LINCOLN- By 2024, Nebraska's newest state agency is looking to reduce broadband service inequity throughout the state by targeting roughly 50,000 households. Patrick Haggerty, director of the Nebraska Broadband Office, told the Nebraska Legislature's Transportation and Telecommunications Committee on Wednesday that his office was finalizing data in an effort to disburse the grant funding necessary for such an endeavor.

Nebraska has received over $500 million from the federal government for broadband expansion, with the possibility for even more funding in the future, and has, through the Nebraska Public Service Commission, Nebraska Broadband Office, Nebraska Broadband Bridge Program, and the Nebraska Universal Service Fund, awarded roughly $124 million for broadband expansion efforts over the past year.

Despite concerns from state lawmakers that the newly-created Broadband Office would usurp authority from the Nebraska Public Service Commission, both Haggerty and Public Service Commissioner Dan Watermeier testified that the two groups have collaborated well since the office's creation. Sen. Tom Brandt praised the work of the Broadband Office, saying that broadband services are critical across the state, and that improving access in underserved and unserved areas will keep Nebraska competitive.

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