Missouri has won a $1.9 million federal grant to help expand high-speed Internet service in rural areas.
The funds will be used to map existing broadband coverage in Missouri and locate holes in high-speed access.
Missouri is seeking $142 million in federal stimulus money to expand high-speed Internet access in rural communities through a venture with a unit of Sho-Me Power Corp. of Marshfield. The proposal calls for laying 2,500 miles of fiber-optic cable and building 200 broadband towers.
Local Internet providers would hook into the system to provide coverage to homes and businesses.