WASHINGTON, Oct. 7, 2019 – USDA deputy under secretary for rural development Donald LaVoy announced this week that USDA is investing $152 million in 20 projects to provide or improve rural broadband service in 14 states.

“Deploying high-speed broadband internet connectivity, or ‘e-Connectivity,’ in rural America expands access to essential health, educational, social and business opportunities,” LaVoy said.

USDA is making the investments through the Community Connect Grant Program, the Telecommunications Infrastructure Loan Program and the Rural Broadband Access Loan and Loan Guarantee Program.

Broadband service support will be delivered to rural communities in Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Minnesota, Missouri, North Carolina, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, West Virginia and Wisconsin.

Access to broadband internet has become increasingly important in agriculture with the rise of telematics in modern farm equipment. Telematics allow dealers to wirelessly gather data on equipment as its running, which they can use to provide alerts on wearing parts or service required and better serve their customers. 

To view the full press release, click here.