A grant that is being provided by the National Telecommunications and Information Administration will help connect approximately 2,200 homes on Mississippi’s Choctaw Reservation to the internet. The $8.4 million allocation was made possible under the bi-partisan infrastructure act signed by President Biden earlier this year. Mississippi Senator Roger Wicker says this is an important step for connecting all rural Mississippians to the internet.
Senator Wicker says “With broadband access, a Mississippian can grow up, be educated here or go out of state for education, and come back to Mississippi and be part of every opportunity that the internet gives us. So it’s absolutely essential.”
Wicker says congress attempted to pass similar legislation two decades ago, but he is hopeful this current effort will be a success.
This year, lawmakers created a new state office known as BEAM, or Broadband Expansion and Accessibility of Mississippi. This grant is one part of a larger initiative by the office to bring internet access into rural areas. Andy Berke with the NTIA says these efforts are going to receive continued support on the national level.
“This is one step in a long-term process that’s going to lead to this amazing result and a transformative moment," says Berke. "100 years ago Mississippi saw what rural electrification meant to the state. Today we’re experiencing a similar type of move to see how broadband is going to change rural Mississippi, places like Tennessee, Washington state, Nebraska and all over this country.”
Chief Cyrus Ben of the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians was unable to attend the announcement, but others involved say they have a strong working partnership.
