| ReConnect Funding to Connect 599 Rural Households to High-Speed Internet e-Connectivity |
| BROOKINGS, S.D., Oct. 14, 2020 – The Trump Administration today announced that the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is investing $5.5 million to provide broadband service in unserved and underserved rural areas in central South Dakota. This investment is part of the $550 million Congress allocated to the second round of the ReConnect Program. “High-speed internet e-Connectivity helps businesses get access to global markets, provides remote learning for students, and allows greater access to all kinds of health care,” USDA Rural Development Rural Utilities Service Administrator Chad Rupe said. “Under the leadership of President Trump and Agriculture Secretary Perdue, USDA has been working tirelessly to be a strong partner in deploying this essential infrastructure, because we know when rural America thrives, all of America thrives.” Valley Telecommunications Cooperative Association Inc. will use a $5.5 million grant to deploy a fiber-to-the-premises network to connect 1,561 people, 30 businesses, 185 farms, three essential community facilities and six educational facilities to high-speed broadband internet in Beadle, Brookings, Clark, Kingsbury and Moody counties in South Dakota. USDA news release |