WASHINGTON, D.C. (WHTM) — The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) announced an estimated 327,000 rural Americans in Pennsylvania are gaining access to high-speed broadband over the next 10 years.

In Pennsylvania, the Commission’s Rural Digital Opportunity Fund Phase I auction allocated more than $368 million in support to expand broadband to 184,505 unserved homes and businesses.

The announcement stated nearly all locations in Pennsylvania that were eligible for the auction will be receiving access to broadband with speeds of at least 100 Mbps download and 20 Mbps upload, with a majority (64%) getting gigabit-speed broadband. 

U.S. (R) Sen. Marsha Blackburn, Tennessee said “Not only will it open up access to telehealth, distance learning, and remote-work opportunities, it will open up the local economy.”

“This historic auction is great news for the residents of so many rural Pennsylvania communities, who will get access to high-quality broadband service in areas that for too long have been on the wrong side of the digital divide,” said FCC Chairman Ajit Pai.  “We structured this innovative and groundbreaking auction to prioritize bids for high-speed, low-latency services to deliver the best results for rural Americans, and the results show that this strategy worked.”