Indian Electric Cooperative, Inc.

PROJECT PURPOSE

IEC seeks an ARPA grant of fifty percent (50%) of the early projected cost of $87,516,000 dollars to fund the construction of a fiber backbone with multiple paths for redundant serviceability and the distribution fiber bringing service into the homes of over 13,000 members within our service territory. The grant of $43,758,000 will fund projects in Creek, Kay, Noble, Osage, Pawnee, Payne, and Tulsa counties.

EVIDENCE

Federal and state resources are being allocated to broadband projects. USDA ReConnect programs and the new Infrastructure Bill are examples of other sources to bridge the digital divide.

POPULATION DESCRIPTION

Broadband services in our territory bring the power of the Internet to rural school children who were disproportionately affected by COVID-19 lockdowns. Rural school children did not have the same educational opportunities as well-connected areas and had to travel to community schools, libraries, and other public spaces to get connections to participate in online education. Providing broadband services allows for new services such as tele-medicine and virtual meetings to health and state services allowing for rural communities unable to receive such care without traveling the access to online services.

PERFORMANCE MEASURING

Regular reporting to the board of trustees will follow our workplan update process to ensure project performance. Our equipment will integrate into our ERP system to collect data consistent with the FCC reporting requirements to ensure speeds, availability, and bandwidth requirements are being met.

ONGOING INVESTMENT AMOUNT

$

ONGOING INVESTMENT DESCRIPTION

None

ONGOING INVESTMENT REQUIRED

One-time project will not need continued funding