Congressman Tim Ryan announced 401,000 rural Ohioans, who were previously unserved, will gain access to high-speed broadband as a result of the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) Rural Digital Opportunity Fund auction.

$5.58M in broadband investments through the auction will come to the five counties in Ohio's 13th Congressional District.

Phase I of the auction began on October 29th, 2020 and targeted over six million homes and businesses in census blocks that are entirely unserved by voice and broadband services.

The auction allocated a total of $170,038,205.10 to expand broadband to 191,093 unserved homes and businesses across America over the next 10 years.

"Whether it's completing schoolwork, accessing job applications, banking online, or any number of other resources we access through the internet, broadband is an essential utility for every 21st century American. At a time when we have been forced to carry out more and more of our normal daily life remotely, too many Ohioans have been disadvantaged because they couldn't access the internet," said Congressman Tim Ryan. "The success of this project is a huge step in the right direction to ensure every Ohioan has the opportunity to thrive - during this pandemic and beyond. I applaud these efforts, and I will continue to support efforts to get everyone in our community covered."

In October 2020, the FCC adopted rules creating the 5G Fund for Rural America, which will distribute up to $9 billion over the next decade to bring 5G wireless broadband connectivity to unserved areas in rural America.

There will be a second phase of the auction that covers locations in census blocks that are currently partially served, as well as locations that were not funded in Phase I.