State Funded Broadband Expansion To Begin Soon

LINCOLN, NE (AUGUST 10, 2021) – On Tuesday, The Nebraska Public Service
Commission (PSC), approved an Order (C-5272) issuing the 2021-2022, Nebraska Broadband
Bridge Grant Program schedule and application materials.

“Applications will be accepted beginning Thursday, September 9,” said Commission chair
Dan Watermeier. “We’ve had good participation in this process so far, and we expect that to
translate into plenty of applications.”

Per the Order, the application and program guide is now available on the Broadband Bridge
Act Grant Program page of the PSC website. Applicants must comply with all aspects of the
application package. Applications missing required elements will be rejected if the application
isn’t corrected prior to the deadline.

The deadline for applications to be filed is no later than 5 p.m., Friday, October 1. All filings
must be submitted electronically by email to < [email protected] >.  Applications
received will be posted to the Broadband Bridge Act Grant Program page of the PSC website
by October 6.

Created by the Nebraska Broadband Bridge Act (LB 388), the Nebraska Broadband Bridge
Program will provide grants to fund broadband networks in unserved and underserved areas. The Act allows public entities and private companies to enter into partnerships to apply for grant funding.

Commission Chair Watermeier said, “We look forward to receiving applications to bring
broadband access to many more Nebraskans.”