Program Description: 
There is a total of $7.2 billion appropriated for broadband funding in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA). This funding will not be administered at the state level but by two federal agencies. (1) The Commerce Department’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) will receive $4.7 billion to administer the “Broadband Technology Opportunities Program;” (2) The Agriculture Department’s Rural Utilities Service (RUS) will receive $2.5 billion for a broadband deployment program. The overall purposes of the broadband language in the ARRA are:

• To provide broadband service (e.g., faster Internet access) to consumers in unserved areas of the country and improved broadband service to consumers in underserved areas.
• To provide broadband education, awareness, training, access, and support to libraries, educational institutions and other organizations to facilitate greater use of broadband, including more use by low-income, unemployed, aged, and otherwise vulnerable populations.

	BROADBAND TECHNOLOGY OPPORTUNITIES PROGRAM Infrastructure Grants  (PDF Document) posted July 28th, 2009
	State Broadband Initiatives Website

State Contact: 
Melinda Stanley, KSDE
Technology Coordinator, Information Technology Team
785-296-1204  
mstanley@ksde.org 

Federal NTIA contact:
Barbara Brown
202-482-4374
bbrown@ntia.doc.gov

Additional Resources:
NTIA: Broadband Technology Opportunities Program
$7.2 Billion for Broadband (from the American Library Association)
Broadband Language in the ARRA (the complete broadband text in a more readable form)  PDF Document