US President Joe Biden has pledged $42.5 billion towards boosting broadband across the US.
The investment, which will be divided by the nation's 50 states and five overseas territories, is part of Biden's goal to deliver universal broadband to all Americans by 2030.
"It's the biggest investment in high-speed Internet ever. Because for today's economy to work for everyone, Internet access is just as important as electricity, or water, or other basic services," Biden said in a White House address earlier this week.
The funding is part of the Broadband Equity Access and Deployment (BEAD) program, with funding authorized by the $1.2 trillion 2021 Infrastructure Law.
The country's two most populous states, Texas and California, have been allocated the most funding at $3.1 billion and $1.9 billion respectively.
In total, 19 states will receive grants of more than $1bn including Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, and Wisconsin. Every state will receive a minimum of $107 million.
Overseas US territories will also be supported with this investment, with Puerto Rico getting the most with $334.6 million, followed by Guam with $156.8m.
According to Wisevoter, California currently suffers with the slowest broadband speeds across the US with average speeds of 93Mbps, which is considerably slower than Maryland and Virginia which boast speeds of over 500Mbps.
The US has stepped up its efforts to boost its broadband service in recent times, with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) releasing an updated broadband map last year that details coverage across the US.
