Chairman Pai predicts broadband reverse auction will help West Virginia

Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai says he believes there will be enough companies to bid on broadband work in West Virginia at the end of Oct to bring new service to un-served areas. “I think these companies have a very strong interest in deploying very quickly and if we give them the money, we give them the tools, they will connect West Virginians as soon as they possibly can,” FCC Chairman Ajit Pai said. A FCC-sponsored reverse auction is scheduled to start Oct. 29 in connection with the agency’s Rural Digital Opportunity Fund (RDOF). There’s up to $20 billion available nationally. Those bidding on projects in West Virginia could receive up to $760 million, Chairman Pai said. “That’s actually 13th most in the country. So West Virginia is punching about its weight in the money it could get in the RDOF,” Pai said.