Nine projects worth $21.6M in new taxpayer-funded broadband projects planned

(The Center Square) – Nine projects worth $21.6 million to expand broadband access to underserved and unserved areas have been authorized in Mississippi by the Office of Broadband Expansion and Accessibility.

The fiscal sourcing comes from the Capital Projects Fund and will expand high-speed internet service to 12,300 households,

ACE Fiber was approved to extend service to several north Mississippi communities, including Blue Springs, southeastern Union County, Blue Mountain to New Albany, and Potts Camp to Myrtle.

AT&T will receive grant funding to connect the Leake County cities of Sebastapol, Conway and Bertice in north-central Mississippi. AT&T will also connect the Mahon, Waites and Laws Hill communities in Marshall County in the northern part of the state.

CSpire will connect the southwest Mississippi cities of Columbia, Summit, Osyka, Liberty and Gloster. In central Mississippi, the cities of Puckett, Magee, Mendenhall and Madison will be connected with Ridgeland-based CSpire fiber.

Comcast will receive grant funding to connect cities in the Pine Belt – Laurel and Hattiesburg – and some areas in the Jackson area.

The Tallahatchie Valley Electric Power Association will connect the northeast part of Yalobusha County and the city of Water Valley in north Mississippi.

"Mississippi continues to make incredible progress in expanding broadband access all across our state," Gov. Tate Reeves said in a release. "It's a critical piece of infrastructure, and we’re working hard to ensure that every Mississippian has access to it. We'll continue doing everything in our power to ensure everyone has connectivity, regardless of their ZIP code."

State officials authorized 24 other projects from the Capital Projects Fund worth $70.1 million in June, with the total from the fund up to $162 million. Those projects will serve 27,000 households.

The state's broadband office also is running the $32 million Broadband Infrastructure Program with 12 projects in 10 of the state's 82 counties. Also, the agency will administer $1.2 billion in funding provided by the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment grant, along with the $10.7 million State Digital Skills and Accessibility grant program.