Tillis requests speedier Broadband ReConnect Program grant approvals

As the nation continues the fight against COVID-19, U.S. Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC) requested that the Rural Utilities Service expedite the approval process for funding awards for the federal Broadband ReConnect Program.

“Now, more than ever, it is clear that broadband internet access is a necessity,” Sen. Tillis wrote in a May 4 letter sent to Chad Rupe, the administrator for the Rural Utilities Service within the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Rural Development division. “As such, I urge USDA to build on the ReConnect program’s success by ensuring that eligible service providers have access to this critical funding as soon as possible.”

The Broadband ReConnect Program furnishes loans and grants to provide funds for the costs of construction, improvement or acquisition of facilities and equipment needed to provide broadband service in eligible rural areas. The application window for the second round of funding closed on April 15 and applications are currently under review, according to USDA.

“As you know, millions of Americans across the country have become reliant on broadband to perform the functions of everyday life,” wrote Sen. Tillis. “The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the disadvantages many of our rural North Carolinians face from a lack of accessible and affordable broadband services.”

While the senator commended USDA’s decision to utilize the $100 million appropriated by Congress in the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act to prioritize funding for 100 percent grant projects deemed ineligible in the first round of the program’s funding, he asked for speedier grant approvals.

“As you know, millions of Americans across the country have become reliant on broadband to perform the functions of everyday life,” Sen. Tillis wrote. “From telemedicine to live-streaming religious services, internet connectivity has become many Americans’ lifeline to the outside world and key to maintaining their jobs, education and health.”