The U.S. Treasury Department yesterday approved $119.9 million in Capital Projects Fund (CPF) money to the state of Montana and $68.3 million in CPF money to the state of North Dakota.
The $119.9 million that Montana is receiving represents the state’s entire CPF allocation. Montana will use the money for rural broadband buildouts through the ConnectMT program.
The funding is expected to go toward making service available to 61,000 locations that comprise about 47% of the unserved locations in the state.
North Dakota will use its funding for a Career and Technical Education (CTE) Multi-Purpose Community Facility Grant Program that will provide funding to establish CTE centers. The centers are intended to expand educational and career offerings to post-secondary school students and adult learners as well as to provide expanded access to telehealth in areas where these services are limited.
The state expects to be able to fund at least 12 CTE centers that will serve more than 20,000 people annually.
This is the second North Dakota Capital Projects Fund award that the U.S. Treasury has approved. Previously the state received $43.5 million in funding for the Broadband North Dakota program, which is designed to make broadband available in unserved areas.
North Dakota now has been approved for 100% of its CPF allotment.
The Capital Projects Fund has a total budget of $10 billion for infrastructure projects. States have some flexibility in how they can use the funding but must have their plans approved by the Treasury Department before they can receive funding.
