A bipartisan bill to expand high-speed internet service in rural parts of the United States — the Broadband Connections for Rural Opportunities Program Act — could boost efforts in Cattaraugus and Allegany counties.
On Monday, U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., who introduced the legislation in September with co-sponsor Sen. Shelly Moore Capito, R-W.Va., visited DFT Communications in Dunkirk, which could expand its high-speed internet service faster under the Gillibrand bill.
“Reliable, fast internet access isn’t a luxury, it’s a necessity in the 21st-century economy,” Gillibrand said in a prepared statement. “This would give our rural communities access to the resources they need to get online and stay competitive in our digital economy. Lack of affordable broadband service cuts off families and businesses from critical services.”
DFT Communications has a WiMAX system that uses two-way microwave communications between tower antenna and home and business receiver-sender devices. It requires a line of sight from an antenna to a receiving dish.
DFT Communications began the WiMAX operation in the northwestern part of Cattaraugus County and neighboring towns in Chautauqua County from a Perrysburg tower antenna in August, according to Richard Zink, executive director of the Southern Tier West Regional Planning and Development Board in Salamanca.
A second provider, Southern Tier Wireless in Rushford, has expanded its initial offering of a similar tower-based internet service in Freedom to sites in neighboring Farmersville.
The Farmersville Station antenna went live three weeks ago and is now in final testing for between 30 and 40 customers, Zink said. Additional antennae are expected in Farmersville, and a tower in Machias isn’t far off that will bring coverage as far west as Ashford.
Other northeastern Cattaraugus County and western Allegany County service is also expected, Zink said.
A push to complete a service network in the southeastern part of the county — Olean, Portville, Allegany and Hinsdale — is expected over the next two or three months, Zink said.
Southern Tier West was awarded $841,350 in 2012 to help establish rural internet services in Cattaraugus, Allegany and Chautauqua counties. Its goal is to establish an infrastructure capable of servicing parts of 12 Cattaraugus County municipalities: Perrysburg, Dayton, Persia, Salamanca, Little Valley, Napoli, Mansfield, New Albion, Allegany, Carrollton, Olean and Hinsdale.
A 2008 state grant to Southern Tier West and Southern Tier Wireless has resulted in a system with 487 customers, including Swain Resort, as well as 11 other businesses; six municipalities; and 459 residents. The company hopes to reach 9,000 customers over the next few years.
The broadband act differs from previous internet infrastructure programs in that it is more of a grant than a loan, Zink said. Between 50 percent and 75 percent of the cost of a high-speed internet system would be in the form of a grant, he explained.
“It’s a possible benefit for our region,” Zink said.
It could help providers expand high-speed internet services more quickly and help keep costs lower by covering more up-front costs of a provider. It would also allow companies that hadn’t previously applied for internet funding to do so.
The act would allow for federal grants of up to 75 percent for remote, high-need areas, to be awarded in combination with loan funding already available through the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Rural Utilities Service, according to Gillibrand.
The bill also doubles the authorized funding for the Rural Utilities Service’s broadband programs to $50 million a year.
“We’ll still need to work closely with ‘last mile’ providers,” Zink said.
This could help companies now in the business as well as other looking to become an internet service provider.
Zink said that because infrastructure is a key talking point with the incoming Trump administration, the bill could fare well.
“Ultimately, it will be to the new Senate and Congress,” said Zink, unsure if the bill would pass before the end of this year.
More than 15 percent of Cattaraugus County’s population, or around 12,000 people, lacks access to high-speed internet.
Zink said an estimated 60 percent to 70 percent of the land in Allegany County — and about 20 percent of its population, or about 10,000 people — lack high-speed service.
Zink said Southern Tier Wireless is “engineering a solution” for high-speed service in the southeastern part of the county.
“We’re looking to have a plan solidified in the next month or two” for parts of Olean, Portville, Allegany and Hinsdale,” he said.
That work is part of a Cattaraugus County broadband grant.
“We’ve made strides,” Zink said. “We’ve done a lot of what we want. We need to continue to find partnerships and locations to provide Internet at a cost that is affordable.
“I think it’s coming together. Not as fast as everyone would like, but it’s finally getting to where you can see progress.”
