During a town hall meeting in North Carolina on Wednesday, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced $772.6 million in funding for projects promoting rural growth, including high-speed internet, clean water, and community facilities. The bulk of the money, $664.2 million, would go to rural water and sewer projects across the country.
The water and sewer funding will be disbursed as loans and grants through 158 rural utilities serving 913,000 people in 40 states, Puerto Rico, and the Northern Mariana Islands, said the USDA. An additional $76.6 million would go to projects in seven states to underserved communities that are part of the Rural Partners Network.
Some $51.7 million would also be spent to expand access to high-speed internet service in 17 states, said the USDA. Since early 2021, the agency has provided $3.7 billion in loans and grants through its ReConnect Program to improve access to high-speed internet service for 485,000 people in hard-to-reach rural communities. The USDA will begin accepting applications on March 22 for the fifth round of ReConnect awards.