Nevada Names Connected Nation as Its Designated Eligible Entity for Broadband Mapping

Nevada Gov Jim Gibbons (R) has notified the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) that Connected Nation will serve as the state's designated eligible entity under the State Broadband Data and Development Grant Program. Connected Nation's designation coincides with Gov. Gibbons' creation of the Nevada Broadband Task Force, which is charged with identifying and removing barriers to broadband access and identifying opportunities for increased broadband applications and adoption in unserved and underserved areas of Nevada. As the designated eligible entity, Connected Nation will serve as a resource to the Nevada Broadband Task Force as the group begins to address barriers to broadband access. This relationship will include extensive broadband mapping, as well as support for other broadband stimulus grant applications that the state or broadband providers may choose to make. As a first step to support Nevada's broadband providers in making applications for broadband infrastructure grants during the first round of funding provided by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), Connected Nation -- using ArcGIS technology in partnership with ESRI -- has released a statewide map depicting rural and remote areas in Nevada that will be eligible for infrastructure grant funding.