Broadband Advisory Council
Board and Commission Details
Website
Contact Name
Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity
Contact Title
Matt Schmit
Function
(a) The Council shall: (1) Explore any and all ways to expand the availability to end-user customers of broadband services using available technologies, including , but not limited to, wireline, wireless, fixed wireless, and satellite applications; (2) identify barriers to broadband adoption among the residents and small businesses of Illinois; (3) research ways to eliminate barriers to adoption through measures such as: digital literacy programs; programs to assist older citizens in using broadband Internet access; programs to facilitate adoption by disabled citizens; and programs to encourage collaborative efforts among public universities, community colleges, libraries, public housing, and other institutions; (4) assess the availability of broadband for low-income households compared to the availability of broadband for other households; (5) explore the potential for increased use of broadband service for the purposes of education, career readiness, workforce preparation, and alternative career training; (6) explore the potential for increased use of broadband services to facilitate aging in place; (7) explore ways for encouraging State and municipal agencies, including public housing authorities, to expand the use of broadband services for the purpose of better serving the public, including audio and video streaming, voice-over Internet protocol, teleconferencing, and wireless networking; (8) cooperate and assist in the expansion of electronic instruction and distance education services; and (9) as the Federal Communications Commission updates the benchmark downstream data rates and upstream data rates, publish the revised data rates in the Illinois Register within 6 days after the federal update
Term
3 year terms for gubernatorial appointees
Senate Confirmation
No
Compensation
Expenses
Composition
25 Voting Members (1) The Director of Commerce and Economic Opportunity or his or her designee, who shall serve as chair of the Council; (2) The Secretary of Innovation and Technology or his or her designee; (3) The Director of Aging or his or her designee; (4) The Attorney General or his or her designee; (5) The Chairman of the Illinois Commerce Commission or his or her designee (6) One member appointed by the Director of Healthcare and Family Services to represent the needs of disabled citizens; (7) one member appointed by the Director of Commerce and Economic Opportunity and nominated by the president of a statewide organization representing electric cooperatives; (8) One member appointed by the Director of Commerce and Economic Opportunity and nominated by the executive director of a statewide organization representing municipalities; (9) One member appointed by the Director of Commerce and Economic Opportunity and nominated by the president of a statewide organization representing libraries; (10) One member appointed by the Director of Commerce and Economic Opportunity and nominated by the president of a statewide organization representing public housing authorities; (11) One member appointed by the Chair of the Illinois Community College Board; (12) One member appointed by the Chair of the Illinois Board of Higher Education; and (13) One member appointed by the Director of Commerce and Economic Opportunity and nominated by the president of the State's largest general farm organization; (14) One member appointed by the Director of Aging and nominated by an organization representing Illinois' senior population with a membership of at least 1,500.000' (15) Seven members to represent broadband providers for 3-year terms appointed by the Governor as follows: (a) One member representing an incumbent local exchange carrier that serves rural areas; (b) One member representing an incumbent local exchange carrier that serves urban areas; (c) One member representing wireless carriers that offer broadband Internet access (d) One member representing cable companies that serve Illinois; (e) One member representing a statewide rural broadband association; (f) One member representing a telecommunications carrier issued a certificate of public convenience and necessity or a certificate of service authority from the Illinois Commerce Commission, whose principal place of business is located in east central Illinois and who is engaged in providing broadband access in rural areas through the installation of broadband lines that connect telecommunications facilities to other telecommunications facilities or to end0users; and (g) One member representing satellite providers. In addition to the 21 voting members of the Council, the President of the Senate, the Minority Leader of the Senate, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, and the Minority Leader of the House of Representatives shall each appoint one non-voting member of the Council. four members to represent underrepresented and ethnically diverse communities for 3-year terms appointed by the Governor as follows: (A) one member from a community-based organization representing the interests of African-American or Black individuals; (B) one member from a community-based organization representing the interests of Hispanic or Latino individuals; (C) one member from a community-based organization representing the interests of Asian-American or Pacific Islander individuals; and (D) one member from a community-based organization representing the interests of ethnically diverse individuals.
