The Louisiana Legislature, with approval from Washington, has set aside $177 million in federal American Rescue Plan dollars for its Granting Unserved Municipalities Broadband Opportunities, or GUMBO, program, with $90 million available in the first round.
Similar programs across the country tend to be swamped by overwhelming demand, and Louisiana’s is no exception. ConnectLA, the state broadband development office, has received applications from 23 companies seeking $440 million in taxpayer help for $711 million in total project costs to provide high-speed internet to 215,000 households and 14,000 businesses.
But more money is on the way. Louisiana could be in line for $1 billion or more in additional funding from the recent federal infrastructure bill. That’s not even counting the $342 million in subsidies the Federal Communications Commission awarded to cover some of the cost of deploying broadband to unserved areas.
It all adds up to an unprecedented chance to bridge the “digital divide,” experts agree. Jon Wilkins, former chief operating officer for the FCC, sees a “once-in-a-century opportunity.”
“There’s not going to be another $50 billion program in five years,” Wilkins says, adding that it will be up to states to make the most of it.
Read the full story about the effort from the latest edition of Business Report.
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