USDA is investing more than $16 million to provide broadband service in unserved and underserved rural areas in Mississippi. This investment is part of the $100 million in grant funding made available for the ReConnect Pilot Program through the CARES Act.

“The need for rural broadband has never been more apparent than it is now — as our nation manages the coronavirus national emergency. Access to telehealth services, remote learning for school children, and remote business operations all require access to broadband,” said U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue.

“I am so proud of our rural communities who have been working day in and day out, just like they always do, producing the food and fiber America depends on. We need them more than ever during these trying times, and expanding access to this critical infrastructure will help ensure rural America prospers for years to come.”

In rural Mississippi, Tallahatchie Valley Electric Power Association will use a $16 million grant to deploy a fiber-to-the-premises (FTTP) network to connect 2,082 people, 331 farms, 32 businesses, a post office, and six fire stations to high-speed broadband internet in Yalobusha, Tallahatchie, Panola, Grenada and Quitman counties.

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