Friday, November 06, 2009
Kansas Department of Commerce recommends 22 broadband projects for federal Recovery Act funding
The Kansas Department of Commerce has recommended 22 state broadband projects for Recovery Act funding through the Broadband Technology Opportunities Program (BTOP), officials announced today.
Governor Mark Parkinson submitted the recommended projects to the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), which is implementing BTOP as part of the Recovery Act. BTOP is a $4.9 billion federal grant program designed to increase high-speed Internet access in rural areas and stimulate state economies.
NTIA is expected to announce funded BTOP projects by the end of the year.
“We’re excited to recommend these 22 applications to the NTIA, and we’re optimistic that many of them will be awarded funding,” said Carole Jordan, Rural Development Division Director for the Kansas Department of Commerce. “All of them show great potential for increasing broadband access to rural Kansas, which will benefit our state economy, create new Kansas jobs and help us fulfill the mission of the federal Recovery Act.”
BTOP will provide grants to organizations such as non-profits, government entities, educational institutions, libraries and hospitals to fund broadband infrastructure, public computer centers and sustainable broadband adoption projects.
Per BTOP requirements, the Kansas Department of Commerce was required to screen applicants and then submit a list of recommended projects to the NTIA. Applicants were evaluated on how well they matched state priorities, including service to unserved rural populations and projects that focused on telemedicine, distance learning, economic development and/or e-government.
The Department received 85 applications, which were reviewed by an eight-member interagency committee. The lack of a state recommendation does not preclude an applicant from being funded by NTIA.
A second round of BTOP funding will open in late 2009 or early 2010. Kansas will follow a similar rating process.
BTOP is one of two federal programs enacted in July to increase high-speed Internet in rural areas. The other program is the Broadband Initiatives Program (BIP), which provides loans and grants primarily to Internet service providers for broadband infrastructure projects in rural areas.
To help administer and promote BTOP and BIP, the Kansas Department of Commerce in July launched the Connect Kansas Initiative. For details, visit KansasCommerce.com.
For more information, contact Joe Monaco, Public Information Officer with the Kansas Department of Commerce, at (785) 296-3760 or jmonaco@kansascommerce.com.
