{"id":176585,"date":"2023-04-27T14:08:27","date_gmt":"2023-04-28T00:08:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/?p=176585"},"modified":"2023-12-29T10:43:52","modified_gmt":"2023-12-29T20:43:52","slug":"hawaii-broadband-connectivity","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/2023\/04\/27\/hawaii-broadband-connectivity\/","title":{"rendered":"Hawai\u02bbi to receive $115M<\/abbr> to improve statewide broadband connectivity"},"content":{"rendered":"Reading time: <\/span> 3<\/span> minutes<\/span><\/span>

\"Broadband<\/p>\n

The U.S.<\/abbr> Treasury Department<\/a> in partnership with Gov<\/abbr>. Green’s office announced Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> will receive about $115 million in funding to improve and expand high-speed broadband availability throughout the state as part of the $10-billion Capital Projects Fund going to jurisdictions around the country. The University of Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> leads the ʻApakau<\/span> ka lā (the spreading of the sun\u2019s rays) Initiative that will combine more than $400 million in federal grants and matching funds to ensure the state\u2019s long-term connectivity.<\/p>\n

\"hands<\/p>\n

As part of the Treasury Department funding, Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> received $5.7 million last year to begin planning. The project aims to increase capacity and reliability of broadband pipelines around the state and to build access in areas where broadband is not currently available. The majority of the Treasury funding will be invested in a new undersea cable system connecting our islands, with about $8 million expected to be spent on improving connectivity and digital literacy at Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> Public Housing Authority locations. <\/p>\n

“ UH<\/abbr> has led in bringing broadband connectivity in Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> for decades,” said UH<\/abbr> President David Lassner, “from bringing the very first internet connections to Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> to making Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> the first in the nation with fiber optic connectivity to every one of our public schools, public libraries and public higher education sites. We are incredibly proud to now be the only institution of higher education to lead these vital next steps of developing the broadband infrastructure so critical today to work, education, healthcare and economic vitality for our entire state.” <\/p>\n

“ This project funding will help us reinforce and strengthen Â鶹´«Ã½\u2019s<\/span> aging broadband pipelines and provide the foundation for future decades that will see increasing demand for internet access,” UH<\/abbr> Vice President of Information Technology and Chief Information Officer Garret Yoshimi said. <\/p>\n

“ From telehealth to distance learning, remote work, and e-commerce, so many of us are reliant upon high-quality, reliable internet service,\u201d said Lt. Gov.<\/abbr> Sylvia Luke. “ Connectivity is no longer a modern-day convenience but instrumental in our daily lives, and we must secure internet access for all. The U.S. Dept. of Treasury\u2019s release of $115 million to build a new inter-island submarine fiber optic cable system and upgrade connectivity for Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> Public Housing Authority properties across the state, coupled with the Legislature\u2019s approval of a $66 million state funding match to draw down additional federal funds, are critical in ensuring our entire state and all residents\u2014regardless of location or income\u2014remain connected to each other and the rest of the world.” <\/p>\n

The planned subsea cable system will have landing sites for additional broadband fiber connections on Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> Island, Maui, Lānaʻi,<\/span> Molokaʻi,<\/span> Oʻahu<\/span> and Kauaʻi.<\/span><\/p>\n

“ As the most isolated populated place on the planet, we face unique communications challenges and rely on submarine cables to stay connected,” said U.S.<\/abbr> Sen.<\/abbr> Brian Schatz. “ Improving our submarine cable infrastructure to ensure Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> remains connected to the world and everyone in the state can get reliable, high-speed internet has been a focus of mine, and this funding will help make that a reality.” <\/p>\n

“This investment in Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span>\u2019s broadband infrastructure will not only future protect our inter-island fiber connectivity, but there is a component of the CPF<\/abbr> project that will provide improved internet access into Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span>\u2019s public housing facilities. Thanks to the federal government, these are very exciting times for digital equity and Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span>i\u2019s digital future,” said State Broadband Coordinator Burt Lum.<\/p>\n

Some of the undersea broadband cable around the state is considered older and reaching its designed limits for providing reliable service.<\/p>\n

The ʻApakau<\/span> ka lā initiative is an umbrella name for multiple layers of work being done to strengthen and improve the broadband accessibility around the state. The project oversees the efforts in order to prevent duplication and provide better results with combined funds and effort.<\/p>\n

UH<\/abbr>, state agencies and private industry partners are working to secure more funding that will be needed to complete the long-term plan for broadband access around Â鶹´«Ã½.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The University of Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> will help deploy more broadband access around the state.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":16,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1193],"tags":[947],"class_list":["post-176585","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-administrative","tag-uh-system","entry","has-media"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/176585","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/16"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=176585"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/176585\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":189555,"href":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/176585\/revisions\/189555"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=176585"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=176585"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=176585"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}