National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) Broadband Infrastructure Program
The Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) announced on February 25th 2022, it has awarded 13 grants as part of the Broadband Infrastructure Program. These grants, totaling more than $277 million, will be used to connect more than 133,000 unserved households.
Chariton Valley with the assistance of the NTIA grant, announced March 3, 2022, it will bring fiber broadband to rural Missouri residents, farms, businesses, and community anchor institutions utilizing funds awarded through the U.S. Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration’s (NTIA) Broadband Infrastructure Program. Chariton Valley partnered with Missouri Department of Economic Development to apply, and collective funds awarded to the State of Missouri for projects totaled $42.2 million.
Read the full press release here
2021 NTIA Broadband Infrastructure Program Overview (BIP)
- Part of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 – designed to support bridging the digital divide in unserved areas
- Grants to “covered partnerships” for “covered broadband projects”
- Covered partnership is a partnership between (A) a State, or political subdivision of a State; and (B) a provider(s) of fixed broadband service
- Eligible Service Area defined as a census block in which broadband service is not available at one or more locations in the census block
- Broadband service is defined as a minimum of 25/3 Mpbs
- 90/10 grant program; 90% grant/10% provider funded
- $277 million program
How Chariton Valley Participated in the NTIA Broadband Infrastructure Program (2021)
- Partnered with the State of Missouri who made one application with multiple providers
- Chariton Valley submitted project applications for 2,047 eligible locations near Hannibal, Palmyra, Clarence and Monroe City
- Aug 2021 MO Department of Economic Development submitted an application for $56 million for broadband deployment connecting more than 17,000 households, businesses, and other institutions
- NTIA received over 230 applications, more than $2.5 Billion in funding requests
- NTIA originally expected the earliest start date for awards to be November 29, 2021. Due to high requests, announcements were delayed until February 2022.
NTIA Broadband program in the news,
BroadbandUSA Press Release- February 25th, 2022
