The Commerce Department’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), today announced a $75.75 million grant to support North Carolina’s Rural Broadband Initiative and a $10.6 million grand to help bridge the technological divide and improve education and healthcare in New Mexico.
Today’s announcement is part of a nearly $7 billion Recovery Act initiative and an investment announcement totaling $1.8 billion.
Overall, the federal Recovery Act was to invest $7.2 billion in expanding broadband access nationwide – $4.7 billion through NTIA and $2.5 billion funded through the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Rural Utilities Service (RUS). RUS has posted a Round 2 Application Directory while the NTIA has a searchable database.
The $75 million North Carolina award will upgrade the infrastructure needed for broadband connections in 69 rural North Carolina counties, Gov. Beverly Perdue announced Wednesday. It will enhance the existing North Carolina Research and Education Network, which MCNC has operated for the last quarter century, and will add to the existing ERC Broadband Network operated by the non-profit ERC Broadband in western North Carolina.
That first round, awarded earlier this year, is being used to pay for the installation of 480 miles of fiber-optic lines in 37 counties in southeastern and western North Carolina. MCNC will use the second round to lay about 1,300 miles of new fiber and lease 400 miles of fiber across the state.
The goal of the second round is to provide faster, affordable broadband connections to telecommunications companies that serve rural customers. The investment will benefit 5.1 million North Carolina residents and 160,000 businesses, according to the governor’s office. Approximately 1,300 miles of new middle-mile fiber will be built throughout the state under this latest award.
The Golden LEAF Foundation awarded $24 million in matching funds for the Round 2 grant. Golden LEAF administers one-half of North Carolina’s share of the Master Settlement Agreement with cigarette manufacturers. A nonprofit organization devoted to the economic well being of North Carolinians, Golden LEAF endeavors to strengthen the state’s economy through diverse grantsmaking.
MCNC’s application for ARRA recovery funds was tendered to the U.S. Department of Commerce’s NTIA and BTOP on March 25, a day prior to the March 26 deadline.
The new fiber-optic build will connect with the existing-owned NCREN fiber in North Carolina’s urban core as well as the new Round 1 BTOP fiber. The GLRBI will greatly increase the broadband capacity and stabilize bandwidth and Internet access costs for public school systems, community college campuses, libraries, universities, and other community anchor institutions that connect to NCREN.
The $10.6 million grant to the New Mexico Economic Development District will fund the deployment of high-speed Internet infrastructure across the counties of Rio Arriba, Los Alamos, and northern Santa Fe, and to five Native American tribal communities.
Governor Bill Richardson issued a statement saying, “This is a tremendous boost for New Mexico, and especially for our rural residents that often lack access to affordable and high-quality broadband services.
The project plans to directly connect more than 120 community anchor institutions to broadband service – including public safety facilities, K-12 schools, community colleges, government buildings, healthcare providers, and libraries – which will support uses such as distance learning, telemedicine, and improved public safety communications.
The project also intends to promote energy efficiency by enabling “smart grid” applications for regional rural electric cooperatives.
On Monday, U.S. Senators Tom Udall, D-NM, and Jeff Bingaman, D-NM, used the occasion of the New Mexico Broadband and Smart Grid Summit, to announce $73 million in grants and awards for expansion of broadband services to rural, under-served areas of the state.
Kit Carson Electric Cooperative will receive a $44 million grant and a $19 million loan to create a 2,400-mile broadband network, which will connect approximately 20,500 households, 3,600 businesses, 183 “critical community institutions” and two American Indian pueblos.
In all, $63.8 million in Recovery Act funds will be invested in the project. An additional $600,000 will come from private investment sources.
“Broadband creates jobs. Broadband connects communities,” said Udall. “That’s what this summit [was] about.”
The well is almost dry for the U.S. Government’s broadband grants. The first 29 Round 2 BTOP awards were announced July 2, 2010 as part of a speech by President Obama.
UPDATE: Later in the day, Vice President Joe Biden announced Recovery Act investments in 37 states totaling $1.8 billion. A complete list of projects receiving Recovery Act broadband grant awards can be viewed here (pdf).
Today’s announcement includes 66 grants awarded by the Commerce Department for broadband infrastructure and connecting community anchor institutions and sustainable adoption of broadband service. It also includes 28 awards from USDA for broadband infrastructure and satellite projects that will provide rural residents in 16 states and Native American tribal areas access to improved service.
As part of this round, the Department of Commerce for the first time directly targeted public safety broadband networks (pdf). They awarded approximately $220 million for the construction of five networks in Charlotte ($16.7 million), New Mexico ($38.7 million), San Francisco Bay ($50.6 million), Mississippi ($70 million), and New Jersey ($39.6 million). All five of these networks will consist of 4G service integrated into police radios. These projects are said to be a demonstration of a nationwide, interoperable public safety wireless broadband network.
Some of the largest announcements include:
- University of Arkansas System – $102 million: This project will offer affordable middle-mile broadband service in the state. The project intends to enhance two major community-serving networks already in existence with a focus on improving healthcare and education capabilities.
- California Broadband Cooperative – $81.1 million: Will offer affordable middle-mile broadband service in California and Nevada. The project plans to directly connect 230 community institutions to broadband.
- Trillion Communications Corporation – $59.3 million: With nearly $27 million in matching contributions, it will allow Trillion Communications to offer affordable middle-mile broadband service in southcentral Alabama.
- Motorola – $50.6 million: With nearly $21.9 million in matching contributions, will allow public safety entities in the San Francisco area to deploy an interoperable wireless public safety broadband network.
- Central Valley Independent Network – $46.6 million: With nearly $20 million in matching contributions, will allow CVIN to offer affordable middle-mile broadband service in the Central Valley region of California.
- Troy Cablevision – $26.1 million: Will allow Troy Cablevision to offer affordable middle-mile broadband servicd in southeast Alabama.
- Spacenet – $8 million: Will allow Spacenet, Inc. to offer satellite broadband service to rural residential subscribers in Alaska and Hawaii.
The bulk of the $7.2 billion in grant money over the last year or so was directed towards large fiber infrastructure projects. Tying into schools, hospitals and government agencies was a priority. The government’s approach largely avoided subsidizing individual broadband wireless or wireline service providers unless they were the only means of providing broadband. WiMAX and broadband satellite providers were likely disappointed with their meager rations.
Related Dailywireless articles include; RUS Awards $1.2B for Broadband, Round Two Stimulus: $4.8 Billion for Broadband, 66 Broadband Grants Awarded, ARPA-E: 43 Grants Announced, NTIA: Another $63M in Grants, Government Announces Broadband Grants, FCC Okays Terrestrial LTE for SkyTerra, Cisco’s Connected Communities Initiative, The 700MHz Network: Who Pays?, The National Broadband Plan, National Broadband Plan Previewed, D-Block: It’s Done; Congress Pays
