Keep Track of Every State’s Broadband and Smart Grid Funding Programs

NRTC today introduced an interactive map to help members follow the many new government funding programs aimed improving communications in rural America. Many of the programs Congress established over the last two years call for federal agencies to distribute support for broadband construction and smart grid technologies through the states. The NRTC Funding map keeps track of all programs, which will roll out at different paces in each state.

Members just click on their own states to get an immediate look at their local situation. For example, a click on the state of Illinois brings up links to the state’s Connect Illinois Broadband Grant Program, founded through the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021; the Broadband Equity + Inclusion program to promote broadband affordability, and a series of state smart grid funding programs. In addition, members will get links to NRTC’s “Funding Alert” with background information and deadlines for the Connect Illinois program, the state’s Office of Broadband and the Illinois Broadband Interactive Map.

The map will offer access to additional information as new funding opportunities open, such as the Middle Mile Grants funded through the Commerce Department’s $42.45 billion Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) Program.

Together with the map, NRTC also is posting a separate page listing all federal broadband and smart grid funding programs, including through the US. Department of Agriculture, the Commerce Department, the U.S. Treasury, the FCC, Department of Energy and Department of Transportation.