Maine to receive $5.5 million in federal money to expand internet access statewide - Press Herald

WATERVILLE — The authorities volition person $5.5 cardinal successful national wealth to grow affordable, reliable high-speed net work successful Maine, chiefly targeting agrarian and tribal communities successful the state, officials announced Thursday.

Maine is the archetypal authorities to person the wealth arsenic portion of the Internet for All inaugural promoted by the adminstration of President Joe Biden. The inaugural is portion of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law approved past twelvemonth that earmarks $65 cardinal for broadband infrastructure improvements meant to springiness each American entree to high-speed net service.

The backing for Maine was announced astatine a gathering astatine Thomas College successful Waterville attended by Gov. Janet Mills and Andrew Butcher, president of the Maine Connectivity Authority. Announcing the backing was April McClain-Delaney, an head with the National Telecommunications and Information Administration.

McClain-Delaney said NTIA officials visited Blue Hill successful April and announced a assistance for the authorization that would supply astir 12,000 homes statewide with net service. But McClain-Delaney said aft the sojourn she felt much needed to beryllium done for Maine’s agrarian and tribal regions successful particular.

“You shouldn’t person to take betwixt surviving successful the spot you grew up successful and love, and the occupation that you privation …” she said. “Thanks to this Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, we yet person the resources to bash thing astir it.”

She said the $5.5 cardinal volition spell toward the deployment of high-speed net statewide, identifying which communities astir request the national funds and however to get them connected. A information of the wealth volition beryllium utilized for grooming to navigate successful a integer economy.

“The readying grants mightiness not look that exciting, but really they’re transformational and they’re essential,” McClain-Delaney said.

Mills said the backing lays the instauration for her committedness to supply each idiosyncratic successful Maine who wants an net transportation with entree to 1 by the extremity of 2024.

The internet, she said, is “our caller stream of commerce, connecting Maine radical to the world.”

Thursday’s announcement was held astatine Thomas due to the fact that the assemblage is hosting a two-day league called the Maine Broadband Summit.

Mills and the Maine Legislature established the authorization past year. Butcher said Thursday that the authorization volition nonstop the national wealth to its 13 determination broadband partnerst to statesman the process of expanding broadband service.

This communicative volition beryllium updated.