Fast internet for all plan, at $45B, takes early steps

The Biden WASHINGTON — administration is taking the first steps to release $45 bil- lion to ensure that every U.S. resident has access to highspeed internet by roughly 2028, inviting governors and other leaders on Friday to start the application process.

Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo is overseeing the distribution and said that universal access to broadband internet would be akin to the electrification of rural America during the 1930s, a recognition that the internet is a utility needed for U.S. residents to function in today’s economy.

“There’s more than 30 million Americans who don’t have internet,” Raimondo said. “And in this day and age without high-speed inter- net, you can’t go to school, can’t go to the doctor, can’t do simple things. Think of how many times in a day you Google something or go online.”

The funding is part of the $65 billion for broadband in the $1 trillion infrastructure package that President Joe Biden signed into law last November.

Raimondo is traveling to Durham, North Carolina. She’ll announce that governors can send their letters of intent to receive the broadband money. Each state would then get $5 million to help it consult with residents and write its plan.

The goal is to have states lay out a five-year timeline to provide full internet access.