USDA Considering Drawing on Infrastructure Bill Money as ReConnect Demand Increases
The USDA has been allocated $2 billion from the Infrastructure, Investment and Jobs Act.
WASHINGTON, June 9, 2022 – The acting administrator of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Rural Utilities Service said Wednesday that his office has seen so much interest in the third round for its broadband funds that it is considering drawing on other federal infrastructure funds to satisfy demand.
Christopher McLean, who joined Broadband Breakfast for its weekly event Wednesday, said the latest round for money from the ReConnect program received 305 applications requesting a total of $4.8 billion, but the program allocated only $1.15 billion for the round.
McLean said that while his office is currently evaluating the applications, it is also now considering drawing on the $2 billion the office was allocated under the Infrastructure, Investment and Jobs Act to meet the demand for builds intended to connect the underserved.
“We made an announcement that because as more funds had become available, we would reserve the right to apply additional funds to that $1.15 billion funding pool. We got far more applications than we had dollars in that initial allotment,” said McLean.
Photo of Christopher McLean and Drew Clark at Broadband Breakfast Live Online event on Wednesday.
McLean added that the USDA is expecting to announce winners for the third round this summer and is preparing to announce an additional fourth round.
In a keynote speech in Fiber Connect 2020, Chad Rupe, administrator for the RUS said that “the USDA’s RUS offers one of the cheapest, most reliable sources of capital.”
Our Broadband Breakfast Live Online events take place on Wednesday at 12 Noon ET. You can also join LIVE ONLINE in the current Broadband Breakfast Live Online event on Zoom.
Wednesday, June 8, 2022, 12 Noon ET — Preparing for Federal Broadband Funding with the Rural Utilities Service’s Christopher McLean
Broadband Breakfast’s Drew Clark will host Christopher McLean, Acting Administrator of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Rural Utilities Service for a fireside chat about broadband funding, including the ReConnect program, RUS’s long-standing mandate to improve rural telecommunications, electric and broadband infrastructure, and the way other federal programs will interact with the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act.
Guests for this Broadband Breakfast for Lunch session:
- Christopher McLean, Acting Administrator, USDA’s Rural Utilities Service
- Drew Clark (host), Editor and Publisher, Broadband Breakfast
In addition to serving as the Acting Administrator of the Rural Utilities Service, Christopher McLean also serves as the Assistant Administrator for Electric Programs at the RUS. He was named to that position on January 11, 2015. This is Chris’ third time at the agency. As AAE, Chris presides over a $46 billion loan portfolio. In recent years the RUS annual lending budget has been in excess of $5 billion. The agency makes low interest loans for rural electric infrastructure, renewable energy, smart grid and energy efficiency. Prior to his return to RUS, Chris was the Acting Director of the Program Planning and Accountability Division of the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights at the United States Department of Agriculture. He came to OASCR in 2013 as civil rights fellow in the Policy Office. From 2010-2012, Chris served as a senior advisor to the Administrator of the Rural Utilities Service. Chris was in private practice from 2001-2010. He was the co-owner of e-Copernicus, a consulting firm that specialized in telecommunications, transportation and technology policy. Chris is also the former Executive Director of the Consumer Electronics Retailers Coalition. He is also is a former RUS Administrator and former Governor of the Rural Telephone Bank. He was appointed Deputy Administrator in January 1998. In 2000, he was the first person nominated and confirmed for the position of RUS Administrator. He hails from Omaha, Nebraska. He received an LL.M. in International and Comparative Law from Georgetown University in 1985, a J.D. from Creighton University School of Law in 1982, and a degree in Business Administration from Creighton University in 1980.
Drew Clark is the Editor and Publisher of BroadbandBreakfast.com and a nationally-respected telecommunications attorney. Drew brings experts and practitioners together to advance the benefits provided by broadband. Under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, he served as head of a State Broadband Initiative, the Partnership for a Connected Illinois. He is also the President of the Rural Telecommunications Congress.
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