Grants to Rural Areas for Broadband Expansion

Always encouraging to see Broadband Availability expanding to rural areas!

Anyone Need $4.8B?
Source: www.esri.com/bbstat


The National Telecommunications and Information Administration and Rural Utilities Service have announced the availability of $4.8 billion in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act grants and loans for broadband initiatives, the second funding round for the agencies' stimulus act programs.

Ten (10) U.S. states and 1 U.S. territory will soon launch comprehensive broadband mapping and planning initiatives based on ESRI's geographic information system (GIS) technology. They will use BroadbandStat, an application developed by ESRI and Connected Nation, to organize and display broadband service and related data on the Internet.

The BroadbandStat application hosts interactive Web maps that show broadband coverage across U.S. states and incorporates other relevant data. It includes tools that use service provider and demographics data to identify unserved and underserved broadband areas with optimum potential for new broadband infrastructure development. Its Web capabilities enable a shared picture of broadband data and support transparency by giving the public access to the information.

The new state broadband mapping initiatives are supported by more than $20 million in State Broadband Data and Development Program grants recently announced by the Department of Commerce's National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA).

Funds were made available through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA). More than $7 billion in ARRA stimulus funds have been designated to help expand broadband access in unserved and underserved communities across the United States.

The NTIA grants were awarded to each state's designated project entity, which in many cases is Connected Nation, a nonprofit corporation and leader in promoting broadband expansion.

Awards include the following:
- Florida: $2.5 million, to Florida Department of Management Services
- Illinois: $1.8 million, to Partnership for a Connected Illinois
- Iowa: $2.2 million, to Connected Nation
- Michigan: $1.8 million, to Connected Nation
- Minnesota: $1.7 million, to Connected Nation
- Nevada: $1.4 million, to Connected Nation
- Ohio: $1.8 million, to Ohio Office of Information Technology
- Puerto Rico: $1.4 million, to Puerto Rico Office of the Chief Information Officer
- South Carolina: $1.7 million, to Connected Nation
- Tennessee: $1.8 million, to Connected Tennessee
- Texas: $2.5 million, to Connected Nation