Senator Hassan Leads Congressional Delegation in Announcing $66 Million to Bring High-Speed Internet to NH Communities

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Maggie Hassan led Senator Jeanne Shaheen, and Representatives Annie Kuster and Chris Pappas, in announcing $66 million of a total of $122 million in federal funds to help bring high-speed internet access to New Hampshire households and businesses. The funding comes through the Capital Projects Fund that Senator Hassan worked to establish, and New Hampshire’s awards from the Capitol Projects Fund are estimated to serve approximately 24,000 locations total – representing approximately 80 percent of locations in New Hampshire that are still lacking high-speed internet.

“Today’s announcement marks a major investment in New Hampshire that will support families, small businesses, and our entire economy,” said Senator Hassan. “Expanding access to strong, affordable internet access will help Granite State communities thrive, which is why I led the efforts to secure this funding as part of the American Rescue Plan. I look forward to continue working with my colleagues to boost New Hampshire’s economy.”

“The pandemic exposed longstanding challenges that workers and families face when they don’t have adequate access to the internet, especially those living in rural areas and other unconnected communities. That is why these broadband investments across the country are so critical,” said Deputy Secretary of the Treasury Wally Adeyemo. “This funding through the American Rescue Plan will help provide affordable, high-speed internet service to communities across New Hampshire, including the most rural parts of the state. Treasury commends New Hampshire for targeting this funding to places where it is most urgently needed across the state.”

“Rural Granite State communities deserve every resource possible to address gaps in access to reliable broadband. Broadband is critical for families, small businesses, schools and hospitals to perform their everyday tasks – it’s unacceptable that such alarming disparities persist. That’s why I’m pleased to welcome $66 million to expand high-speed internet infrastructure across New Hampshire,” said Shaheen. “This funding from the American Rescue Plan will complement the broadband investments made through the bipartisan infrastructure package I helped negotiate, and I’ll continue advocating for these resources until reliable internet is within reach for every zip code.”

“Access to reliable, high-speed internet is essential for all Granite Staters, which is why I’m thrilled to announce this federal funding headed to New Hampshire to get us even closer to closing the digital divide and ensuring every family and small business in our state has access to the broadband services they need to thrive,” said Rep. Kuster, a member of the House Rural Broadband Task Force. “This funding, made possible by the American Rescue Plan, represents a significant investment in our state’s economy and all Granite Staters. I’ll continue working to ensure all Granite State students, employees, and businesses have the connections they need.”

“These funds will help more communities make vital investments in broadband: boosting our local economies, improving education, and ensuring quality of life remains high,” said Congressman Pappas. “Access to high-speed internet is essential to compete and thrive in the 21st century, and I was proud to help pass the American Rescue Plan to secure these funds for New Hampshire. I’ll keep working to deliver additional resources to New Hampshire until all of our communities can access the funding they need to make sure high-speed broadband is available to all.” 

The funding is from the Capital Projects Fund, which Senators Hassan, Warner (D-VA), Angus King (I-ME), and Joe Manchin (D-WV) were instrumental in creating as part of the American Rescue Plan. The Senators also successfully pushed the Treasury Department to ensure that the funds can be used to support increased broadband adoption and access, in addition to supporting new broadband deployment. In total, New Hampshire is set to receive over $222 million through the Capital Projects Fund and the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to connect Granite State communities to the internet and help close the digital divide.

New Hampshire is using the Capital Projects Fund to provide internet service to some of the most rural parts of the state lacking internet service. All service providers will participate in the Federal Communications Commission’s new Affordable Connectivity Program, established and funded under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, which helps ensure that households can afford the broadband they need for work, school, healthcare, and more by providing a discount of up to $30 per month.

Earlier this year, the New Hampshire Congressional Delegation announced $50 million in federal funds to bring high-speed internet access to the most rural parts of the state, also through the Capital Projects Fund. In addition, the delegation previously announced $2.2 and $2.4 million in funding to New Hampshire to help connect students to high-speed internet at home through the Emergency Connectivity Fund Program, which Senator Hassan and colleagues successfully worked to establish. As a lead negotiator of the historic bipartisan infrastructure deal, Shaheen led bipartisan broadband negotiations with Senator Susan Collins (R-ME) and successfully secured $65 billion to support broadband affordability and deployment across the nation.

###