The federal government is allocating over $45 billion to help states improve broadband. State Connections was created to help state legislators navigate this opportunity.

State Connections is a working group for state legislators and their staff. Join monthly meetings to share ideas and best practices with your peers from across the country.

Discussions are led by State Rep. Louis Riggs, who draws on years of legislative experience preparing Missouri for its upcoming $1.7B federal broadband investment. Rep. Riggs is supported by Janie Dunning, former State Director for USDA Rural Development and current leader of Show Me Broadband, a coalition of farmers, municipalities, elected officials, internet service providers, and more.

The Challenge:

Broadband is complicated, expensive, and takes a long time to build.

• For years, there has been insufficient federal funding to support broadband infrastructure in rural and low-income areas. What funding was available was often used on technologies that are now out-of-date, or it was entrusted to providers that never built the promised networks. As a result, tens of millions of Americans currently live without broadband.

• States are being given an opportunity to rectify this problem. The federal government is allocating each state historically large sums of money and empowering them to address nearly every facet of the digital divide—access, affordability, and adoption. However, money alone will not solve the problem. States must first address policy issues that have historically prevented money from being used effectively—broadband definitions, staffing levels, permitting and related issues, sustainability of funds, and oversight.