RUNNELLS, Iowa — Nearly $150 million is on the table to help expand broadband internet access in Iowa.
And for a town of just over 450 people, life in Runnells can be pretty quiet. It makes staying connected with friends out of town tricky without reliable internet.
"It's out more than it's in ... constant thing on Runnells Peeps. If you look at our website, people are always complaining about the internet being off," said Tony Smith, a resident of Runnells.
Gov. Kim Reynolds on Monday announced grant funding from the Empower Rural Iowa Broadband Grant Program would be used to help bring faster internet around The Hawkeye State. The town of Runnells is one of the eligible sites.
Officials said that the need for improvement became crystal clear during the pandemic.
"We have a community center we opened up for during COVID. We had it open for our school kids that could go in there, and when you don't have internet, you know, it just doesn't help," said Tami Curry, city clerk of Runnells.
In total, there are 96 designated "Broadband Intervention Zones" across the state that are eligible for a portion of that funding. In Central Iowa, some of those zones include portions of Winterset, Dallas Center, and Nevada.
This is the eighth round of funding for Iowa's broadband expansion; according to the governor's office, the program has already brought broadband access to more than 109,000 schools, businesses, and homes across the state. And Iowans say that investment would be a welcome boost.
"You can't get the full HD, much less 4K video. So faster internet would mean that you would be able to get the full movies and stuff you're paying for," Smith said.
Earlier in June, Reynolds vetoed Senate File 388, which would have required the Office of the Chief Information Officer to use federal broadband standards when federal money is being used to pay for it.
In a statement, she said her veto was to allow the office to continue using state metrics instead of "often-lower standards set by the federal government."