OMAHA- The Omaha Tribe of Nebraska announced Friday that it would be receiving a $38 million boost from the federal government to expand high-speed internet access, a service severely and historically underfunded and under-expanded in the region. The funding will come from the Biden administration's Internet For All initiative, which seeks to bolster internet infrastructure and connect underserved regions to national internet networks.

The Omaha Tribe, through Quick Current LLC, plans to deploy a fiber-based network that will, once finished, establish a network that serves the Omaha and Winnebago Tribes of Nebraska and Iowa. The network is planned to consist of 272 miles of new fiber, as well as 146 miles of IRU dark fiber. The project is one of 35 announced Friday, all of which will receive a chink of the $930 million Enabling Middle Mile Broadband Infrastructure Program.

U.S. Sen. Pete Ricketts lauded the announcement. "Nebraskans depend on high-speed internet for education, telehealth, entertainment, commerce, and more," he said, "This grant will move us one step closer to achieving our goal of ensuring that every Nebraska community has a chance to thrive." The Middle Mile program is run by the Department of Commerce's National Telecommunications and Information Administration, from which the funding will be distributed.

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