Pennsylvania

The Pennsylvania Broadband Development Authority recently reversed its position on whether state law could cause problems for an unprecedented surge of federal investment for expanding access to high-speed internet. In the first draft of the state’s plan for administering more than $1 billion in federal funding, the Pennsylvania Broadband Development Authority said that to avoid a conflict with federal law it would waive an obscure state statute that restricts when local governments can build their own internet networks. But in the 

Engineering work has begun on a fiber-optic network expansion planned for Springettesbury Township (PA), which will bring a future-proof fiber-optic network to over 7,500 homes and businesses in the community. Glo Fiber, which provides fiber-to-the-home broadband service, utilizes a 9,300-mile network owned and operated by Shentel, also known as the Shenandoah Telecommunications Company. Mark Hodgkinson, the manager of Springettsbury Township, said the township welcomes GloFiber’s services to the community. 

The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania strives to achieve universal and equitable connectivity to support the state's social, economic, and quality of life outcomes. The Pennsylvania Broadband Development Authority (PBDA) has released Connected and Empowered: A Digital Equity Plan for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania to work towards digital inclusion for every resident of the Commonwealth. PBDA's draft plan is available for public comment until January 8, 2024.

The Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC) awarded nearly $54 million to 64 projects in 217 counties through its POWER (Partnerships for Opportunity and Workforce and Economic Revitalization) Initiative, which directs federal resources to economic diversification projects in Appalachian communities affected by job losses in coal mining, coal power plant operations, and coal-related supply chain industries.

Nearly 800 homes and businesses in Greene County (PA) will be able to get high-speed fiber internet for the first time, due to a $5.2 million public–private partnership with broadband provider Kinetic. The project, expected to start in mid-November and be completed in the spring, will provide internet speeds of up to 1 gigabit per second to eligible homes and business in parts of the townships of Aleppo, Freeport, Gilmore, Perry, Springhill and Wayne.

Verizon is hiring 1,800 additional technicians to support its East Coast broadband expansion efforts in New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Virginia, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Delaware and Washington (DC). Many of the targeted markets are rural and traditionally underserved communities, and so they qualify for funding from the American Rescue Plan Act.

One year has passed since Brightspeed became the fifth largest incumbent local exchange carrier (ILEC) in the US, and it’s made some notable progress in its $2 billion multi-year fiber deployment. Most of Brightspeed’s footprint is currently served with copper, but the operator is undertaking fiber builds in 17 states and officially launched fiber service on March 1, 2023.