SALEM, Ore. — Steve Corvato, executive director of the Oregon Fiber Partnership (doing business as Link Oregon), briefed the Joint Committee on Information, Management, and Technology on May 9 about the nonprofit’s middle‑mile fiber network, its role connecting public institutions and plans to upgrade capacity for research computing.

Link Oregon was established following 2018 legislation that allowed public bodies beyond state government to access the state’s fiber network. Corvato said the partnership links state government and the four founding public research universities and has expanded to serve cities, counties, schools, libraries, special districts and nonprofit institutions. “We are a non profit organization and we did that for a reason,” Corvato told the committee, and described Link Oregon as “an advanced middle mile network.”

Why it matters: Link Oregon provides backbone infrastructure that complements last‑mile broadband funding, supports K–20 and higher‑education collaboration, enables research computing and offers resiliency for emergency and hazard detection systems.

Corvato said Link Oregon manages roughly 635 state locations and operates a network built on long‑term leases (indefeasible rights to use) of fiber acquired from multiple commercial providers. He described the organization’s current annual budget as about $8 million, with roughly $7 million for operations. State participation through Enterprise Information Services has provided about $20 million across multiple biennia; Corvato also said Link Oregon received $8.4 million from CARES Act funding in June 2020 to accelerate builds in southern and eastern Oregon.

Education and research were central topics. Corvato said Link Oregon is pursuing a state K–20 network and has been onboarding education service districts, estimating that recent additions bring the partnership to about 60% of Oregon students connected through the network. He described a planned rollout of an authentication and roaming system (eduroam/“edge roam”) to let students and faculty move between institutions and public libraries with a seamless login experience. On questions about home connectivity, Corvato said the roaming technology does not yet extend to district‑issued cellular hotspots because of current licensing conditions: "Right now, the edge of Rome does not offer that capability."

Corvato also detailed research‑computing plans tied to recent philanthropy and campus investments. He said a major donor and industry partner are funding a campus supercomputer and that Link Oregon will be the gateway for wider access. To meet the demand, the nonprofit plans a minimum viable upgrade to deliver 400‑gigabit capacity to key locations; Corvato gave a capital estimate of about $1.1 million and recurring costs of about $100,000 to begin that work.

Corvato touched on resilience and statewide gaps. He described wildfire and other infrastructure risks that can sever critical fiber and said the organization and state partners are examining redundancy and disaster recovery; he gave the example of emergency responders using Starlink terminals after a wildfire damaged fiber. He urged continued attention to middle‑mile gaps even as substantial federal last‑mile funding is deployed.

Corvato also said he will retire in about two months and that his successor has been identified but not yet announced to the committee. Lawmakers who asked questions praised Link Oregon’s role in narrowing urban–rural digital divides and asked staff to circulate a prior middle‑mile report and materials referenced during the briefing. Committee staff also said they would send information about a recent U.S. Senate action concerning E‑Rate funding for school and library Wi‑Fi hotspots.

The co‑chairs closed the informational meeting after committee members requested follow‑up materials and scheduling information about future briefings.