Looking to bring broadband telecommunications services to under- and unserved areas in New Hampshire and northern Vermont, FairPoint Communications is the latest telecoms provider to file Broadband Initiatives Program and Broadband Technology Opportunities grant applications with the Rural Utilities Service and the National Telecommunications & Information Administration, respectively.
FairPoint filed BIP and BTOP grant applications totaling nearly $38 million, the Union Leader reported. Among the filings, one in New Hampshire worth $9.4 million aims to provide first-time broadband access to more than 6,200 households and businesses in Coos County. The second, for $1.4 million, would do similarly for more than 2,400 households and businesses in Grafton County while another, for $7.3 million, would provide first-time broadband access to more than 2,900 households and businesses in Essex and Caledonia counties in northern Vermont along the border with New Hampshire, the Times Union reports.
All applications for the $7.4 billion allocated for BTOP and BIP grants as part of the American Recovery & Reinvestment Act of 2009 will go through a three-stage review and vetting process. Initial grant award announcements are expected in this year’s Q4.