Kentucky State Representative Josh Branscum was in Russell County recently to get a first-hand look at progress on the Jabez community fiber optic expansion. The project is bringing gigabit broadband to the rural area with funding from a state broadband grant and matching funds from DUO Broadband, for a project total of 6.7 million dollars. The broadband grant program that came from the Kentucky state legislature and signed into law in April of 2021 selected Jabez and other underserved communities for broadband projects.

Essential Broadband

“If there was anything good that came out of COVID, it’s that we’ve seen the importance of broadband,” said Branscum. “You start looking at telehealth, if our kids have to work remotely for school, businesses, and just the things we do daily in our homes like watching television, or just getting on the Internet. It’s just essential now.”

Governor Beshear and the Kentucky Office of Broadband Development announced earlier this month the round two recipients of the Commonwealth’s Better Internet Grant Program. DUO Broadband was selected to receive $7.24 million in funding to bring fiber optic data services to 378 homes and businesses in Bliss community of Adair County.

U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Development Kentucky State Director Dr. Tom Carew this week announced two projects that will help expand high-speed internet access in parts of rural Kentucky. One project will benefit residents of Cumberland County with fiber optic Internet deployed by DUO Broadband (the other is directed toward Breathitt County). Both projects are being funded through USDA’s ReConnect program and are expected to benefit over 3,300 people.

DUO Broadband will use a $24,963,158 grant to deploy a fiber-to-the-premises network to provide high-speed internet. This network will benefit 897 people, eight businesses and 121 farms in Cumberland County.

Brendan Carr, Commissioner of the Federal Communications Commission visited Adair County on Tuesday to see first-hand how DUO Broadband is helping to build out high-speed fiber optic broadband to rural America. Carr said it was “Great to see the progress they’re making.”

The Commissioner reported that the “crew here in Adair County is building out high-speed internet to homes that only have copper DSL for broadband. They’re doing so with help from a 2020 award of $18 million.” As one of the first telecom’s in Kentucky to deploy fiber optic Internet, DUO Broadband was uniquely qualified to be part of this award.