USDA Announces Funding for Rural Broadband Projects

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced $85.8 million in funding to strengthen access to high speed broadband for rural America. "Broadband is fundamental to expanding economic opportunity and job creation in rural areas, and it is as vital to rural America's future today as electricity was when USDA began bringing power to rural America 80 years ago," said Sec Vilsack. "The investments USDA is making today will deliver broadband to rural communities that are currently without high-speed Internet service, or whose infrastructure needs to be upgraded. Improved connectivity means these communities can offer robust business services, expand access to health care and improve the quality of education in their schools, creating a sustainable and dynamic future those who live and work in rural America."

Telecommunications Loans:

• In Minnesota, a $12.63 million loan to Garden Valley Telephone will include fiber and electronics upgrades to improve the system for rural subscribers.
• South Carolina's FTC Communications will use a $12.38 million loan to upgrade their wireless telecommunications network to 4G/LTE (Long-Term Evolution)
• In Montana, Triangle Telephone Cooperative Association will use a $29.95 million loan to upgrade their system with fiber to supply greater bandwidth to increase speed and the quality of service for their rural Montana subscribers.
• In Wisconsin, LaValle Telephone Cooperative will use $7.61 million to deploy fiber and replace a switch to provide rural subscribers with improved services, including voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) and the flexibility to connect to Gigabit Ethernet and IP interfaces.

Community Connect Grants:

• In Alaska, the Arctic Slope Telephone Association Cooperative, Inc. will receive a $1.4 million grant to provide Point Hope subscribers with high-speed internet service and prepare the network for an undersea fiber connection currently planned for construction within the next two years.
• Minnesota's Northeast Service Cooperative (NESC) will receive two $3 million grants for two projects to provide broadband service to subscribers on the Fond du Lac Reservation. NESC will partner with the Fond du Lac Band of Superior Chippewa.
• Oklahoma's @Link Services will receive a grant of nearly $1.5 million to provide high-speed broadband to homes, businesses and critical community facilities in parts of Seminole County.
• Virginia's Scott County Telephone Cooperative will receive $2.1 million to build a broadband network with one gigabyte of bandwidth for 540 locations in Dickenson County. This project is expected to benefit Edwards Ridge and the surrounding area by promoting economic development through improved broadband access.