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Northern Cheyenne Tribe to Receive $52M for Broadband Project

The project is expected to connect more than 1,700 homes with high-speed Internet. About 5,000 people live on the Northern Cheyenne Reservation, but only about 59 percent of households have broadband Internet subscriptions.

Broadband
(TNS) — The Northern Cheyenne Tribe will receive $52,870,390 to expand high-speed Internet infrastructure projects across the reservation.

The project is expected to connect more than 1,700 homes with high-speed Internet, according to a news release. About 5,000 people live on the Northern Cheyenne Reservation. Of those, about 59% of households have broadband Internet subscriptions.

However, those connections often lack the capacity needed for video conferencing, telemedicine or social media. The problem is especially acute in homes where children might be attending remote classes while parents need heavy-duty Internet for work.

The grant funding was allocated through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and announced by the Department of Commerce's National Telecommunications and Information Administration.

The award represents the latest investment in Internet infrastructure. In October, the Blackfeet Nation and Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes received a total of $74.8 million to enhance Internet access. Those funds are expected to connect 927 homes on the Flathead Reservation and 4,482 homes on the Blackfeet Reservation.

The Tribal Broadband Connectivity Program is a nearly $3 billion grant program, and the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law includes $65 billion for affordable, reliable high-speed Internet nationwide.

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