Last week at the inaugural West Virginia Broadband Summit, Gov. Jim Justice announced the preliminary approval of more than $32 million under two programs of the West Virginia Broadband Investment Plan. This announcement includes applications received under the programs Line Extension Advancement and Development (LEAD) and Major Broadband Project Strategies (MBPS). LEAD and MBPS projects announced through this application cycle will provide broadband connectivity to more than 6,000 targeted locations with the deployment of approximately 793 miles of new infrastructure. In addition to grant funds awarded, over $16 million in matching funds will bring the total investment to over $48 million.