Gianforte Touts Efforts to Bridge Digital Divide in Montana

Statement

Congressman Greg Gianforte (R-Mont.) today continued his efforts to bridge the digital divide and expand access to reliable, high-speed broadband throughout Montana. Gianforte met with officials of Blackfoot Communications, a telecommunications provider serving customers in Montana and Idaho, at the company's headquarters in Missoula.

"I see rural broadband as critical infrastructure, mostly so we can have Montanans come back home. One thing we've learned in this COVID situation is if you have a desk job, you don't have to go to work anymore. But without broadband, you can't bring that job back to Montana," Gianforte said. "We have areas of Montana that have good broadband coverage and other areas like the Bitterroot where it's lacking. We need to identify these areas in the state with insufficient broadband and make sure we focus our resources there."

"Blackfoot was built on rural broadband. As a cooperative, we are doing everything we can to provide connectivity to people living and working in rural, western Montana. Whether it's for education, health care, or entertainment, Blackfoot is working hard to ensure people are connected to the world," said Blackfoot CEO Jason Williams.

Gianforte talked with Williams and network engineer manager Rob Feenstra about how to increase rural broadband access, emerging markets around the state, and how the company is investing in existing infrastructure. They also discussed how COVID-19 has impacted the company's business.

Gianforte also toured Blackfoot Communications' data center where he learned about the range of telecommunications services the company provides to consumers and businesses.

In Congress, Gianforte has worked to increase access to reliable broadband for all Montanans. In June, Gianforte introduced the Standard FEES Act, which establishes a common fee for processing applications to deploy communications facilities on federal property, a process that will boost connectivity for rural and frontier areas.

In March, Gianforte introduced the bipartisan Keeping Critical Connections Act to help broadband providers ensure rural broadband connectivity for students and their families during the COVID-19 outbreak.

Also in March, Gianforte called on congressional leaders to include critical Montana priorities in legislation addressing the COVID-19 outbreak and its fallout, including increasing access to broadband in rural and frontier communities to improve critical telehealth services and provide students with educational resources.

In September 2018, the Rural Broadband Permitting Efficiency Act, which Gianforte introduced with Congressman John Curtis (R-Utah), passed the U.S. House of Representatives. The bill was designed to help rural communities and Native American Tribal governments bridge the digital divide by streamlining the federal permitting process for broadband infrastructure projects.

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