CROSSVILLE, Tenn., Oct. 8, 2020 – The Trump Administration today announced that the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is investing $16 million to provide broadband service in unserved and underserved rural areas in Tennessee. These investments are part of the $550 million Congress allocated to the second round of the ReConnect Program.
“Access to a high-speed internet connection is a cornerstone of prosperity, and unfortunately many of America’s rural communities lack access to this critical infrastructure,” Deputy Under Secretary for Rural Development Bette Brand said. “Under the leadership of President Trump and Agriculture Secretary Perdue, USDA is committed to leveraging all available resources and being a strong partner to rural communities in deploying high-speed broadband e-Connectivity to the people, businesses and community facilities that don’t have access yet. Connecting America’s rural communities to this essential infrastructure is one of USDA’s top priorities, because we know that when rural America thrives, all of America thrives.”
Volunteer Energy Cooperative will use a $3.7 million ReConnect grant to deploy a fiber-to-the-premises network to connect 2,687 people, 79 farms and nine businesses to high-speed broadband internet in Meigs County, Tennessee.
Ben Lomand Holdings Inc. will use a $1.9 million ReConnect grant to deploy a fiber-to-the-premises network to connect 152 people, 33 farms and one business to high-speed broadband internet in Cumberland County, Tennessee.
Highland Communications LLC will use a $6.4 million ReConnect grant to deploy a fiber-to-the-premises network to connect 2,908 people, 73 farms, 25 businesses, eight educational facilities and a fire station to high-speed broadband internet in Campbell County, Tennessee.
DeKalb Telephone Cooperative Inc. will use a $940,224 ReConnect grant to deploy a fiber-to-the-premises network to connect 986 people to high-speed internet in Smith, Trousdale and Wilson counties in Tennessee.
West Tennessee Telephone Company Inc. will use a $2.7 million ReConnect Grant to deploy a fiber-to-the-premises network to connect 2,940 people, 40 farms, five businesses and a fire station to high-speed internet in Carroll County, Tennessee.
Background:
In March 2018, Congress provided $600 million to USDA to expand broadband infrastructure and services in rural America. On Dec. 13, 2018, Secretary Perdue announced the rules of the program, called “ReConnect,” including how the loans and grants will be awarded to help build broadband infrastructure in rural America.
On April 20, 2020, USDA announced the Department has received 172 applications for $1.57 billion in Round Two of the ReConnect Program. The second round will enable USDA to implement innovative new solutions to rural connectivity by leveraging financial options with our partners and continuing the success of the first round of funding. The application window for Round Two closed on April 15.
In Round One of the ReConnect Program, USDA invested $698 million to bring high-speed broadband e-Connectivity to approximately 167,000 households, 17,000 rural small businesses and farms, and more than 500 health care centers, educational facilities and critical community facilities located in 33 states. To learn more about individual investments, read USDA’s Broadband ReConnect Program report (PDF, 4 MB).
USDA received 11 Round Two ReConnect Program applications that are eligible for the $100 million Congress allocated to the program through the CARES Act.
To learn more about ReConnect Program eligibility, technical assistance and recent announcements, visit www.usda.gov/reconnect.
USDA Rural Development provides loans and grants to help expand economic opportunities and create jobs in rural areas. This assistance supports infrastructure improvements; business development; housing; community facilities such as schools, public safety and health care; and high-speed internet access in rural areas. For more information, visit www.rd.usda.gov.
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