ELLSWORTH — SwiftCurrent Connect, a wholly owned subsidiary of Pierce Pepin Cooperative Services (PPCS), has been awarded $2,123,388 through Wisconsin’s State Broadband Expansion Grant Program to extend high-speed, fiber-optic broadband to 807 locations in Jackson County.

The award is part of nearly $58 million in grants announced Nov. 5 by Gov. Tony Evers and the Public Service Commission of Wisconsin (PSC). The statewide funding supports 46 projects that will provide new or improved broadband service to more than 18,000 locations. This grant round is intended to reach unserved areas, including locations not covered by the federally funded Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) Program.

“The award by the Wisconsin Broadband Office to SwiftCurrent Connect and Pierce Pepin Cooperative Services is an important step in bringing reliable, high-speed broadband to rural communities in Jackson County,” said Nate Boettcher, PPCS president and CEO.

The new state grant complements $22 million awarded to SwiftCurrent Connect through the BEAD Program to serve nearly 5,000 locations. Together, these awards support SwiftCurrent’s continued expansion of fiber-optic broadband across rural western Wisconsin.

SwiftCurrent is currently working through the environmental review and permitting process for its BEAD projects and looks forward to beginning construction in 2027.

“This award demonstrates the confidence the Public Service Commission of Wisconsin has in a cooperative-based community provider like SwiftCurrent Connect,” Boettcher said. “As a community-owned cooperative, we look forward to serving residents of Jackson, Monroe, Clark, Trempealeau and Eau Claire counties and doing our part to ensure no rural resident is left behind when it comes to an essential service like fiber-optic broadband.”

Submitted by SwiftCurrent Connect