USDA Awards $17 Million ReConnect Grant to Warm Springs Telecom for Broadband Expansion in Rural Oregon

(Portland, Ore., November 9, 2026) - U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Development Oregon State Director Jim Carmack today announced the agency is investing $17 million through a ReConnect Program grant to Warm Springs Telecom to expand access to high-speed internet.

"This project represents the power of partnership and the impact of investing in rural connectivity," said Carmack. "High-speed internet is a gateway to opportunity, and today's announcement brings those opportunities closer to hundreds of families on the Warm Springs Reservation."

Warm Springs Telecommunications Company is owned by the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs. The investment will deploy mostly aerial fiber to extend high-speed internet service to more than 150 households on the Warm Springs Reservation. Warm Springs Telecom will also build a new facility for their operations, which will have adequate space and service for security, storage, and employee workspaces. This project will expand economic opportunities as well as public safety response and improved access to education and telemedicine services in these rural and difficult-to-serve locations on the Reservation in Jefferson and Wasco Counties.

"We are incredibly grateful to the USDA for this remarkable investment in the future of the Warm Springs Reservation and our Tribal communities," said Warm Springs Telecom CEO and General Manager Tim York. "This award represents far more than expanding fiber-optic broadband to one of our most remote communities; it also allows us to establish a modern, state-of-the-art telecommunications facility that will serve as the foundation for generations of technological growth and innovation. For Warm Springs Telecom, this is a monumental milestone in our journey toward building a stronger, more connected, and technologically independent future. We are proud, excited, and deeply appreciative of the opportunity to bring these advancements to our people and ensure that our communities are not left behind in an increasingly connected world."

Warm Springs Telecom received technical assistance support from Rural Prosperity Partners headquartered in Oregon to successfully apply for funding. As a technical assistance provider, Rural Prosperity Partners received USDA funding to promote and improve high-speed internet expansion across the state, helping to secure over $44 million for internet service providers serving rural Oregon.

USDA Rural Development's ReConnect Program offers loans, grants, and loan-grant combinations to facilitate high-speed internet deployment in areas of rural America that currently do not have sufficient access to broadband.

USDA Rural Development invests in rural America with programs to promote rural prosperity. These programs expand access to high-speed internet, electricity, and infrastructure, and support economic growth, healthcare, education, housing and other community essentials. Discover more investment details and historical data in the Rural Data Gateway and learn more about the agency at www.rd.usda.gov/or .

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