The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) last month approved $225 million in grants for last-mile broadband connectivity. The awards, the tenth round of funding in the $2 billion Last Mile Federal Funding Account grant program, pushed the total allocated to more than $1 billion.
The awards will support last mile connectivity in Butte, Colusa, Glenn, Kern, Mariposa, Merced, San Joaquin, San Diego, Shasta, Stanislaus, Tehama, Tuolumne, Yolo, and Yuba counties. About 163,000 residents will benefit from the California awards, which are part of the Broadband for All initiative.
The awards so far support 97 projects in 47 counties and eight Tribal homelands. 48 public entity and partnership broadband grants and 61 grants serving majority disadvantaged and low-income communities have been issued.
“As the fifth largest economy on the planet, we can’t afford to leave anyone behind from accessing the kinds of economic opportunities the internet provides us in the 21st Century,” California Governor Gavin Newsom said in the announcement. “With more than $1 billion invested to help communities connect to broadband, California is working to connect more Californians than ever before to reliable, high-speed internet.”
The initial round of applications closed in September 2023. To date, the CPUC has received 484 applications seeking more than $4.6 billion.
In November, The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) approved broadband awards of $207 million for two broadband grant programs. Most of the awards — $157 million — were in the eighth round of the last mile program.
Additional information about California broadband, including links to state funding resources, BEAD application information, state-specific Telecompetitor coverage and more, can be found on Telecompetitor’s Broadband Nation webpage for the state.
