The Ghent Community Action Network announced Wed., May 18, the formation of a community broadband task force for Columbia County. According to the group's Facebook Page and a statement released by Ghent Town Board member Patti Matheney, Connect Columbia intends to play a role in bringing affordable broadband to the county through advocacy with local, county, state and federal officials. Members of the Connect Columbia Steering Committee include Matheney, Matthew Nelson, Ichabod Crane school board member, and regional representative to the Capital Region Regional Economic Development Council; Alexandre Petraglia, a member of the Hudson Development Corporation board; and, representatives from the Ancram, Ghent and New Lebanon broadband committees. According to July 2014 data from the New York State Broadband Program Office, 74 percent of county’s population is unserved by broadband of 6 megabits or more per second, which makes Columbia, and neighboring Greene County, the two worst served counties in the state.