Macon County is one of the biggest winners in the Federal Communications Commission’s Rural Digital Opportunity Fund, which will put $9,009,136.30 towards broadband expansion in the county.
The Rural Digital Opportunity Fund is the commission’s new plan to bridge the gap between urban and rural communities in terms of broadband internet access. Through the program, the FCC will disperse $20.4 billion over the next 10 years to bring up broadband speeds of up to 1 gigabit (about 1,000 megabits) to millions of homes and businesses, starting from the bottom with areas that aren’t currently served by broadband speeds of at least 25 megabits per second. The goal is to level the playing field for rural Americans who are trying to compete in an increasingly online economy.
Kevin Corbin, state senator for Macon County and the rest of the 50th District, said that Western North Carolina is a massive winner in the allocation process. Of the $166,580,441.70 coming into North Carolina through the fund, $46,643,339.40 has been set aside specifically for the seven westernmost counties. Corbin says that it’s been a priority for him and other state legislators to improve digital quality of life in these areas and securing this funding is a big step in the right direction.
“We’re in a tug of war and we’re pulling against the lack of connection,” Corbin said. “We’re making good progress, but we really need this kind of help.”
State representative Karl Gillespie said that it’ll be a while before the years-long initiative starts bearing fruit for average consumers. However, he’s glad to see authorities on the state, federal and local levels all banding together and taking the problem of inadequate connections in rural communities seriously.
“It’s probably not going to move as quickly as we would like it to, but if it doesn’t fix the entire problem, it’s still certainly going to help,” Gillespie said.
“Without access to broadband, rural Americans cannot participate in the digital economy or take advantage of the opportunities broadband brings for better education, healthcare, and civic and social engagement,” the FCC said in a press release.
Up to $16 billion in funding for the first phase of the plan is being made available to broadband providers on a reverse auction basis. Charter Communications, which is receiving $1.2 billion from the fund to cover a wide variety of areas, is the sole beneficiary of the fund that will be investing in Macon County. Charter intends to invest a total of $5 billion in rural communities and provide all new locations in its network with options for a gigabit of high-speed internet, with plans starting at 200 mbps.
“The pandemic has further highlighted the need for broadband availability and adoption and Charter is committed to furthering its efforts as part of the comprehensive solution needed to address these challenges,” said Tom Rutledge, chairman and CEO of Charter Communications in a release. “As Americans across the country increasingly rely on broadband to work, learn, access healthcare and stay in touch with family and loved ones, bringing broadband access to more unserved areas should be a priority for all stakeholders.”
For more information on the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund and its potential impact on Macon County, go online to www.fcc.gov/about-fcc/fcc-initiatives/bridging-digital-divide-all-americans or www.corporate.charter.com/newsroom.