State officials have rolled out $43.2 million in new broadband grants, funding dozens of projects expanding access to high-speed internet in Wisconsin.
In a release yesterday, Gov. Tony Evers and the Public Service Commission announced the funding for 30 projects across the state. These efforts will expand broadband access for about 16,000 residential and business locations in Wisconsin, according to the announcement.
Evers notes the PSC has awarded grants to connect 410,000 homes and businesses with new or improved broadband services since 2019. The guv has now allocated more than $345 million in state and federal funding for this purpose.
He argues the state “must remain steadfast” in its efforts to close gaps in affordable internet access.
“In this day and age, that means helping folks log on to work, go to school, buy groceries, order prescriptions, see the doctor, connect with friends and loved ones, and so much more,” he said in a statement.
The newly announced grants include funding from the American Rescue Plan Act, as well as about $1.3 million from previous ARPA broadband allocations. That additional funding is leftover due to “administrative savings and underspending” on previous projects, the release shows.
Individual grants range from just over $220,000 to more than $4 million, and each project includes matching funds. For projects awarded through the Capital Projects Fund, a total of $68 million in matching funds is paired with the nearly $42 million in awards. About $1.8 million in matching funds are paired with the other $1.3 million from the State and Local Fiscal Recovery Fund.
The single largest project by dollar amount is being undertaken by ECE Fiber, with a $4.2 million award and $5.2 million in matching funds. It will use fiber connections to reach 909 residential locations and 562 business locations across municipalities in Burnett, Douglas and Washburn counties.
Yesterday’s allocations come after Evers and the PSC late last year announced the Capital Projects Fund Broadband Infrastructure Grant Program had received 124 applications requesting $221.6 million. Compared to the $42 million that was available at the time, that was the highest ratio of requested dollars to available funding for any grant round in the past 10 years or so.
See the release, the full list of awardees and a map of project locations.
