Hawaii to Net $115.5M for Broadband Projects

WASHINGTON — As one of the most isolated populated places on Earth, Hawaii has long faced a litany of unique communications challenges.

But those days — and the island state’s heavy-duty reliance on submarine cables — are on the verge of being over.

That’s because the Treasury Department on Thursday approved the allocation of $115.5 million in funding from the American Rescue Plan’s Capital Projects Fund, which will be spent on two major high-speed internet projects in the Aloha State.

According to Gov. Josh Green’s office, the state will invest $101.7 million of the funding in its Hawaii Subsea Middle Mile Program, an initiative aimed at refurbishing its existing undersea cable infrastructure and expanding the coverage it offers to areas the existing system does not reach.

Another $8 million will be invested in the Hawaii Public Housing Authority’s Connections Program, which aims to upgrade public housing facilities to provide residents with access to affordable, high-speed internet. 

“The pandemic upended life as we knew it and exposed the stark inequity in access to affordable and reliable high-speed internet in communities across the country, including rural, tribal, and other underrepresented communities,” said Deputy Secretary of the Treasury Wally Adeyemo. 

“This funding is a key piece of the Biden-Harris administration’s historic investments to increase access to high-speed internet for millions of Americans and provide more opportunities to fully participate and compete in the 21st century economy,” Adeyemo said.

The Capital Projects Fund is providing $10 billion to states, territories, freely associated states, and tribal governments to fund critical capital projects that enable work, education and health monitoring in response to the public health emergency. 

In addition to the $10 billion provided by the fund, many governments are using a portion of their State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds toward meeting the goal of connecting every household to affordable, reliable, high-speed internet. 

In accordance with the Treasury Department’s guidance, each state’s plan requires service providers to participate in the Federal Communications Commission’s new Affordable Connectivity Program. 

The Affordable Connectivity Program, funded by President Biden’s bipartisan infrastructure law, helps ensure that households can afford high-speed internet by providing a discount of up to $30 per month (or up to $75 per eligible household on tribal lands). 

The Treasury Department estimates that nearly 40% of U.S. households are eligible for the program.

To further lower costs, Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris announced last year that the administration had secured commitments from 20 leading internet service providers — covering more than 80% of the U.S. population — to offer all ACP-eligible households high-speed, reliable internet plans for no more than $30 per month. 

Households can check their eligibility and sign up at getinternet.gov.

“Access to reliable internet is critical for our keiki to be able to learn, for our kupuna to access telemedicine, and for our small businesses to access markets around the world,” said Sen. Mazie Hirono, D-Hawaii, in a written statement. 

“But too many communities in our state, especially on the neighbor islands, still do not have access to reliable internet. Our children shouldn’t have to sit in a Zippy’s parking lot just to do their homework, and this funding will help ensure they don’t have to. This investment will help keiki and families connect with their schools, their workplaces, and their loved ones. This funding is one more way Democrats are investing in our communities and helping ensure our children are set up for lifetimes of success.”

Dan can be reached at [email protected] and @DanMcCue