$5 Million Grant for Carroll County Broadband
Thursday, October 31, 2024 – U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Rural Development has awarded Citizens Telephone Cooperative a $5 million grant. The funding will support the deployment of a fiber-to-the-premises network benefiting residents and businesses in Carroll County. U.S. Congressman Morgan Griffith (R-VA) issued the following statement:
“Carroll County stands to benefit from increased access to broadband services.
“This USDA Rural Development grant for $5 million helps Citizens Telephone Cooperative institute a fiber-to-the-premises network for individuals and businesses in Carroll County.”
BACKGROUND
The funding is made available through the USDA Rural Development Community Connect Program, which directs grant funds to eligible applicants that will provide broadband service in rural, economically-challenged communities where service does not exist.
Citizens Telephone Cooperative serves 12 counties and three cities in Southwest Virginia. Their recent 2024 annual meeting marked a milestone, as the Cooperative completed 6.5 years of a construction project to bring fiber-to-the-home to 100% of residents in Floyd County.
Congressman Griffith has advocated for greater access to broadband in the Ninth District, recently speaking in a Communications & Technology Subcommittee hearing with an official from the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) as well as monitoring and encouraging approval of Virginia’s Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment (BEAD) program submitted by Governor Youngkin.
