Kansas 2030 broadband goal aims to win new businesses and residents with high-speed internet

With an influx of federal funding for broadband development, the governor's office is championing a goal to have Kansas among the leaders in high-speed internet access by the end of the decade.

"We're being bold," said Lt. Gov. and Commerce Secretary David Toland. "We're being ambitious. We're being aggressive. Because we understand how high the stakes are. We are in a race as a state against other states, and we want to win that race so that we can win new residents, we can win new businesses and we can retain the ones that we have."

Toland said Democrat Gov. Laura Kelly's administration will soon release the state's first strategic plan for broadband expansion. The newly announced long-term goal is to put Kansas's broadband access in the top 10 of the 50 states by 2030.

"We're planting a flag, a clear marker to send a signal, not only to our residents and existing businesses, but to prospective residents and prospective businesses that we want to choose Kansas, that they're going to have some of the best internet in the country, if they come to our state."

While federal funds from the recent infrastructure bill are determined, the state's Office of Broadband Development is starting another round of grant funding with $5 million in state money.

The office, which was established last year, has overseen infrastructure investments that have led to more than 74,000 new hookups to households, businesses and community institutions.

Toland said there has been plenty of talk in the past two decades, but the Kelly administration shifted into "actually doing it and building the infrastructure and ensuring that there's equitable access to that infrastructure."

Grant funding available now

Office of Broadband Development director Stanley Adams said local officials can start applying for state grants.

The first round of the Broadband Acceleration Grant program had 14 projects selected from 38 applications across the state, splitting $5 million in award money that is combined with $5 million in local matching funds.

The 14 projects, some of which touch multiple towns, are underway and set to be completed by springtime. Communities involved include Liberal, Norwich, Altoona, Fredonia, Thayer, Elyria, Hesston, Bird City, Atwood, McDonald, Bern, Winifred, Blue Rapids, Frankfort, Americus, Barber, Haysville, Sedgwick and Zeandale.

The money comes from an $85 million state allocation over 10 years.

A second round of grant funding opened Wednesday, with $5 million available for local projects. Project leaders can apply for up to $1 million, and they must have at least an equal match in local funds.

The broadband office asks potential applicants to submit a letter of intention to apply so they can gauge the level of activity. Letters of intent are due by Jan. 14, with final applications due Feb. 11.

"I expect we will have a lot of interest in again this year," Adams said. "What we're seeing is communities are getting geared up for how they can apply for funding for this one, and for the other funds that are coming federally."

By the end of the decade is still a long way away for people who need help now.

"We are moving with a sense of urgency," Toland said. "We are trying to catch up, and not just meet where the competition is, but leapfrog them. ... We want to get as many people connected as quickly as we can and at the highest level of quality possible."

The state's broadband office does have experience with moving quickly, thanks to programs created by federal pandemic aid, Adams said. The Connectivity Emergency Response Grant added $50 million and a second program added $10 million to address connectivity for low-income households.

State officials prioritize partially on how dire the local need is, as well as how robust the proposal is.

"We have seen local communities where projects that we have done bring people to tears when they finally get connected," Adams said, "because they've been so frustrated for so long, not being able to have their kids online doing their homework, not being able to remote work."

Federal infrastructure

President Joe Biden's signature infrastructure bill had $65 billion nationally for broadband.

It is unclear what the Kansas share will be. Each state gets a minimum of $100 million, but Adams said he is "optimistic that we will get significantly more than that, because of our geography and the fact that we have such a large part of our land is in rural areas."

The funds will likely be distributed similar to the pandemic response grants, but in a less compressed timeframe.

"What we're seeing is a lot of increased interest at the local level and from the service provider community to figure out how we can close the digital divide once and for all," he said.

A consultant analysis estimated the total cost to be between $750 million and $1.3 billion, depending on several variables. The federal funds won't cover that full amount, but Adams said the large infusion can be stretched further through creative strategies.

Besides, more money wouldn't solve the problem immediately anyway. Government programs take time, and existing broadband work is running into supply chain problems.

"There's literally concerns around getting the actual fiber, because the manufacturers are maxed out in terms of producing it," Adams said. "So supply chain issues puts a practical limit on how much we can get done how quickly but, again, kind of singing the praises here of our service providers who are proactively managing that, and our federal partners also recognizing that there are limiters beyond just the dollars and cents."

Costs to build and operate

Measuring the size of the problem depends in part on definitions.

Federal regulators have set the minimum to be considered broadband at 25 megabits per second of download speed and 3 megabits per second when uploading.

But those speeds aren't ideal, especially when multiple users are on the network. Adams said state officials are going to expect grant applicants to aim higher.

Newer federal guidance has indicated a standard of 100 mbs download and 20 mbs upload, while Adams said he thinks 100 for both download and upload is better for "minimally useful broadband connectivity."

The state's broadband office is focused on defraying construction costs to help build infrastructure.

"The capital expenditure largely is what we do," Adams said, "is help provide funding to help the business case for areas that otherwise private sector just won't go and operate."

But operational costs are also a concern. Adams said the government is seeking to solve the infrastructure side of the equation in a way that helps service providers, "who know their business better than we do."

"Ultimately, some of our most rural areas, we've got to come up with a way to make it sustainable," he said.

Rural and underserved

"We're trying to eliminate geography as a barrier to access," Toland said. "So that means that whether you're in an urban setting, or whether you're in one of the most rural places in our state, you should have robust high-speed internet.

"Just like the expectation is that if you live in an urban area or a rural area that you have clean running water and that you have electricity. It's the same kind of standard of quality of life that we're trying to achieve."

Toland said broadband expansion in the 21st century is similar to rural electrification during President Franklin D. Roosevelt's New Deal.

"For thousands of years, humans lived without electricity," Toland said. "Until suddenly, in about 40 years, it became the basic expectation that all places should have access to electricity. So the federal government and state governments and local governments banded together to ensure that everybody would have that access."

Officials are targeting both rural and underserved areas. Toland said he has learned about "serious challenges" to access in Spring Hill in Johnson County and Louisburg in neighboring Miami County. Solving the problem gets bipartisan political support.

"It truly is everywhere, from an infrastructure perspective," he said. "But, you know, access issues aren't limited to geography, when it comes to whether families can afford to pay for the service.

"There's a lot of stories of a mom loading her kids in the car and driving the car to the library parking lot, where there's a hotspot, so the kids can do their homework in the backseat. We can do better than that as a state, and we have to do better than that."

Locals don't want to be left out

Toland said all levels of government need to be involved. Federally, the focus is on finding the money.

State level strategy starts with "reflects the priorities of all of our stakeholders, whether we're talking about residents and businesses, or very importantly, that it includes the perspectives of the (internet service) providers."

Local officials have a role in local permitting and rights of way.

"I think you've got cities and counties that understand that from a competitiveness perspective, they've got to have the speeds that their residents and businesses are demanding," Toland said. "And if they don't have that level of internet access, they're going to be left out in the cold."

The coronavirus pandemic highlighted the present broadband challenges facing the Kansas economy.

"Maybe the child is trying to login for school, and mom and dad is working remotely," Toland said. "And maybe there's a grandparent that's trying to do a telehealth appointment, all at the same time. That demand on the system really came out clearly.

"Frankly, it's increased the expectations of residents and businesses that we act with urgency around getting this infrastructure built. So looking to the future, I think it's very clear that the basic expectation of people and businesses is that there be high-speed internet in all places. This isn't a luxury anymore, and it hasn't been for a long time."

Jason Tidd is a statehouse reporter for the Topeka Capital-Journal. He can be reached by email at jtidd@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter @Jason_Tidd.