NTIA, RUS Retool Second Round of Broadband Grants

Washington, Jan. 27 – One of the most prominent components of last year’s stimulus package is set to undergo a significant overhaul, due in large part to feedback from the applicants and stakeholders who will be competing for funds.

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act included approximately $7.2 billion in grant and loan funding to accelerate the deployment of broadband Internet access in communities that currently lack ready access to the Web. That funding was divided between two closely related programs: the Broadband Technology Opportunities Program, administered by the National Telecommunications and Information Administration; and the Broadband Initiatives Program, run by the Agriculture Department’s Rural Utilities Service.