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BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS <br />COUNTY OF KITTITAS <br />STATE OF'WASHINGTON <br />RESOLUTION <br />NO.:2023 M <br />A RESOLUTION ESTABLISHING POLICY STANDARDS FOR BROADBAND <br />INFRASTRUCTURE EXPANSION UNDER THE AUTHORITY OF KITTITAS <br />COUNTY <br />WHEREAS Kittitas County finds and declares that high-speed Internet access, referred <br />to generically as "broadband" and including both terrestrial and wireless <br />technologies, is essential2l"r Century infrastructure in a digital world and <br />global economy;and <br />WHEREAS Kittitas County acknowledges that more than 6500 county residences <br />without high-speed internet access at home currently exist in the county, <br />and 85%;o of low-income households are not connected to the internet with <br />broadband. <br />WHEREAS:Kittitas County recognizes gaps in broadband availability put our county's <br />government agencies, businesses, residents, non-profit organizations, and <br />other stakeholders at a disadvantage in pursuit of economic groMh <br />opportunities, education, healthcare, and other significant areas critical for <br />a successful quality of life; and <br />WHEREAS: Closing the Digital Divide is vital to the economic prosperity and quality <br />of life for residents in Kittitas County and throughout Washington; and <br />WHEREAS Kittitas County is committed to helping families and children be healthy, <br />productive, and self-sufficient and realizes that the use of broadband can <br />save both time and money for residents while helping them bridge the <br />economic divide; and <br />WHEREAS Kittitas County is committed to helping students obtain the highest quality <br />education possible incorporating digital literacy and understands that high- <br />speed internet connectivity and the availability of computing devices, both <br />at school and at home, are criticalteaching and learning tools for academic <br />achievement;and <br />WHEREAS: Exploring new technologies in areas of public safety and medicine made <br />available through existing broadband network expansion represent broader