The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has announced awards for rural broadband funding in five states (Arizona, Kentucky, Maine, Tennessee, and Washington), as part of its rural e-connectivity (ReConnect) program. In Arizona, the USDA awarded a $1.6 million grant for a fiber-to-the-premises (FTTP) and a hybrid fiber-to-the-node (FTTN) fixed wireless system to reach 1,492 households. In Kentucky and Tennessee, the USDA awarded a total of $55.3 million in grants for four FTTP network projects. Additionally, the USDA awarded $9.87 million in total grants for four infrastructure projects that will create and/or improve rural broadband for 4,527 households and 215 businesses in rural Maine. The USDA also awarded $2.4 million grant for a broadband infrastructure project bringing 250 households and home-based businesses broadband service in the state of Washington.
