Five-County Vermont Organization Shares Details on Rural Broadband Funding

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Vermont has been funding a considerable portion of projects undertaken by communications union districts (CUDs) – local organizations representing at least two towns that will own the broadband infrastructure that they deploy. One of these CUDs is NEK (Northeast Kingdom) Broadband, which represents five counties. NEK Broadband expects to need between $165 million and $185 million to achieve the goal of ensuring high-speed broadband internet service is available to the most rural and underserved communities. To date, NEK has raised about $30 million and has initiated projects in several areas. Along with grants given by state-based organizations, NEK Broadband has also been leveraging federal funding from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA), the Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment (BEAD) program, and the US Department of Agriculture's ReConnect program. Overall NEK, along with other local operators, seek to connect Vermont to high-speed broadband by utilizing a balanced mix of local loans, municipal revenue bonds, and federal grant funding. 


Five-County Vermont Organization Shares Details on Rural Broadband Funding