President Joe Biden unveiled an official list of states that will receive a cumulative total of $40 billion funding for broadband internet access expansion, including multiple states in the southeastern region of the nation.
According to an official statement from the White House, 19 states received allocations over $1 billion with the top 10 allocations in Alabama, California, Georgia, Louisiana, Michigan, Missouri, North Carolina, Texas, Virginia and Washington. Awards range from $27 million to over $3.3 Billion, with every state receiving a minimum of $107 million.
Virginia senator Mark R. Warner (D) announced that his state would receive $1,481,489,527.87 in federal funding to deploy broadband and expand access to high-speed internet in Virginia.
“This whopping $1.4 billion investment brings us a giant step closer to achieving our goal of universal broadband coverage in Virginia,” Warner said. ”We all know that access to fast, reliable, and affordable internet is crucial to ensuring our rural communities grow and thrive, and I’m thrilled that Virginia is receiving the investment we need to deploy broadband all across the Commonwealth. This funding is in no small part thanks to the Virginians that took time out of their day to report their connectivity status. Because of these efforts, we were able to accurately report our coverage and access every cent to which Virginia was entitled.”
The Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) Program, administered by the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), expands high-speed internet access by funding planning, infrastructure deployment and adoption programs. According to Warner, the Virginia Telecommunication Initiative (VATI) will reach unserved and underserved locations throughout the Commonwealth – those lacking 25/3 internet speeds and 100/20 internet speeds.
Georgia will receive $1.3 billion out of a $42 billion nationwide, according to Sen. Raphael Warnock (D-Ga). Earlier today, Warnock tweeted: “I’m proud to announce a historic $1.3 billion federal investment in broadband expansion! This will help make life easier for the 15% of Georgians who lack reliable internet access & give our communities the tools they need to compete in the 21st century.”
Since 2004, O’Hern has worked with political campaigns in roles ranging from major projects involving nationwide digital marketing for U.S. Presidential candidates, U.S. Congressmen, state governors, and state representatives. O’Hern’s journalism background includes news reporting and editing for various organizations and news publications in Alabama and Florida since 2002. O’Hern graduated from Samford University in Birmingham, Ala with a degree in journalism and a minor in political science.