LANSING – Michigan legislative Republicans are looking to push priority on a dusty 2005 bill that would delete the Michigan Broadband Development Authority, saying that they are fed up with the authority?s lack of financial self-sufficiency.

While irritation over the program has been apparent from different parties since the authority’s creation under former Gov. John Engler, a November 2005 memo seems to have pushed legislative Republicans over the edge.

In it, the Michigan State Housing Development Authority states that an agreement has been reached to forgive a $10 million loan in exchange for all future fees and borrower loan payments made to the authority transferred to MSHDA. Earlier in the report, MSHDA executive director Michael DeVos states the agency did not meet its low-income housing goal by approximately 475 units.

In June 2005, Auditor General Thomas McTavish called on the authority to create a business plan to make the agency financially viable in its own right.

Prior to that in March, Rep. John Garfield (R-Rochester Hills) introduced legislation (HB 4563) deleting the authority, but it has languished in the House Energy and Technology Committee since then. Garfield could not be reached for comment.

On Friday, Matt Resch, spokesperson for House Speaker Craig DeRoche (R-Novi), said that dealing with the authority will be a priority in the near future. “(Mr. DeRoche) has been not happy with the way things have been going on for a while now.”

Senate Majority Leader Ken Sikkema (R-Wyoming) has said the authority is “one of the biggest flops in state government.”

A spokesperson for the authority could not be reached for comment, however, the administration still backs the need for the authority’s existence, a spokesperson for Gov. Jennifer Granholm said.

“They have made loans. The loans have to be serviced,” said Liz Boyd. “The broadband authority needs to fulfill its fiduciary responsibilities.”

Boyd said concerns over the authority have been addressed by lowering the number of staff and putting focus on providing $17 million toward rural broadband development.

Authority Director Bob Filka told the Senate Technology and Energy Committee on Thursday that the $17 million loan package would likely be the last series of loans from the authority. He expected once those loans were issued, the five employees of the authority would be further reduced.

Scott Stevenson, president of the Telecommunications Association of Michigan, said the organization has been and will continue to be supportive of cutting out the authority, adding, “This is money being thrown away. Hopefully, there is momentum (to get rid of the agency).”

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