At a Jones County roundtable, Republican gubernatorial candidate Randy Feenstra argued Iowa can lure manufacturers back from overseas by pairing newly passed federal tax incentives with cheap, reliable energy, faster broadband buildout and high-tech workforce training.
“I think this should be high priority for Congress,” North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper, a Democrat who has worked with a bipartisan group of governors to promote the program, said in a phone interview. “To many families, $30 a month is a big deal.”
Also, state auditor warns of increased check fraud
The Iowa Department of Management last week announced $150 million in grants to connect more than 12,000 Iowans to high-speed internet. The funding is the latest round of the Empower Rural Iowa Broadband program. The funding focuses on “Broadband Intervention Zones” the state has identified as having the highest need for high-speed internet.
Iowa faces challenges with growing its population, creating job opportunities for immigrants and expanding high-speed broadband into rural areas.
Results of a 2022 study show that over half the county has access to fiber optic supplied internet, but some rural parts of the county are in need of more broadband infrastructure.
As high speed internet access has become a quality of life issue, some rural communities worry that without access to broadband, they’ll lose the ability to attract and retain residents.
The money is coming from the federal bipartisan infrastructure law, which Congress passed and President Joe Biden signed in 2021. It is part of the national $42.5 billion Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment program.
Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds announced nearly $150 million in funding for broadband development Monday, focused on areas with the highest need for high-speed internet.
WEST LIBERTY — Liberty Communications Corp., an Eastern Iowa broadband provider, has announced a partnership with Midwest Data Center, a …
A subcommittee of Iowa House lawmakers this week advanced Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds’ wide-ranging health care bill.
Money comes from first round of federal infrastructure law
Two of then, totaling over $5.5 million in grants and loans, are in Iowa.
The neighborhoods offered the worst deals had lower median incomes in nine out of 10 cities in the analysis.
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