Affordable Broadband for Nevada

Nevada's universal access mandate can only be achieved when the internet services offered to consumers are affordable and desirable, and when offering those services makes business sense for a provider. Affordability is a central tenant of the Nevada Governor’s Office of Science, Innovation and Technology's (OSIT) broadband deployment and digital adoption goals and strategies. If Nevadans cannot afford the monthly recurring costs of internet service, building new last-mile infrastructure is of little effect. The high cost of broadband service is a major adoption barrier for many Nevada residents, particularly members of covered populations. Low-income residents, who make up over 20 percent of Nevada households, are less likely than the general population to subscribe to a home broadband service. Last-mile internet service providers in Nevada told OSIT that the lack of available backhaul in many unserved and underserved markets and the high cost of backhaul where it is available were the largest impediments to offering and expanding affordable, reliable, scalable internet last-mile service to unserved and underserved regions of the state.