Raleigh, N.C. – North Carolina House Appropriations Chairman Dean Arp (R-Union) yesterday introduced a bill that would dedicate $150 million over the next decade to expand rural access to high-speed internet.

 

House Bill 398, the Growing GREAT bill, is a follow up to the 2017 Growing Rural Economies with Access to Technology (GREAT) legislation, which appropriated $10 million for the state’s Broadband Infrastructure Office for the initial year of the grant program. In addition to providing $15 million annually for the next ten years, the Growing GREAT bill makes technical changes to refine the formula used to award grants.

 

H.B. 398 is also a companion to two other bills filed by Arp on Tuesday: the School Construction and Broadband Investment Act, which calls for funding to come from State Capital and Infrastructure Fund, and the Electric Co-Op Rural Broadband Services bill, which would remove restrictions on state electrical cooperatives seeking to offer high-speed internet. 

 

“The need to expand rural broadband access in North Carolina is urgent,” said Arp. “The time for talking about it is over. Without it, these areas will be left behind in terms of jobs, education and quality of life.” 

 

Rep. John Szoka (R-Cumberland), Rep. Jason Saine (R-Lincoln) and Rep. Lisa Stone Barnes (R-Franklin, Nash) also signed on as primary sponsors.

 

“This is a continuation of last session’s initiative to speed up the deployment of high-speed internet access to rural areas of the state,” Szoka said. “We can’t rest until all citizens of the state, no matter where they live, have the opportunities that high-speed access brings to them.”

 

Barnes emphasized that broadband is vital to both education and the economy.

 

“Broadband access directly impacts our students’ education, the livelihoods of business owners, and our economy,” said Barnes. “With this bill, I am doubling-down on my commitment to enable job growth and economic prosperity, particularly in our rural communities.