News

USDA convenes roundtables to determine broadband need

USDA Rural Development is engaging in discussions with stakeholders to address broadband infrastructure needs in rural communities. The series of regional discussions is part of Rural Development’s Smart Rural Communities Initiative, according to Doug O’Brien, Acting Undersecretary of USDA Rural Development.

“In every state we’re holding at least one roundtable to bring together the different stakeholders to look at the asset they have in internet access and to determine if there are certain action points that the group needs to accomplish to make sure that the state and regions in the state make the most of this new asset,” said O’Brien, in an interview with Brownfield Ag News on Friday.

For many years, USDA has been putting resources into getting broadband services into rural areas. The next step, said O’Brien, is to determine how internet services will be used.

“What we’ve been doing at USDA is not only helping to finance broadband, but more and more we’re helping to convene and bring people together and educate about the opportunities once a small business or hospital or school adopts that internet,” said O’Brien.

The overall aim of the Rural Development program, according to O’Brien, is to provide 48,000 miles of fiber, providing broadband access to over 800,000 rural subscribers.

AUDIO: Doug O’Brien (8 min. MP3)