A lack of access to broadband in rural areas has significantly affected American farmers, the economy, and sustainability. At least, that’s what a number of studies and reports have shown over the years.
It’s no surprise. Rural America knows all about poor cell service and bad internet connection. Now, U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack has announced $714 million in grants and loans that promise to connect thousands of rural residents, farmers, and business owners in 19 states to reliable, affordable, high-speed internet.
That number has increased from last year, when the U.S. Department of Agriculture announced that they’d be investing in plans to improve internet access for 31,000 rural residents and businesses in 11 states.
According to the USDA’s news release, connecting all communities across the United States to high-speed internet is a central part of President Joe Biden’s Investing in America agenda to rebuild our economy from the bottom up and middle out by rebuilding our nation’s infrastructure, which is driving over $470 billion in private sector manufacturing investments and creating good-paying jobs.
“High-speed internet is a key to prosperity for people who live and work in rural communities,” Vilsack said. “Thanks to President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, we can ensure that rural communities have access to the internet connectivity needed to continue to expand the economy from the bottom up and middle out and to make sure rural America remains a place of opportunity to live, work, and raise a family.”
Under the president’s Investing in America agenda, the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law includes $65 billion to connect everyone to high-speed internet through the Internet for All initiative. The USDA is connecting more people to high-speed internet in this fourth funding round of the ReConnect Program. Since the beginning of the Biden Administration, the Department has invested in 142 ReConnect projects that will bring high-speed internet access to 314,000 rural Americans.
What states are set to benefit?
The new investments are said to occur in Alaska, Arkansas, Arizona, California, Georgia, Idaho, Kansas, Kentucky, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, New Mexico, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Carolina, Tennessee, Utah, and Washington.
Some examples include:
In the South
- The Home Telephone Company receives a ReConnect Program grant to connect nearly 4,000 people, 49 businesses, 46 farms, and two educational facilities to high-speed internet in Berkeley County, South Carolina.
- The Decatur Telephone Company will connect 5,400 people, 257 farms, 74 businesses, and four educational facilities to high-speed internet in Benton County, Arkansas.
In the West
- The North-State Telephone Co. will deploy a fiber-to-the-premises network connecting 1,490 people, 64 businesses, and 43 farms in Wasco County, Oregon, to high-speed internet.
- The Cal-Ore Telephone Company will connect 757 people, 45 businesses, 14 farms, and four educational facilities to high-speed internet in Modoc and Siskiyou counties in California.
- Both companies will make monthly internet service affordable by participating in the Federal Communications Commission’s Affordable Connectivity Program.
In the Midwest
- Missouri’s Goodman Telephone Company Inc. will connect nearly 7,000 people, 206 farms, 140 businesses, and two educational facilities to high-speed internet in McDonald and Newton counties.
- The Craw-Kan Telephone Cooperative Inc. in Kansas will connect 4,189 people, 821 farms, 149 businesses, and three educational facilities to high-speed internet in Bourbon, Cherokee, Crawford, Labette, and Neosho counties.
To learn more about investment resources for rural areas, visit USDA’s Rural Development Site or contact the nearest USDA Rural Development state office.
