West Virginia is one of the first four states to receive money to expand broadband access under the American Rescue Plan.
West Virginia will receive $136 million to bring high-speed internet to 20,000 rural customers, the White House announced Tuesday.
Along with Virginia, Louisiana and New Hampshire, West Virginia is among the first to be approved for COVID recovery funds for broadband.
The program defines high-speed internet as 100 megabits per second or more for uploads and downloads. In West Virginia, the federal dollars will support last-mile extension of broadband to households with the slowest internet speeds.
Still, the amount awarded to the state will only cover about 10 percent of the locations that need a faster connection. That’s where the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act comes in.
West Virginia is set to receive $600 million from the bipartisan law to expand broadband.