NORWICH, N.Y. (WBNG) — Chenango County has been working on broadband expansion since the COVID-19 pandemic era.
According to Shane Butler, the Director of Planning at the county’s planning department, they have been awarded grants in the past to help those who need it most.
To Butler, expanding broadband is important for Chenango County.
“{For} telehealth, just working from home in general, people in rural areas have a real struggle when it comes to broadband access and just trying to carry out their day-to-day lives,” Butler said.
More than $630 million has been invested in the state to expand broadband access.
Senator Kirstin Gillibrand said high-speed internet isn’t a luxury, it’s a necessity.
“It’s a fundamental necessity and I think it should be a public utility exactly like the way people are entitled to water service and electricity, I think they should be entitled to broadband,” Gillibrand said.
In total, Chenango County received about $30 million. When combined with Otsego County, they received about $80 million, which is a 5th of the total grant money in New York State.
In Chenango, the following will receive the grant money to expand broadband: CBN Geneva, LLC, Telecommunications of New York, Inc., IBT Group USA, LLC and Space Exploration Technologies Corp.
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