by Pivot
Tag: USDA
Community Connect Grant Program Issues NOFO for 2025
The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) released a Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) for the Community Connect Grant Program for fiscal year 2025. The USDA’s Rural Utilities Service (RUS) estimates that approximately $26 million…
USDA ReConnect Program Announces $313M in Broadband Funding
This week, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced more than $313 million in broadband funding to providers in 18 states, financed via the fifth round of the USDA’s ReConnect Program. The newly announced…
Verizon Business Signs Five-Year Agreement with USDA
Washington, D.C. — November 21, 2024 — Verizon Business has been awarded a new agreement with the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), valued at over $21 million in the first year. The agreement will…
Understanding the Complexities of Buy American vs. Build America Buy America
Over the last year, there has been a significant increase in the number of federal broadband grant programs that require a domestic preference (“Buy America”) for the purchase of manufactured products. The problem, however, is…
USDA: 51% of U.S. Farms Use Broadband, 25% Use It for Precision Ag
Although 85% of U.S. farms have internet access, only 51% use broadband to access the internet, according to data released recently from the USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service. Researchers defined broadband to include DSL, cable…
USDA Awards $667M for 38 Rural Broadband Projects, Some in Persistent Poverty Areas
The latest ReConnect rural broadband awards announcement from USDA was accompanied by considerable fanfare on Friday afternoon when USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack and Mitch Landrieu, senior advisor to President Biden and White House infrastructure coordinator,…
USDA Gets Set to Award $20M in Technical Assistance Grants for Rural Broadband Projects
The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced the availability of $20 million in technical assistance grants funding for rural broadband projects. The program, known as the Broadband Technical Assistance Program, was created in the Infrastructure Investment…
Three Providers to Get $40M in USDA ReConnect Round 4 Grants
Three small providers have been awarded over $40 million in funding for broadband deployments through the USDA ReConnect program. The awards were made in the fourth round of the program, which has a total budget…
Industry Groups Want 100 Mbps Symmetrical Broadband Speed in 2023 Farm Bill
Three associations representing broadband providers and suppliers are asking legislators to specify a minimum 100 Mbps symmetrical broadband speed for the ReConnect rural broadband funding program in the 2023 Farm Bill. The associations are the…
FCC Reports to Congress on Success of Broadband Interagency Coordination Act
Washington, DC – February 17, 2023 – Today the Federal Communications Commission sentCongress a report summarizing the impact of the Broadband Interagency Coordination Act,which directed the FCC, National Telecommunications and Information Administration(NTIA) and U.S. Department…
$63M in ReConnect Funding Goes to Providers in Four States
The U.S. Department of Agriculture is investing $63 million in ReConnect funding to bring broadband to rural areas of Illinois, Michigan, Minnesota and Mississippi. The four projects all are in the form of grants and…
RUS Administrator: Latest Round of ReConnect Apps Exceed Available Funding Threefold
The latest round of the USDA ReConnect rural broadband funding program received three times as many applications as there is funding for, said Andy Berke, administrator of USDA’s Rural Utilities Service, which is responsible for…
