Senator Bowling announces $24.4 million in funding to expand broadband in Senate District 16
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: May 7, 2024
(NASHVILLE) – State Senator Janice Bowling (R-Tullahoma) announced today the award of 9 major grants from the Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development to expand broadband to unserved communities in every county in Senate District 16: Coffee, Dekalb, Franklin, Grundy, Lincoln and Warren.
“I am very pleased to see these funds coming to our district,” said Bowling. “Expanding broadband will give residents and businesses access to essential resources, and expanding broadband access in our rural district is extremely important.”
The awards consist of Last Mile and Middle Mile infrastructure programs as well as digital opportunity programs. These initiatives are part of a broader strategy to ensure that all residents have access to high-speed internet by 2028, and have opportunities to develop digital skills, access high-quality tech jobs, connect to broadband enabled devices and access online learning and telehealth resources.
Middle Mile grant recipients in Senate District 16:
Ben Lomand Communications - $14,683,374.00 - Serving parts of Franklin and Moore Counties
The Board of Public Utilities of the City of Fayetteville, Lincoln County, Tennessee - $2,646,000.00 - Serving parts of Lincoln, Giles and Marshall Counties
United Communications - $3,150,106.56 - Serving parts of Franklin, Moore and Bedford Counties
To promote broadband opportunity and high-paying digital jobs, TNECD launched four new programs during this funding opportunity: Digital Skills, Employment and Workforce Development (DSEW), Connected Community Facilities (CCF), Broadband Ready Communities (BRC) and Tennessee College of Applied Technology (TCAT) Broadband Workforce grants.
The CCF grants are being distributed to local governments and will facilitate digital opportunity by construction and renovation of spaces that offer services for digital advancement in workforce, healthcare, and education.
Connected Community Facilities grant recipients in Senate District 16:
Warren County - $675,000.00 - Serving Warren County
The BRC grants are being distributed to local governments and support community-based digital skills training, public Wi-Fi projects, distribution of free or low-cost devices and marketing for low-cost internet plans.
Broadband Ready Communities grant recipients in Senate District 16:
Lincoln County - $100,000.00
Warren County - $96,208.00
The DSEW grants are being distributed to organizations that will offer a variety of training and education programs to advance digital skills and workforce development, creating a pipeline for well-paying digital jobs.
Digital Skills, Education and Workforce grant recipients in Senate District 16:
gener8tor Management, LLC - $899,999.00 - Serving parts of McMinn, Rhea, Bledsoe, Sequatchie, Marion, Grundy, Polk, Meigs, Bradley and Hamilton Counties
Southeast Tennessee Development District - $198,000.00 - Serving parts of Hamilton, Bledsoe, Bradley, Grundy, Marion, McMinn, Meigs, Polk, Rhea and Sequatchie Counties
The Enterprise Center - $1,979,965.00 - Serving parts of Hamilton, Bradley, Polk, McMinn, Marion, Sequatchie, Bledsoe, Rhea, Meigs and Grundy Counties
Grantees across all programs are investing matching funds and will complete their projects by December 31, 2026.
Applications for the second round of CCF and BRC programs will open on May 15, 2024, and the DSEW program will open on June 15, 2024.
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