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Northam proposes using $700M for Virginia broadband access

Northam said using $700 million from American Rescue Plan funding would allow the state to connect unserved areas and achieve universal internet access by 2024.

ABINGDON, Va. — Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam is calling for using $700 million in federal coronavirus relief money to expand broadband infrastructure in the state.

If successful, he said every home and business in the state would have access to high-speed internet connectivity, making Virginia the first state in the country able to make that claim.

Northam said Friday that using $700 million from American Rescue Plan funding would allow the state to connect unserved areas and achieve universal internet access by 2024. 

"We are in a good position, well-poised to have broadband to everybody in the Commonwealth of Virginia by 2024," said Northam. "That's just a couple of years away, and I think that's something we can all be proud of."

That's four years earlier than originally planned under Northam’s 10-year goal to close the digital divide in Virginia. 

The money would come from Virginia’s $4.3 billion portion of American Rescue Plan funding. 

"There is no state in America that has as comprehensive of a plan and this firm of a commitment to provide broadband to every home across the Commonwealth by 2024," said Sen. Mark Warner (D-Virginia). "That is remarkable."

State lawmakers will meet next month for a special session to allocate the funding. 

Northam said Virginia has made strong progress toward achieving universal internet access, but there are still 233,500 unserved locations.

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