Source: USDA, 10/26/20
The Trump Administration today announced that the United States
Department of Agriculture (USDA) is investing $2.3 million to provide broadband
service in unserved and underserved rural areas in North Carolina. This
investment is part of the $550 million Congress allocated to the second round of the
ReConnect Program.“Access to high-speed internet is a cornerstone of prosperity, and unfortunately many of America’s rural communities lack access to this critical infrastructure,” USDA Deputy Under Secretary for Rural Development Bette Brand said. “Under the leadership of President Trump and Agriculture Secretary Perdue, USDA is committed to leveraging all available resources and being a strong partner to rural communities in deploying high-speed broadband e-Connectivity to the people, businesses and community facilities that don’t have access yet. Connecting America’s rural communities to this essential infrastructure is one of USDA’s top priorities, because we know that when rural America thrives, all of America thrives.” Yadkin Valley Telephone
Membership Corporation will use a $2.3 million ReConnect grant to deploy a
fiber-to-the-premises network. This network will connect 5,686 people, 67 farms
and 18 businesses to high-speed broadband internet in Davie, Yadkin and Iredell
counties in North Carolina. Background:In March 2018, Congress provided $600 million to USDA to expand broadband infrastructure and services in rural America. On Dec. 13, 2018, Secretary Perdue announced the rules of the program, called “ReConnect,” including how the loans and grants will be awarded to help build broadband infrastructure in rural America. On April 20, 2020, USDA
announced the Department has received 172 applications for $1.57 billion in
Round Two of the ReConnect Program. The second round will enable USDA to
implement innovative new solutions to rural connectivity by leveraging
financial options with our partners and continuing the success of the first
round of funding. The application window for Round Two closed on April 15,
2020. In Round One of the
ReConnect Program, USDA invested $698 million to bring high-speed broadband
e-Connectivity to approximately 167,000 households, 17,000 rural small
businesses and farms, and more than 500 health care centers, educational
facilities and critical community facilities located in 33 states. To learn
more about individual investments, read USDA’s Broadband ReConnect Program report (PDF, 4 MB). USDA received 11 Round
Two ReConnect Program applications that are eligible for the $100 million
Congress allocated to the program through the CARES Act. To learn more about
ReConnect Program eligibility, technical assistance and recent announcements,
visit www.usda.gov/reconnect. USDA Rural Development provides
loans and grants to help expand economic opportunities and create jobs in rural
areas. This assistance supports infrastructure improvements; business
development; housing; community facilities such as schools, public safety and
health care; and high-speed internet access in rural areas. For more
information, visit www.rd.usda.gov.
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