{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.blunt.senate.gov/news/press-releases/blunt-welcomes-usdas-915-million-investment-to-expand-broadband-in-rural-missouri", "Blunt Welcomes USDA\u2019s $91.5 Million Investment to Expand Broadband in Rural Missouri", "2020-10-22", "2020", "2020-10", "Republican", "House", "MO", "Roy Blunt", "B000575", "www.blunt.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "WASHINGTON  Today, U.S. Senator Roy Blunt (Mo.) commended\r\nthe U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) announcement that it is investing\r\nan additional $91.5 million in grant funding through the ReConnect Pilot\r\nProgram to expand rural broadband in Missouri. The Blunt-backed FY2020\r\ngovernment funding bill included $550 million for the program, which targets\r\nareas that currently lack access to broadband and includes provisions that\r\nprevent overbuilding existing infrastructure. The pandemic has brought even more attention to how\r\ncritical connectivity is to education, health care, and jobs, said Blunt.\r\nEnding the digital divide will level the playing field for people in rural areas\r\nwho haven't had the same opportunities to compete and succeed. I'll continue\r\nworking to ensure we have the policies and resources in place to address one of\r\nthe most important economic and quality of life issues facing our rural areas. In Missouri and across the country, technology and\r\ninnovation are vital to agricultural production, said USDA Farm Service Agency\r\nAdministrator Richard Fordyce. Our commitment to invest in rural America\r\ncannot be achieved without addressing the digital divide our rural communities\r\nface because of a lack of high-speed broadband internet. Missouri received nearly 20 percent of the total nationwide\r\nallocation for this grant cycle. With today's announcement, Missouri has\r\nreceived nearly $200 million in funding through the program over the past two\r\nyears, including: $3 million in August 2020; $60.9 million in January 2020; and\r\n$41.6 million in November 2019. Blunt supported the creation of the ReConnect Pilot Program\r\nin the FY2018 government funding bill, and supported additional funding for the\r\nprogram in the FY2019 and FY2020 funding bills. Following are the details of the awardees announced today,\r\naccording to USDA: The Stoutland Telephone Company, doing business as (DBA)\r\nMissouricom, will use a $4.6 million ReConnect grant to deploy a\r\nfiber-to-the-premises network, which connect 2,390 people, 78 farms and 12\r\nbusinesses to high-speed broadband internet in Dallas, Camden and Laclede\r\ncounties.Marshall Municipal Utilities will use a $7.5 million\r\nReConnect grant to deploy a fiber-to-the-premises network, which will connect\r\n3,890 people, 433 farms, 63 businesses, two public schools, a fire station and\r\na post office to high-speed broadband internet in Saline County.Steelville Telephone Exchange, DBA STE Communications, will\r\nuse a $14.8 million ReConnect grant and a $14.8 million ReConnect loan. As a\r\nresult, STE Communications will deploy a fiber-to-the-premises network to\r\nconnect 4,756 people, 314 farms, 55 businesses, two fire stations and a post\r\noffice to high-speed broadband internet in Iron, Dent, Crawford and Washington\r\ncounties.Total Highspeed LLC was awarded a $24.9 million ReConnect\r\ngrant and a $24.9 million ReConnect loan. These funds will provide a\r\nfiber-to-the-premises network to connect 26,077 people, 720 farms, 417\r\nbusinesses, nine fire stations and five public schools to high-speed broadband\r\ninternet in Christian, Greene, Lawrence, Stone, and Webster counties.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://www.blunt.senate.gov/news/press-releases/blunt-welcomes-usdas-915-million-investment-to-expand-broadband-in-rural-missouri"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 3.6846650764346123, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}