established in Section XX."