New Mexico Office of Broadband Access and Expansion

Three rural and Tribal New Mexico communities are one step closer to high-speed internet access after the state awarded $300,000 in broadband planning grants to Jemez Springs, Doña Ana County, and Santo Domingo Pueblo. The grants were awarded through the New Mexico Office of Broadband Access and Expansion’s (OBAE) Grant Writing, Engineering, and Planning Program (GWEP).

Jemez Springs will use its grant to:

More than 170 rural students in the Española Public Schools now have access to high-speed internet following the completion of a state-funded broadband project in Rio Arriba County (NM).

New Mexico is deploying a corps of trained digital navigators to help thousands of residents in rural, low-income and older communities build the internet skills needed to access jobs, healthcare and education online. The New Mexico Office of Broadband Access and Expansion (OBAE) is providing $300,000 to the Department of Workforce Solutions (DWS) to develop and launch the New MexiCorps Digital Navigator program.

The New Mexico Office of Broadband Access and Expansion (OBAE) announced six grants to implement or expand public Wi-Fi service across New Mexico. Two cities, two counties, a university, and an internet service provider received awards through OBAE’s Community Connect Grant Program, designed to expand free Wi-Fi in public places, such as plazas, parks, and municipal buildings.  The six awardees receiving a total of $6.72 million in Community Connect grants include:

The New Mexico Office of Broadband Access and Expansion (OBAE) launched a statewide workforce program that will offer internationally recognized certifications to prepare New Mexicans for high-paying jobs in the growing broadband industry. The classes and workshops will begin this February and will be free to participants, paid for by the U.S. Congress and administered by OBAE. OBAE has contracted with Building Industry Consulting Service International (BICSI), which will provide lab equipment, workbooks, tools and all teaching equipment.

The New Mexico Office of Broadband Access and Expansion (OBAE) announced legislation to authorize $10 million in broadband funding to help low-income families afford broadband service. State Senate Bill 152 was introduced by Sen Majority Whip Michael Padilla (D-NM) and prepared by OBAE in consultation with the New Mexico Public Regulation Commission (PRC).

New Mexico state leaders gathered in Los Lunas (NM) to celebrate six broadband projects that will connect more than 4,000 homes, businesses, and other locations in Valencia and Socorro counties. The New Mexico Office of Broadband Access and Expansion (OBAE), Lt. Gov. Howie Morales, Resound Networks, and state and local officials marked the milestone at Valencia High School after OBAE awarded Resound Networks $12.8 million through six state grants. Those broadband projects will connect 4,093 homes, businesses, farms, and community anchor institutions.

The New Mexico Office of Broadband Access and Expansion (OBAE) announced that a landmark broadband infrastructure project in a remote subdivision in Chaves County (NM) is complete, providing high-speed internet to 52 rural homes in the Cherry Decker subdivision near the community of Hagerman. With the project completed, these residents can now sign up for high-speed internet service.

The New Mexico Office of Broadband Access and Expansion announced it has awarded a $1.5 million Student Connect grant to Transworld Network L.L.C.to provide high-speed internet to rural students in the Lordsburg Municipal Schools District. The award means that 395 unserved and underserved student households within the school district will get broadband through fixed wireless service. “These Student Connect funds will change student lives in the Lordsburg area,” said Neala Krueger, OBAE’s State Grants Program Coordinator.

New Mexico achieved the largest year-over-year increase in broadband speeds nationally, with 20.5% more residents now accessing high-speed internet of 100/20 Mbps or faster, according to Speedtest by Ookla data comparing the last six months of 2023 to the last half of 2024. The speed increases are happening across the state for several reasons: more homes and businesses are gaining access to faster internet through new development, fiber technology is being prioritized for new broadband locations offering better latency and better-quality highspeed internet, and more New Mexicans are unders