First phase of Pennsylvania Broadband Investment Incentive Program completed

Gov. Tom Wolf recently announced the completion of the first phase of the Pennsylvania Broadband Investment Incentive Program, which aims to deliver broadband access to approximately 9,000 unserved rural Pennsylvanians.

The program aims to ensure various areas in Erie, Crawford, Potter, Tioga, Mercer, Lycoming, and Bradford counties have broadband access of at least 100 megabits per second (Mbps) no later than June 2022.

“This was an opportunity to attract investment in many of Pennsylvania’s rural areas and to encourage high-speed and high-quality service to unserved residents, businesses, and farmers,” Wolf said. “This is a great first step in getting every Pennsylvanian connected to reliable high-speed internet.”

Gov. Wolf and the Office of Broadband Initiatives, which will carry out the initiative, announced the program in March. Through the program, PennDOT provided $35 million in financial assistance to private providers bidding on service areas within Pennsylvania in the upcoming Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Connect America Fund II (CAFII) Auction. The auction made $1.8 billion available nationwide to providers willing to expand broadband access in unserved areas.

Tri-County Rural Electric Inc. was the first rural electric cooperative in the state to commit to providing broadband services to its members.

“Pennsylvania’s electric cooperatives have a long tradition of serving rural needs,” Frank Betley, president & CEO of the Pennsylvania Rural Electric Association, said. “This opportunity to partner with the commonwealth on expanding broadband access is a welcome development in continuing that tradition. It serves as a further demonstration of the commitment our electric cooperatives have in improving the quality of life in rural Pennsylvania.”