NTIA and RUS Procedures, Conditions and Criteria for Round One of Recovery Act Broadband Funding

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (”Recovery Act”) included $7.2 billion of new spending on broadband infrastructure deployment and related broadband matters. The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) and the Rural Utility Service (RUS), a division of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, recently released a joint Notice of Funds Available (NOFA) outlining the application procedures, conditions applicable to the funding, and application evaluation criteria for the first round of Recovery Act broadband funding. Approximately $4 billion of funding is available under this NOFA. Remaining Recovery Act broadband funding is expected to be awarded in two subsequent funding rounds pursuant to separate notices. NTIA and RUS reserve the right to modify the funding rules for such subsequent funding rounds.

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