WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Bill Cassidy, M.D. (R-LA) and Governor Jeff Landry today announced the launch of the GUMBO 2.0 broadband program which will put into action a $1.35 billion investment that Cassidy secured in the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA). The program will expand broadband access to 100,000 homes—including 60,000 homes in rural parishes—35,000 businesses, and 4,000 community anchor institutions such as schools, hospitals, and law enforcement agencies.
“Louisianans need high-speed internet to grow their businesses and educate our children, and today we are investing in that need,” said Dr. Cassidy. “I was proud to be an integral part of securing this money for our state and am thankful to Governor Landry as he puts this $1.35 billion into action.”
“Today, we are one step closer to eliminating the digital divide in our state. GUMBO 2.0 will play a direct role in expanding access to health care, growing our state’s small businesses, providing opportunities for our citizens to engage in remote work, and integrating technology into our agricultural sector. When we win in broadband, our citizens win, our communities win, our economy wins, and we position our state to win. I am eager to see this program in action, and look forward to the economic impacts it will have on our state for generations to come,” said Governor Jeff Landry.
GUMBO 2.0 will create 8,000 to 10,000 new jobs, increase the state’s GDP by $1.3 billion, and generate $2 to 3 billion in new revenue for Louisiana companies.
Background
Cassidy announced the state would receive the $1.35 billion investment last year and has been supportive of the governor’s work to implement the funding. Only six other states, all of which have a larger population than Louisiana, have received more funding from IIJA for broadband.
The funding comes from the National Telecommunications and Information Administration’s (NTIA) Broadband Equity Access and Deployment (BEAD) program. The BEAD Program provided $42.45 billion to expand high-speed Internet access by funding planning, infrastructure deployment, and adoption programs.
While negotiating the bill, Cassidy pushed for a fair broadband formula that would benefit Louisiana’s needs and ensure the funding was directed to areas that lacked access to high-speed internet. The formula is based on the number of unserved and underserved broadband recipients in each state as determined by updated broadband internet coverage maps.
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