What is the Community Connect Program?
What is the Community Connect Program?
The Community Connect Program is designed to provide financial assistance to provide service at the Broadband Grant Speed (100/20) in rural, economically- challenged communities, where broadband service (25/3) does not currently exist.
Funds can be used to deploy service and to build and/or equip community centers to provide access to service for 2 years.
What is the timeline?
Applications opened 3/20 and close 6/20. Awards are anticipated in September 2023
What are the funding limits?
Broadband Project Range: $100k - $5M - This is a reimbursement program.
Project Cost Matching - 7 CFR 1739.14 - Required 15% match, must be cash.
Requirement of audited (or unaudited) financial statements from the prior 2 years.
Applications require a 5-year forecast of annual financial projections (including existing operations)
Who are the eligible applicants?
7 CFR 1739.10 - Incorporated organizations, tribes, states, local governments, legal entities
What are the eligible projects?
Evaluation criteria 7 CFR 1739.16.
Grants are awarded on a competitive basis based on scoring.
Eligible PFSAs must have less than 25/3 service.
Required deployed Grant speeds of 100/20.
Up to 10% of the grant funds can go to the required community center of 2-10 computers.
A few more key details:
Annual Project Performance Reports through project completion, then Final Report.
Annual Performance reports for 3 years.
Must provide an annual audit consistent with program guidelines.
Next Steps:
Applications must be submitted through the SAM portal, which will require a UEI.
Additional resources and references:
Community Connect Grant Website
Federal Registration Announcement
Feel free to reach out to ECC today - as your broadband consultant we’re happy to walk you through this process!