[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 37 (Monday, February 25, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Pages 5981-5983]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-03163]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Rural Utilities Service


Broadband Pilot Program--ReConnect Program

AGENCY: Rural Utilities Service, Department of Agriculture.

ACTION: Establishment of application deadlines, and clarification

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SUMMARY: The Rural Utilities Service (RUS) announced its general policy 
and application procedures for funding under the eConnectivity Pilot 
Program (ReConnect Program) on December 14, 2018, in the Federal 
Register. The Reconnect Program will provide loans, grants, and loan/
grant combinations to

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facilitate broadband deployment in rural areas. In facilitating the 
expansion of broadband services and infrastructure, ReConnect will fuel 
long-term rural economic development and opportunities in rural 
America. The awards made under this program will bring high speed 
broadband to the farms which will allow them to increase productivity. 
This Notice amends the original application window closing dates that 
were published in the December 14, 2018, Federal Register Notice and 
provides the anticipated date that the opening application window will 
be announced.

DATES: In March 2019, the Agency will announce the date that 
applications will start being accepted through https://reconnect.usda.gov. Please note there are three funding categories with 
each category having different application windows (as referenced in 
Section II of SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION). Please refer to the specific 
funding category for the appropriate application deadline.

ADDRESSES: The application system for electronic submissions will be 
available at https://reconnect.usda.gov.
    Electronic submissions: Electronic submissions of applications will 
allow for the expeditious review of an Applicant's proposal. As a 
result, all Applicants must file their application electronically.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For general inquiries, contact Chad 
Parker, Assistant Administrator Telecommunications Program, Rural 
Utilities Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), email: 
[email protected], telephone (202) 720-9554. You may obtain 
additional information regarding applications at https://reconnect.usda.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
    Authority: This solicitation is issued pursuant to the Consolidated 
Appropriations Act, 2018, Public Law 115-141, and the Rural 
Electrification Act of 1936, 7 U.S.C. 901 et seq.

Overview

    Federal Agency: Rural Utilities Service, USDA.
    Funding Opportunity Title: Rural eConnectivity Pilot Program 
(ReConnect Program).
    Announcement Type: Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) and 
solicitation of applications.
    Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) Number: Rural 
eConnectivity Pilot Program (ReConnect Program)--10.752.

I. Background

    On March 23, 2018, Congress passed the Consolidated Appropriations 
Act 2018 (the FY2018 Appropriations), which established a broadband 
loan and grant pilot program, the Rural eConnectivity Pilot Program 
(hereinafter the ReConnect Program). One of the essential goals of the 
ReConnect Program is to expand broadband service to rural areas without 
sufficient access to broadband, defined as 10 megabits per second 
(Mbps) downstream and 1 Mbps upstream. For this purpose, Congress 
provided RUS with $600 million and expanded its existing authority to 
make loans and grants.
    On December 14, 2018, RUS published a Funding Opportunity 
Announcement (FOA) and solicitation of applications in the Federal 
Register at 83 FR 64315. The FOA provided the policy and application 
procedures for the ReConnect Program. As announced in the FOA, the 
agency is publishing this notice to provide the final application 
windows for the ReConnect Program.

II. Funding Categories and Application Submission Dates

A. Funding Categories

1. 100 Percent Loan
    Applications will be accepted on a rolling basis through July 12, 
2019. In the event two loan applications are received for the same 
proposed funded service area, the application to arrive first will be 
considered first.
2. 50 Percent Loan/50 Percent Grant Combination
    Applications will be accepted through June 21, 2019. 
Notwithstanding overlapping applications, generally all eligible 
applications will be scored and the applications with the highest score 
will receive an award offer until all funds are expended for this 
category. Scoring criteria was established in the Federal Register 
Funding Opportunity Announcement on December 14, 2018, and can also be 
found on the website https://reconnect.usda.gov.
3. 100 Percent Grant
    Applications will be accepted through May 31, 2019. Notwithstanding 
overlapping applications, generally all eligible applications will be 
scored and the applications with the highest score will receive an 
award offer until all funds are expended for this category. Scoring 
criteria was established in the Federal Register Funding Opportunity 
Announcement on December 14, 2018, and can also be found on the website 
https://reconnect.usda.gov.

B. Available Funds

1. General
    Approximately $600,000,000 in funding has been set aside for 
funding opportunities under this FOA.
2. Funding Limits
    Award amounts under this FOA will be limited as follows:
    a. 100 Percent Loan. Up to $200,000,000 is available for loans. The 
maximum amount that can be requested in an application is $50,000,000.
    b. 50 Percent Loan--50 Percent Grant. Up to $200,000,000 is 
available for loan/grant combinations. The maximum amount that can be 
requested in an application is $25,000,000 for the loan and $25,000,000 
for the grant. Loan and grant amounts will always be equal.
    c. 100 Percent Grant. Up to $200,000,000 is available for grants. 
The maximum amount that can be requested in an application is 
$25,000,000.
    d. Reserve. Additional budget authority is available for a reserve, 
which may be used for loans or grants under this FOA, or may be 
included in additional FOAs. The agency reserves the right to increase 
funding utilizing the application queue under this FOA should 
additional appropriations become available for the same purposes.
3. Repooling
    RUS retains the discretion to divert funds from one funding 
category to another.
4. Award Period
    Awards can be made until all funds have been expended in any given 
funding category. While the completion time will vary depending on the 
complexity of the project, award recipients must complete construction 
of their projects within 5 years from the date funds are first made 
available.
5. Type of Funding Instrument
    The funding instruments will be grants, loans, and loan/grant 
combinations.

III. Program Requirements

    To be eligible for an award, applications must meet all the 
requirements contained in FOA that opened the ReConnect Program which 
was published in the Federal Register on December 14, 2018, at 83 FR 
64315. Information can also be found at https://reconnect.usda.gov.

IV. Program Clarification

    This Announcement clarifies that the appropriate State official 
referenced in Section VII(a)(9) of the FOA, included

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for reference below, is the Governor of the State. Certifications from 
anyone other than the Governor will not be accepted and the associated 
points will not be awarded.
Section VII(a)(9) State Broadband Activity (20 points)
    For projects that are in a State that has a broadband plan that has 
been updated within five years of the date of publication the Federal 
Register Funding Opportunity Announcement published on December 14, 
2018, 10 points will be awarded. An additional 5 points will be awarded 
for projects located in states that do not restrict utilities from 
delivering broadband service, and 5 more points for projects located in 
states that expedite right-of-way and environmental permitting 
requirements.
    In order to receive these points related to State government 
actions, each application will be required to submit evidence from the 
appropriate State official that a broadband plan is up-to-date and 
available on a public website, that there are no restrictions on 
utilities participating in the provision of broadband service, and that 
procedures are in place for expediting administrative activities for 
completing right-of-way and environmental permitting requirements that 
can be executed for the project if necessary, in order to meet the 
Agency's project build-out timelines. If service is proposed in 
multiple states, then evidence must be submitted from each state to get 
the appropriate points.

    Dated: February 19, 2019.
Bette B. Brand,
Acting Administrator, Rural Utilities Service.
[FR Doc. 2019-03163 Filed 2-22-19; 8:45 am]
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