Whenever you talk about a billion-dollar project — that’s billion with a b — you know it’s ambitious enough to be truly transformational. We believe the $1.35 billion Gumbo 2.0 program to greatly expand high-quality broadband access to all corners of our state will be exactly that.
Building on a previous investment funded by the American Rescue Plan to bring broadband to Louisiana’s many underserved areas, we expect this new program, part of the $1.2 trillion 2021 Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, to be a game changer. Officials say it will bring broadband to 100,000 homes — 60,000 of them in rural parishes — 35,000 businesses and 4,000 schools, hospitals and law enforcement agencies.
This will impact everyone from kids in school to remote workers. It will enable businesses to fully and efficiently participate in the digital economy. It will allow community institutions to avail themselves of the best information and systems modern technology has to offer.
Gov. Jeff Landry and U.S. Sen. Bill Cassidy project that GUMBO 2.0 will create 8,000 to 10,000 jobs and generate $2 billion to $3 billion in new revenue for Louisiana companies. The grant program will be regulated by the state, which should mean that the money gets to those areas that most need it.
There are many folks who helped make this happen. President Joe Biden is deservedly proud of the infrastructure bill, and we thank him as well as Cassidy, a Republican who not only actively worked with the Democratic administration but steered the bill toward addressing Louisiana’s particular needs.
We only wish the rest of Louisiana’s delegation had seen fit to support a law that not only meets some of their own campaign promises but will clearly help their constituents. Among Louisiana’s eight House members and senators, only Democratic U.S. Rep. Troy Carter and Cassidy voted for the bill, while the rest of the delegation — all Republicans — painted it as a blue state boondoggle and a bad deal for states like Louisiana.
We’re grateful that Cassidy saw the wisdom of pulling a chair up to the table and making sure Louisiana's voice was heard. There’s nothing like putting party politics aside and working together to make that happen.
On that, they can follow the lead of Landry, who rarely shrinks from culture war fights but rightly recognizes that this broadband investment is another thing entirely.
“Today, we are one step closer to eliminating the digital divide in our state. GUMBO 2.0 will play a direct role in expanding access to health care, growing our state’s small businesses, providing opportunities for our citizens to engage in remote work and integrating technology into our agricultural sector,” Landry said. “When we win in broadband, our citizens win, our communities win, our economy wins and we position our state to win.”
We couldn’t agree more.