broadband

Small towns in the county have struggled with broadband access for years. Now local governments are stepping up to provide residents with internet access.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer visited the Village of Dryden in Tompkins County Wednesday.

“As we continue to come out of this pandemic, we have a once-in-a-generation opportunity to not just get back to normal, but truly transform our county."

"We actually intended to be working currently, like this fall. But because of supply chain issues, fiber is one of the things that was hit particularly hard."

Funding from the $1.2 trillion federal infrastructure package signed into law last week, will soon start making its way down to local projects, including broadband internet access.

Schumer said the $1 trillion bill would create thousands of union jobs to complete federally-funded infrastructure projects.

“There still is a digital divide, particularly in rural parts of the state, and for lower-income New Yorkers, who don’t have access or can’t afford a home subscription.”

“Getting these costs nailed down is really the next step.”

“I think this will be a magnet for small businesses to locate within the city of Binghamton because I think there’s going to be more choice for them.”

"We're going to try to make sure that it's really good broadband.”