Ritter Gets $44 Million More in American Rescue Plan Act Funding Via Arkansas Rural Connect Program

Regional operator Ritter Communications has been awarded eight grants totaling about $44 million to provide all-fiber broadband networks in Arkansas. The grants were awarded through the Arkansas Rural Connect (ARC) program, which is funded through the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA). The eight grants are in addition to other ARC grants previously made to Ritter, bringing the total ARC funding awarded to the provider to $67 million. Ritter will supplement the funding to “ensure ubiquitous network coverage” and make the final connections to homes and businesses. The areas will have access to Ritter’s RightFiber symmetrical 1 Gbps service. The networks can be upgraded to 10 Gbps as demand increases, according to the company.