Authority
220 ILCS 80/15
Member Names
| Name | Member Expiration | Member Since | Affiliation | Appointed By | Position | Title | County |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Shallenberger, Josh | 12/07/2018 | Director of DCEO | Voting Member | Nominated by the president of a statewide organization representing electric cooperatives | |||
| Sorenson, Lori | Secretary of Innovation and Technology | Voting Member | Chief Networking Officer for Illinois DoIT | ||||
| Vacant | Director of Aging | Voting Member | |||||
| Satter, Susan | Attorney General | Voting Member | Senior Attorney | ||||
| Zolnierik, Jim | Chairman of the Illinois Commerce Commission | Voting Member | Executive Director of the Illinois Commerce Commission | ||||
| Wilson, Dana | 08/29/2023 | Director of Healthcare and Family Services | Voting Member | Director of Healthcare and Family Services | |||
| Schmit, Matt | 08/07/2020 | Director of Commerce and Economic Opportunity | Chair, Voting Member | ||||
| Suttman, Curt | 09/14/2023 | Director of DCEO | Voting Member | Nominated by the executive director of a statewide organization representing municipalities | Stephenson | ||
| Slaughter, Anne | Director of DCEO | Voting Member | Nominated by the president of a statewide organization representing libraries | ||||
| Alfredson, Deb | Director of DCEO | Voting Member | Nominated by the president of a statewide organization representing public housing authorities | ||||
| Newell, Jeff | Chair of the Illinois Community College Board | Voting Member | Deputy Dr, Of Info Technology at ICCB | ||||
| Antonacci, David | Chair of the Illinois Board of Higher Education | Voting Member | Illinois Board of Higher Education | ||||
| Bodine, Bill | Director of DCEO | Voting Member | Nominated by the president of the State's largest general farm organization | ||||
| Gruenenfelder, Ryan | 04/29/2019 | Director of Aging | Voting Member | Nominated by an organization representing Illinois' senior population with a membership of at least 1,500.000 | |||
| VACANT | 08/15/2022 | Governor | Voting Member | Rep. of incumbent local exchange carrier that serves rural areas | |||
| Perdiou, Deno | 08/15/2025 | 08/15/2019 | Governor | Voting Member | Rep. of incumbent local exchange carrier that serves urban areas | Sangamon | |
| Carter, Melia | 08/15/2025 | 08/15/2019 | Governor | Voting Member | Rep. wireless carriers that offer broadband Internet access | Cook | |
| Fetters, Edward | 08/15/2025 | 08/04/2023 | Governor | Voting Member | Rep. cable companies that serve Illinois | Cook | |
| Holzmacher, Richard | 08/15/2022 | 08/15/2019 | Governor | Voting Member | Rep. statewide rural broadband association | ||
| Horn, Zachary | 08/15/2025 | 08/15/2019 | Governor | Voting Member | Rep. telecommunications carrier with business in east central Illinois | Moultrie | |
| Hill, Steven | 08/15/2022 | 08/15/2019 | Governor | Voting Member | Rep. satellite provider | ||
| Koehler, Sen. David | 01/08/2025 | 10/12/2021 | President of the Senate | Non-Voting Member | State Senator | ||
| Tracy, Sen. Jil | 10/16/2018 | Minority Leader of the Senate | Non-Voting Member | Senator | |||
| Ortiz, Rep. Aaron | 09/28/2021 | Speaker of the House | Non-Voting Member | State Representative | |||
| VACANT | Minority Leader of the House of Representatives | Non-Voting Member | State Representative | ||||
| VACANT | Governor | Member, community-based organization representing the interests of African-American or Black individuals | |||||
| Crozier, Caroline Sanchez | 10/05/2025 | 10/05/2022 | Governor | Member, one member from a community-based organization representing the interests of Hispanic or Latino individuals | |||
| Shah, Tejas | 09/09/2025 | 09/09/2022 | Governor | Member, one member from a community-based organization representing the interests of Asian-American or Pacific Islander individuals | |||
| Watson, Dominic | 09/22/2026 | 09/22/2023 | Governor | Member, one member from a community-based organization representing the interests of ethnically diverse individuals | Sangamon |