California to Spend $6 Billion to Bridge the Digital Divide Governor Gavin Newsom inked a massive spending bill that promises to bring faster internet to rural and low-income areas where schoolchildren struggled with remote learning during the pandemic. Governor Gavin Newsom signed the broadband infrastructure bill on Tuesday. (Screenshot via Courthouse News) (CN) — Tackling the state’s glaring digital divide, California Governor Gavin Newsom on Tuesday inked plans for a $6 billion overhaul of the state’s outdated broadband internet infrastructure. From an elementary school in one of California’s prime farming regions, Newsom lamented the state’s past failures to improve internet access and said the funding is intended to give children an equal chance to flourish in the digital age.