CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) — The clock is ticking on $4 million intended to spread high-speed internet to rural West Virginia.
The West Virginia Broadband Deployment Council has set a Friday deadline for telecommunications companies and nonprofits to apply for grants to achieve that end. The Charleston Gazette reports that no applications had been returned Wednesday.
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West Virginia has the lowest rural broadband access in the nation with nearly 60 percent of the rural population lacking access to broadband.
While many areas of West Virginia have access to high-speed Internet, the Federal Communications Commission has said that in other places like Hampshire, Hardy, Monroe and Pocahontas counties, more than 95 percent of their populations lack broadband access.
Despite the looming deadline, the council says 11 organizations have begun filling out paperwork.
