SAN ANTONIO - Marylandian -- Bluebonnet Fiber is pleased to announce a new partnership with the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) to complete pre-construction efforts to expand broadband access to households and communities without sufficient access to internet in Duval, Frio, Jim Hogg, La Salle and Zavala Counties.  Bluebonnet estimates 6,684 residents across ten distinct communities will be positively impacted by this effort.

Without broadband access, rural residents face unique social and community challenges with documented impacts on education, income and health.  As technology becomes more integral to everyday life, communities must have access to affordable and reliable broadband for remote learning, telehealth, workforce development, emergency services, and job procurement.

Accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic, an estimated 35 million jobs nationally are remote or hybrid roles.  Those impacted by the digital divide are effectively excluded from these opportunities and with many in-person roles requiring online applications or assessments, more opportunities are lost.

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Over the next several months, the partnership between Bluebonnet Fiber and the USDA will complete activities to support universal broadband access in the area, helping improve residents quality of life.

Wyatt Ciomperlik, president of operations, remarked, "Our partnership with the USDA will help us better address the unique challenges faced by rural communities in South Texas and ensure that our plans align with the needs and expectations of local residents. We're committed to providing reliable, high-speed internet access to everyone, regardless of where they live."

As part of this partnership, residents in the impacted areas will be receiving a survey. The survey asks questions about your existing internet access, takes a few minutes to complete, requires no return postage, and should be in residents' mailboxes around Saturday July 6^th, 2024.

For more information about this initiative or to participate in the survey electronically, please visit https://www.bluebonnetfiber.net/ and click the "Connectivity Survey" link.