(The Center Square) — The state of Mississippi will receive $1.2 billion from the federal government to expand broadband service to unserved and underserved parts of the Magnolia State.
The funds will be used to connect up to 300,000 unserved and 200,000 underserved locations that do not have high-speed internet service. The amount of funds Mississippi will receive is due to the number of areas that need service and the cost of providing service to those areas.
“I’m proud of the work we’re doing to improve our residents’ connectivity,” Gov. Tate Reeves said in a news release. “People want to live in areas where they can access broadband and that are connected.
“That’s why we’ll continue to aggressively build out broadband infrastructure to every region of our state, so all Mississippians can harness the opportunities technology provides them.”
The money, which originates from the Broadband Equity Access and Deployment program established through the Infrastructure and Jobs Act, will be administered through a competitive grant process by the newly-created Office of Broadband Expansion and Accessibility of Mississippi.
BEAM will then craft a five-year plan for the funding, put it through a public comment period until July 28 and then send it to the National Telecommunications and Information Administration by late summer for approval.
The agency administers the state’s $32 million Broadband Infrastructure Program and is accepting applications for grants from $151 million from the Capital Projects Fund.
Reeves signed the Broadband Expansion and Accessibility of Mississippi Act in 2022, which created the state’s broadband office. He appointed Sally Doty, a former state senator from Brookhaven and the former executive director of the Public Utilities Staff, as BEAM’s director.
