Evergreen Reporter

WASHINGTON, D.C. – On June 23, U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA), joined the U.S. Department of the Treasury to announce the approval of $195.7 million for high-speed internet projects in Washington state. The investment comes from the American Rescue Plan’s Capital Projects Fund (CPF), which will connect an estimated 33,000 Washington homes and businesses to affordable, high-speed internet.

A fact-sheet with details about the funding coming to Washington state can be viewed HERE.

“COVID and the pandemic showed us how critical broadband was to our economy and giving people options for not only working from home, but having their children educated that way as well.  And we saw many communities where lack of broadband access literally put our kids at [a] disadvantage. So we wanted to work hard to build resilient, accessible internet connectivity in our state,” Sen. Cantwell said during a virtual press conference today. “We've heard from communities all across the state how important this day-to-day connectivity is to their lives.”

The following entities in Washington state will receive funding through the Washington State Broadband Office as a result of today’s announcement:

• Franklin County PUD No. 1 – $4,854,610 for the Connell and Basin FTTH project.
• Grays Harbor PUD No. 1 – $6,916,366 for the Grays Harbor South Elma, Porter and Cedarville Broadband project.
• Jefferson County PUD No. 1 – $6,087,687 for the Inbetweens Fiber project.
• King County – $1,767,681 for the King County, Ziply to Duvall project.
• Kittitas County – $11,366,102 for the Kittitas County WSBO 2022 project.
• Lewis County PUD No. 1 – $11,958,421 for the Bunker Creek project.
• Lincoln County – $8,921,342 for the Deer Meadows and Seven Bays FTTx project.
• Mason County PUD No. 3 – $3,645,768 for the Cloquallum Communities Rural Broadband Fiber Expansion project.
• Okanogan County Electric Co-Op – $11,985,014 for the Okanogan County Connect project.
• Orcas Power and Light Co-Op:
• $6,446,206 for the Outer Islands project.
• $3,911,649 for the Orcas Island East project.
• $3,352,904 for the San Juan Island project.
• $1,242,168 for the Orcas Island West.
• Port of Skagit County – $8,054,251 for the Bow Outlying Areas FTTx project.
• Port of Whitman County – $1,135,475 for the Port of Whitman FTTx project.
• Spokane Tribe – $3,418,063 for the Spokane Tribe HWY 231 FTTH project.
• Tri County Economic Development District – $12,000,000 for the Central Stevens County Hybrid Broadband project.
• Whatcom PUD No. 1 – $3,150,000 for the Point Roberts FTTx project.
• Yakima County – $11,310,004 for the Yakima County WSBO 2022 project.

The CPF provides $10 billion to states, territories, freely associated states, and Tribal governments to fund critical capital projects that enable work, education, and health monitoring in response to the public health emergency. A key priority of the CPF program is making funding available for broadband infrastructure.

• Washington state is approved to receive $195.7 million for broadband infrastructure projects, which the state estimates will connect approximately 33,000 homes and businesses to affordable, high-speed internet. Washington will implement three competitive broadband infrastructure programs that aim to provide reliable internet access to households across the state:
• Washington’s State Broadband Office (SBO) broadband grant program will prioritize the investment of $118.5 million to provide reliable internet in communities without internet service and then to those with internet speeds below 25/3 Mbps.
• The state will also invest $43.7 million of their CPF award to the Public Works Board (PWB) Broadband Program – a program designed to provide high-speed internet in distressed rural counties, or areas identified as Indian country.
• Washington will additionally invest $23.8 million towards the Community Economic Revitalization Board (CERB) Rural Broadband Program to expand last-mile broadband access in rural areas of the state without reliable internet. The plan approved by the Treasury Department today represents 100% of the state’s total allocation under the Capital Project Funds program.

In accordance with the Treasury Department’s guidance, each state’s plan requires service providers to participate in the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) new Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP). The Affordable Connectivity Program, funded by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL), helps ensure that households can afford high-speed internet by providing a discount of up to $30 per month (or up to $75 per eligible household on Tribal lands).

Sen. Cantwell is a longtime champion of expanding broadband access to communities nationwide. In 2021, she played a pivotal role in securing $1 billion for the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) Middle Mile Broadband Infrastructure Grant Program in the BIL. Earlier this week, she announced that the Whidbey Telephone Company had received $11.78 million in those funds to help complete the Point Roberts Middle Mile Infrastructure project.

In August 2022, she also introduced the Grant to Rapidly Invest and Deploy Broadband, or GRID Broadband Act, which would spur investment in a nationwide middle-mile backbone along the nation’s existing electricity grid and help provide affordable high-speed Internet options to the 120 million American households that lack connectivity.

Also joining today’s announcement were:

• U.S. Representative Marilyn Strickland (D, WA-10);
• U.S. Representative Derek Kilmer (D, WA-06);
• Mark Vasconi, Director of Washington State Broadband Office, Office of Governor Inslee;
• John Flanagan, Senior Policy Advisor, Office of Governor Inslee;
• Gene Sperling, Senior Advisor to the President and American Rescue Plan Coordinator;
• Joseph Wender, Director, U.S. Treasury Capital Projects Fund

Audio of today’s virtual press conference can be accessed HERE; and a transcript HERE. 

Original source can be found here.