08.24.23

Households in Okanogan County, Union to Get Federal Funds for High-Speed Internet

Cantwell announces $34M in funding for rural broadband

SEATTLE, WA – Two rural communities in the State of Washington will be connected to high-speed internet thanks to funding from the U.S. Department of Agriculture's ReConnect Program, U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA) announced today.

ReConnect Program investments go to projects serving rural areas that lack access to high-speed internet service. Areas with speeds slower than 100 megabits per second (Mbps) download and 20 Mbps upload are eligible. The program is funded by the Cantwell-supported Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL).

Two recipients in the State of Washington were announced today:

Public Utility District 1 of Okanogan County ($30,195,500 grant)

This Rural Development investment will be used to deploy a fiber-to-the-premises network to provide high-speed internet. This network will benefit 1,157 people, 21 businesses, 68 farms, and two educational facilities in Okanogan County in Washington. Public Utility District 1 of Okanogan County will make high-speed internet affordable by participating in the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) Affordable Connectivity Program.  

“Families and businesses in Okanogan County are in need of reliable and affordable internet,” said Sen. Cantwell. “This funding will connect more than 1,000 Okanogan County homes plus dozens of farms and businesses to a high-speed, affordable fiber network. For these rural families and farmers, reliable and fast internet means better access to education, health care, and emergency alerts.”

Hood Canal Telephone Co. Inc. ($3,809,000 loan)

This Rural Development investment will be used to help Hood Canal Telephone Co. Inc. construct 16.1 fiber miles and install the associated electronics. This improvement, passing 800 households and 10 businesses, will meet the increasing broadband needs in Union, WA.

“There has been an increasing demand for reliable and affordable internet in rural communities. This funding will allow for the construction of 16 miles of fiber, reaching 800 households and 10 businesses on Hood Canal,” said Sen. Cantwell. “Hood Canal families will enjoy faster internet connections, increasing access to education and health services, and these fiber connections will help businesses to grow and create more jobs.”

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.

In August 2022, she also introduced the bipartisan 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 millions of American households that lack connectivity.

Last weekend, she visited Whidbey Island to celebrate a $11.78 million federal investment that will improve broadband access to about 70,000 residents of the island.

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