New York Senator Kirsten Gillibrand was in Fonda in Montgomery County Aug. 10, discussing her Broadband Connections for Rural Opportunities Program Act, a bill she is co-sponsoring with Republican Shelley Moore Capito of West Virginia. The bill would make grant funding available for rural broadband projects in high-need areas to be awarded in combination with the current loan funding available through USDA’s Rural Utilities Service. “There is no doubt anymore that students in today’s world must have access to high-speed internet in order to get ahead, but there are still too many families in the Fulton-Montgomery region that lack access to this essential technology,” said Senator Gillibrand. “The Broadband Connections for Rural Opportunities Program Act would bring much-needed federal funding to rural communities that want to install broadband internet but don’t have the resources to do it on their own. I am proud to lead this bipartisan legislation in the Senate, and I urge all New Yorkers to join me in raising their voices about the importance of broadband internet in our rural communities.” The bill was introduced last September, and has not moved in the Senate since.