The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is now accepting applications for up to $1.15 billion in loans and grants to increase access to high-speed internet for residents in rural areas across the country.
In a release Nov. 24, USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack said the current application process combined with nearly $2 billion in additional funding provided by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law will increase the country’s access to high-speed internet.
“High-speed internet is the new electricity,” Vilsack said in the release. “It must be reliable, affordable and available to everyone.”
The funding will come through the USDA ReConnect Loan and Grant Program, providing funding for the construction, improvement and acquisition of facilities and equipment to provide broadband service in rural areas, the release said.
The $1.15 billion provided through ReConnect does not include the $2 billion provided by the infrastructure bill and is meant to go to projects in locations where “at least 90 percent of the households lack broadband service at speeds of 100 megabits per second (Mbps) (download) and 20 Mbps (upload),” the release said. “USDA will give funding priority to projects that will serve people in low-density rural areas and areas lacking internet access services at speeds of at least 25 Mbps (download) and 3 Mbps (upload).”
This expansion in broadband availability, Vilsack said in the release, will help create jobs, expand access to health care and educational services, create economic opportunity and help farmers use precision agriculture technologies.
Eligible applicants for funding through the USDA ReConnect Program include state, local or territory governments, corporations, Native American Tribes, limited liability companies and cooperative organizations, the release said. Applications can be submitted through the USDA Rural Development online application system and must include a commitment to building facilities capable of providing 100 Mbps to speed broadband service to every location in the proposed service area.
