Telecompetitor reports on Connecticut and their plans to close the digital divide based. Their broadband coverage is good (99 percent) but adoption could use some help. Nine of Minnesota’s 87 counties had better than 99 percent coverage when I looked last year, which puts them in a similar position  Connecticut, so I thought it would be interesting to see what they are planning…

When it comes to connectivity, Connecticut (pun intended) is in the enviable situation of having 99% of its locations already powered by broadband. But statewide usage statistics — from the American Community Survey and providers’ adoption data — showed that only about 87% of its locations actually subscribe to internet. That roughly 12% gap means the state has other priorities for broadband funding than many less-well-connected states.

That’s what Connecticut’s Director of Telecommunications and Broadband Kevin Pisacich told Telecompetitor when he spoke with us recently. “We’re not just looking at access; we’re also looking at adoption and affordability.”

Here’s part of their approach, they work with other agencies at the onset…

Today, Pisacich and his four-person broadband team are embedded in the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) and work closely with other state agencies, including the Office of Policy and Management, which helps with broadband mapping and availability data; the state’s Commission for Educational Technology, which works on digital equity issues; the Office of Consumer Counsel, which helps with provider/consumer issues; and an in-house legal team.

“Our programs are really well-informed by community input,” Pisacich said, describing his office’s practice of holding statewide convenings with local leaders, Tribal leaders, and broadband providers.

Also, they are slicing up territories in a way to maximize applications that provide the best broadband affordable to an area…

In breaking up the state into workable regions, the Connecticut broadband office is asking grant applicants to propose bringing fiber to every location. But, Pisacich says, “terrestrial-based providers may not be able to serve those locations without huge costs, so they may not even bid.”

As a result, the office is allowing the islands to be separated into their own region, when needed. That way, one provider can bring fiber to the area aside from the islands, and other providers employing alternative technologies can deliver broadband to the islands.

By using this approach, Pisacich expects to receive “multiple applications, have multiple options, and then we’ll be able to get those harder locations served within the timeframe.”