Nebraska Broadband Director Patrick Haggerty to Depart May 1
DOT Director Vicki Kramer will take over the role on an interim basis.
April 10, 2026 – Nebraska Broadband Office director Patrick Haggerty will step down on May 1, state Gov. Jim Pillen announced Wednesday.
Haggerty led the state’s broadband expansion efforts since taking the role in 2023, shortly after Pillen established Nebraska’s first broadband office. He brought more than three decades of private-sector telecommunications experience to the position.
Under Haggerty, the state secured roughly $44.5 million in federal funding and $21 million in private investment to expand broadband access to remaining unserved Nebraskans under the federal Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment program.
The state’s final proposal calls for a mix of technologies, including about 50 percent fixed wireless, 40 percent satellite, and 10 percent fiber. Engineering studies found much of the state's terrain was flat and largely treeless, suitable for lower-cost deployment alternatives, Haggerty said in January.
The state requested roughly 11 percent of its initial $405 million BEAD award, after the program was restructured by the Trump administration in June 2025.
“It has been a privilege to serve the citizens of Nebraska,” Haggerty said in a release. “In particular, being part of the process to ensure that we met all deadlines to be considered for critical federal funding to expand broadband into rural areas of our state.”
DOT Director Vicki Kramer, who has led the Nebraska Department of Transportation since 2023, will take over the role on an interim basis following Haggerty’s departure. She previously held infrastructure strategy and government relations roles at Kiewit and has experience in public policy and military service.
“I appreciate director Haggerty’s public service,” and “the leadership he provided to the broadband office,” Pillen said.
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