Improving
Connectivity in the
Mountain State
KATLIN SWISHER
Broadband access continues to be a challenge in West Vir-
ginia due to the state’s low population density, mountainous
topography and limited long-haul fiber, or fiber that spans
extensive geographical distances. Currently ranked 44th in the
nation by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in
terms of the percentage of population with access to broad-
band, only 82 percent of West Virginia residents have broad-
band connectivity.
In 2017, the West Virginia Legislature passed House Bill (HB)
3093, which gave communities, consumers and internet providers
the tools needed to support innovative ways of increasing high-
speed internet access across the state. While internet providers
had not found it profitable to deploy state-of-the-art broadband
services in West Virginia in the past, HB 3093 provided solu-
tions to this problem by making loan insurance available for
commercial loans used to expand high-speed internet services
and allowing providers access to the capital they needed. The
bill also expanded the role of the West Virginia Broadband
Enhancement Council in broadband deployment. With these
barriers removed and new tools in place—like the Interactive
Broadband Mapping System, West Virginia Internet Speed
Test Portal and Broadband Infrastructure Loan Insurance Pro-
gram—the Mountain State is making strides in connectivity.
Interactive Broadband Mapping System
Through partnerships with the West Virginia Department
of Commerce, West Virginia Geological and Economic Survey,
West Virginia Office of GIS Coordination and West Virginia
Office of Technology, the broadband council has created the
state’s first interactive broadband mapping system.
“The first thing we started working on as a council was the
mapping of broadband,” says Robert Hinton, executive direc-
tor of the Upshur County Development Authority and chair of
the broadband council. “That has happened previously in the
history of West Virginia, but it had been dormant for several
years. We had to figure out how much broadband has changed
in the state and where we have infrastructure.”
The West Virginia Geological and Economic Survey, with
leadership from West Virginia State GIS Coordinator Tony
Simental, conducted the mapping using data from the FCC.
According to Hinton, the maps are central to a comprehensive
approach to broadband development.
“These systems will generate the information needed to
strategically address the digital divide in West Virginia,” he
says. “Essentially, the state must accurately assess its current
broadband services, assets and opportunities to develop a com-
prehensive improvement plan.”
WWW.WVEXECUTIVE.COM
SUMMER 2018
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