County in good shape with broadband progress

PRESCOTT – Nevada County residents have two weeks left before the deadline to challenge their access to broadband internet arrives.

Glen Howie, director of ARConnect, was in town Thursday evening to discuss the internet situation in Nevada County. He began by saying this was the 19th stop for the Broadband Roadshow this year and won’t be the last. Three things are involved to eliminate what is called the “digital divide”:  access/infrastructure; affordability and opportunity.

The Arkansas State Broadband Office defines broadband, or high-speed internet, as having transmission speeds of at least 100:20 Mbps. This is 100 Mbps download speed and 20 Mbps upload speed. Howie said there are 4,878 locations in the county, with 2,031 served by an ISP, 2,202 locations have been awarded grants and 638 locations are eligible for grants. The funding is the $1 billion from the federal government to provide internet access to Arkansans.

Affordability is an issue for some. Normally, high-speed internet costs $50 to $75 a month, which is more than some families can afford, and this doesn’t include phone or television services, only internet. The grant program, Howie said, is designed to help reduce the cost of internet to residents, and those Internet Service Providers (ISP_ applying for grants that can show they offer lower prices to customers have a better chance of being awarded a grant.

This brings the situation to opportunity. Having access to the internet is one thing, but being able to use it is another. Some people don’t understand how to turn on a computer, must less surf the web. According to Howie, as many as 275,000 Arkansans, 18-64, lack basic computer skills.

Getting back to the deadline, Howie said county residents have until April 18 to challenge internet access in their area. The first thing people need to do is go to the website broadband.arkansas.gov and run an internet speed test. This needs to be done on three consecutive days, with the results, download and upload, recorded on the site. Residents also need to check the map to see which color dot is in their area. The dots range are: blue, red, green and grey. Blue, red and green are good for the grant process. Blue and red basically mean the area is under served and no ISP having applied for a grant. Green means some company has applied. Grey means the area is served, but can still be challenged as to the accuracy of services. Regular citizens can’t challenge these results, but can get in touch with members of the local broadband committee to have it done. This can be done by calling the Prescott-Nevada County Economic Development Office. People will also need to provide bills showing exactly what they’re paying for. Howie said the more challenges, the better.

In the event covering the county with broadband internet doesn’t cost the entire $1 billion, Howie said, the remainder money can be used for other projects to benefit the public.

He told those gathered at the Nevada County Courthouse the project will open its infrastructure grant period in September and it will run longer than usual. Construction, he added, should begin in 2025 and completed in two years or less. More than 90 percent of the state, when completed, will be fiber, with the remaining 10 percent being something else. This is because of the location of residents in some places as well as the cost of providing internet access to them.

Howie, at the end of the meeting, said Nevada County is one of the best organized counties in the state when it comes to the broadband situation.