Pilot broadband grant

The Department of Agriculture Rural Utilities Service awarded Alaska Telephone Company (doing business as Skagway Telephone) $33.017 million on May 6, 2026, under the Distance Learning and Telemedicine Grants program (CFDA 10.855) to deploy broadband technologies, audio and video systems, IT infrastructure, and advanced telecommunications equipment in Wasilla, Alaska. Performance concludes May 6, 2028. Alaska Telephone Company is a for-profit subsidiary of Alaska Power & Telephone Company and focuses on rural broadband deployment and telecommunications infrastructure in Alaska. This is the recipient's third Pilot Broadband Grant from USDA RUS; prior awards followed in June 2024 and August 2022. The program funds distance learning and telemedicine infrastructure to extend educational and medical services to underserved rural populations, with projects competitively selected and rated against specified scoring criteria. Applicants must be legally organized entities with capacity to contract with RUS, must not be delinquent on federal debt, and must demonstrate that benefits pass through to rural community facilities or rural residents at calculated rates. The standard project period is three years.