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Washington County officials outline broadband changes after FCC update; tower upgrades begin
Summary
County staff described federal and state broadband rule changes that could favor low‑cost satellite providers, reported about 1,100 still‑unserved locations and gave an update on Hudson Valley Wireless tower upgrades funded by a USDA grant.
County staff updated the board on recent federal and state broadband developments, certification of unserved locations and progress on local tower upgrades.
Staff said the Federal Communications Commission issued a restructuring that relaxes some program requirements and allows low‑earth orbit satellite providers as eligible technologies. New guidance requires states to reissue RFPs within 90 days and to score cost as the primary factor; staff warned that low‑cost satellite bids could displace some terrestrial proposals. Washington County staff said they will monitor the state's reissued RFPs.
The county reported roughly 1,100 remaining locations flagged as unserved. A provider (referred to in the meeting as ConnectAll) submitted a list of about 200 addresses for removal; staff reviewed those submissions and removed about 60 addresses that appeared ineligible (for example, farm structures or parcels without roadside access), leaving about 1,000 addresses still without confirmed service.
Separately, staff said Hudson Valley Wireless has begun equipment work at several towers under a USDA grant intended to upgrade 16 towers in the county. Early upgrades in Granville, Hebron, Easton and Argyle yielded markedly higher speeds in preliminary tests; staff said the new equipment could be up to 10 times faster than previous gear. The county also discussed a possible ribbon‑cutting event and noted congressional support for the Community Project Funding that helped fund the upgrades.
