American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA)

The latest broadband public-private partnership comes from Ziply, which will bring fiber broadband at speeds up to 50Gbps symmetrically to Camaro Island, Washington. The deployment will require an investment of almost half a million dollars, some of which will come from Ziply and some of which will come from Island County.

Governor Eric Holcomb (R-IN) announced an additional $81.5 million in the final round of the Next Level Connections Broadband Grant Program. The fourth round of the grant program leveraged 17 telecommunications providers and utility cooperatives contributing more than $135 million in matching funds, resulting in more than $216 million total investment for broadband.

A fair reading of Dr. John Horrigan’s work would start by adopting his insight that the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP) is part of a three-legged stool that during the pandemic helped increase broadband adoption and sustain it for low-income households.

Two entities—Maverix Broadband and the Southern Colorado Economic Development District—have won over $750,000 for rural broadband buildouts through an innovative Colorado program. The program, known as the Location Modification Program, followed awards made in the state’s Advance Colorado Broadband Grant Program, which was funded through the federal Capital Projects Fund.

Kinetic has been awarded an $11.9 million grant to significantly expand its fiber-optic network in Clarion County, Centre County, and Erie County, Pennsylvania, by the end of 2026. This expansion will bring gigabit internet speeds to nearly 2,400 previously underserved and unserved locations.

Through the Office of Minority Broadband Initiatives (OMBI), National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) directly addresses the lack of high-speed Internet access, connectivity, adoption, and equity at our nation’s Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), Tribal Colleges and Universities (TCUs), and Minority Serving Institutions (MSIs). OMBI works through these anchor institutions to impact their surrounding anchor communities.

United Communications snagged a cool $7.98 million through Tennessee's Middle Mile Buildout program. The local provider will use that money to lay down 267 miles of fiber to rural communities across 10 counties.

Michael Baker International announced that the firm was recently selected by the Arkansas State Broadband Office (ASBO) to provide broadband grant administration systems and services. The firm will partner with ASBO to supply services for managing and administering public funding sources—including the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment (BEAD), U.S.

Governor Moore (D-MD) announced $19.6 million in Fiscal Year 2024 awards through a new Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development program to help more Marylanders access high-speed, affordable internet. Home Stretch for Difficult to Serve Properties, administered by the department’s Office of Statewide Broadband, will provide internet access to approximately 2,400 unserved Maryland households in its first round. Home Stretch for Difficult to Serve Properties is part of the department’s new initiative to serve remaining Maryland households without internet access.

Forty-four addresses in two rural areas of York County (SC) have gained access to Comporium’s fiber-based multi-gigabit internet service. Over the past few months, Comporium placed two miles of fiber-optic network to reach addresses off Hands Mill Highway and Kingsburry Road. This project, extending the company’s fiber-optic network, provides customers the ability to access internet speeds of up to five Gigabits per second. Comporium continues to work with state and federal agencies to find ways to upgrade service to more rural customers.