Governor Jeff Landy is holding a press conference today to announce the launch of Gumbo 2.0. Marksville Representative Daryl Deshotel, who has been instrumental in improving broadband access around the state, says the program will allow for the distribution of $1.35 billion in funding to support broadband access throughout the state.
“Louisiana has the number one broadband program in the country. It’s a really good time for Louisiana and I’m extremely proud that Louisiana is number one in a good positive way.”
Funding for GUMBO 2.0 came from the federal Infrastructure Act approved in 2021.
“Louisianans need high-speed internet to grow their businesses and educate our children, and today we are investing in that need,” said U.S Senator Bill 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.”
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.
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
Deshotel says that this funding will bring internet connectivity to every home and business across Louisiana.
“We are pretty confident that we will have enough money to close the digital divide.”
Governor Landry’s press conference is at 11 AM Monday.
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