Nevada is set to receive $100 million for broadband improvements. It is part of the $1.2 trillion Infrastructure Improvement and Jobs Act. A chunk of money could end up in small towns throughout the state, where high-speed internet is lacking.

"A lot of times, providers, they can't make a profit if they want to go and serve some of the rural areas," Don Vetter, Economic Recovery Coordinator for the Western Nevada Development District said. "That's what the grant monies are for."

Vetter says other grants, including the American Rescue Plan Act, could bring up to $400 million to Nevada for broadband. The money could be a game-changer for small towns like Lovelock. The Pershing County School District has high-speed internet through various state and federal grants but that is lacking in the rest of the community.

"Even our remote school in Imlay is on fiber optics but once the leave our campuses, their access to fiber optic, high-speed internet becomes a challenge," Russell Fecht, Superintendent of Pershing County School District said.

Every student in that school district has a laptop or device. Those are part of their every day classes but the slower internet speeds at many students' homes can make it difficult to do homework or communicate with their teachers.

"The pandemic put it on the forefront that without internet access, if we close our doors, our kids lose out," Fecht said.

High-speed internet affects many different aspects of life. That is why Fecht says the funding to expand broadband in rural communities in Nevada is so critical.

"The internet should be considered the same as electrical and water," Fecht said. "I think every household should have access to high quality, high-speed internet. Every business should have access to that."

Pershing County is trying to recruit more businesses to the area but the lack of fast internet is a challenge. Lovelock's economy could benefit from companies moving into its business park.

"We do have a large warehouse that we are marketing," Heidi Lusby-Angvick, Executive Director of the Pershing County Economic Development Authority said. "We'd love to see maybe logistics or cold storage or something and those all require some internet connectivity to get to their customers."

The slower internet speeds also affect current businesses in Lovelock. Lusby-Angvick says high-speed internet is a necessity for rural Nevada to compete.

"If we don't have those good speeds, it is very hard to get the communication out to the broader region and state," Lusby-Angvick said.

Like the school district, the pandemic has created technical challenges for people who work remotely or hold virtual meetings.

The need for broadband improvement goes farther than education and the economy.

"It's important for health care, it's important for education, it's important for your business," Vetter said. "You don't want to be left behind."

Vetter says the goal is to find out what areas need the services and put a plan together. Infrastructure could include towers, fiber optic cables, existing infrastructure or a hybrid.

"We want to make sure that we have projections kind of teed up and ready for that money so that we can serve areas like Pershing County, Humboldt County, even parts of Washoe County like Gerlach and Empire," Vetter said.

The funding could also impact urban areas that have less access to the internet, including neighborhoods in Reno and Sparks.

To learn more about internet speed in your area, head to nevadaspeedtest.org

 

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