DES MOINES – U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Rural Development State Director in Iowa Theresa Greenfield Monday announced that the Agency is investing $3,987,550 in a Linn County communications company to expand reliable, affordable high-speed internet through the ReConnect Program, funded by President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.
“High speed internet is a necessity – to access education, obtain medical care, and share innovative ideas with the rest of the country; to compete locally and globally and build a strong rural economy,” said Director Greenfield. “This funding through USDA’s ReConnect program is part of the Biden-Harris Administration’s commitment to investing in rural infrastructure and affordable high-speed internet for every Iowan.”
Prairieburg Telephone Company Incorporated, in Linn County, received a $1,993,775 USDA loan and a $1,993,775 USDA grant to deploy a fiber-to-the-premises network to provide high-speed internet. This network will benefit 1,232 people, 51 businesses, two farms and nine educational facilities in Linn County, Iowa. The company will make high-speed internet affordable by participating in the Federal Communications Commission’s Lifeline and Affordable Connectivity Programs.
Today’s high-speed internet investment is part of the fourth funding round of the ReConnect Program. Many residents and businesses in rural areas would not have high-speed internet service without the ReConnect Program, as the program is a key part of the Administration’s Internet for All initiative to connect everyone in America to high-speed internet by 2030. Today’s announcement includes $667 million in USDA investments in Alaska, Arkansas, Arizona, California, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Nevada, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Carolina, Texas, Virginia, Washington, Wisconsin and the Marshall Islands. A full list of projects from the announcement is available online.
All Iowa ReConnect projects may be viewed here.
