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Harlan County could see more than $70 million in combined economic benefits with improved broadband connectivity, according to a study resulting from a partnership between SOAR, Connect Humanity, and FarrPoint.

The FarrPoint website at https://www.farrpoint.com states FarrPoint is a team of consultants made up of technologists, data analysts and economists. The organization bases their work on well-defined use cases and business requirements to present a clear plan of action.

According to a press release, SOAR (Shaping Our Appalachian Region) partnered with FarrPoint and the nonprofit Connect Humanity to produce the report. The report shows investing in broadband connectivity is important for a county impacted by deprivation and depopulation.

“The coal industry’s decline has hit Harlan County’s economy hard,” states the release. “More than 30% of county residents have household income below the poverty line, significantly higher than the country’s 12.5% US average. The county has also seen substantial depopulation, losing more than a third (36%) of its population since 1980, currently standing below 26,000.”

Harlan County has been in the process of improving broadband for some time.

“Providing access to broadband has been a top priority for the Harlan County Fiscal Court over the last six years,” said Harlan County Judge-Executive Dan Mosley. “We are committed to continually evaluating improving this infrastructure while striving to see it more affordable for anyone who desires better connectivity. Access to broadband is as essential as access to water and electricity in today’s evolving world and broadband is critical to improving education outcomes and creating more good paying jobs.”

During the past year, Harlan County has entered into multiple contracts to extend broadband service to some of the most underserved areas of the county such as Clover Lick and Cloverfork.

“Broadband is as important as water and sewer in today’s world,” Mosley said in a previous report. “We have to have broadband for our kids to be able to learn and do their work from home. In the world we live in, it’s as essential for economic development as anything. There are 23 million people in this country working from home remotely…for people to work from home, they have to have adequate internet speeds.”

SOAR’s release mentions possible economic benefits of improved connectivity in Harlan County including:

•   Improvements to broadband infrastructure availability would drive an estimated $8.7 million economic boost. Access to quality broadband infrastructure in Harlan County is far below the US average (with 16.1% of the county unserved by broadband networks, compared to 3.8% nationally).
•   Increasing broadband adoption to levels seen in the rest of the country could lead to a further $5.6 million of economic benefit. Currently adoption rates of online services are nearly 9% below the US average.
•   Improving the availability of broadband would result in more than 1,000 people either relocating to or staying in the county, with an economic impact of over $57.2 million.

SOAR has also been involved in programs aimed at Harlan County’s depopulation issue.

“Broadband is fundamental to efforts to bring jobs, businesses, and new residents to Eastern Kentucky. When I ask people what they need to relocate or invest, high-speed internet consistently ranks top alongside housing, healthcare, and education. This report shows just how transformative connectivity investments can be for rural communities like Harlan County”, says Colby Hall, Director at SOAR.

The areas of Harlan County which are currently not covered by adequate broadband service would benefit from improved connectivity.

“In addition to infrastructure investment, the county also needs to address broadband affordability and adoption concerns to realize the full economic benefits,” says Andrew Muir, CEO of FarrPoint. “Our work has shown that increased digital adoption could result in an additional $5.6 million of economic benefits to Harlan County.”

For more information on SOAR, go to https://soar-ky.org.

Connect Humanity is a nonprofit impact fund to advance digital equity. For more information, go to  connecthumanity.fund.