During FY 2003, PTFP awarded $40.7 million to 170 projects:

• Fifty-six (56) digital television conversion grants awarding $25 million were announced in April.
• One-hundred and ten (110) radio, television and nonbroadcast distance learning grants awarding $14 million were announced in September, 2003.
• Four (4) grants awarding $1.7 million were issued on an emergency basis during the year.

RADIO AWARDS - (68 awards; $4,669,626)

• Sixty-six public radio grants were awarded in September; two equipment replacement projects were issued earlier on an emergency basis to KRZA, Alamosa, CO, and KPRG, Guam.
• Eleven awards to extend public radio signals to approximately 223,000 people unserved by public radio, plan for first service to 5,000 people, and to provide additional service to 1.7 million people. New or expanded service will be provided to the following communities:

  Yukon/Kuskokwim Delta, AK (planning) Tuba City, AZ Oxnard, CA Philo, CA Glenwood Springs, CO Norlina, NC

  Sun Valley, Hailey and Ketchum, ID Dubuque, IA Carrboro, NC Las Vegas, NV Mt. Vernon, WA

• Fifty-seven (57) projects will replace urgently needed equipment at public radio stations.
• The largest radio grant is $244,442 to Public Broadcasting of Colorado to construct a transmission facility on Sunlight Peak shared by a new station it will construct in Glenwood Springs, as well as by independent public radio stations KDNK, Cardondale, and KAJX, Aspen.

TELEVISION AWARDS (90 awards; $34,069,734)

• Fifty-six (56) projects were awarded in April; all support digital conversion projects.
• Thirty-two (32) projects were awarded in September. Nine of the September awards were to replace urgently needed equipment.
• Two equipment replacement projects were issued earlier on an emergency basis to WYIN, Gary, IN, and KUSM, Bozeman, MT.
• The year’s largest television grant is $1,790,935 to South Carolina Educational Television to continue the digital conversion of seven stations in its state network.
• The year’s largest television recipient is Montana State University which received grants totaling $2,250,281. Included in this total is an emergency grant for $1,264,031 for a satellite interconnect to replace the unforseen dismantlement of the microwave system that formerly provided statewide distribution of the Montana PBS signal. The remaining grant funds were awarded to continue the digital conversion of two public television stations.
• The total for the April and September digital television conversion awards is $30,922,311, which supported the digital conversion of 116 stations.

• SEPTEMBER DIGITAL TELEVISION CONVERSION AWARDS
  • Twenty-three (23) September awards were for digital television conversion projects in 18 states.
  • Funds were awarded to support the digital television conversion of statewide systems in ten states.

    Connecticut Iowa Montana Nebraska New Mexico

    Oklahoma South Carolina Texas Vermont West Virginia

  • Funds were awarded to support the digital television conversion of individual stations in eight states.

    Kansas Michigan Ohio Pennsylvania

    Puerto Rico Tennessee Virginia Washington

    
    

• APRIL 30, 2003 DIGITAL TELEVISION AWARDS

  • On April 30th 2003, NTIA announced $25 million in Public Telecommunications Facilities Program (PTFP) grants to assist in the digital conversion of public television.
  • Fifty-six public television digital conversion grant were awarded to organizations located in 31states
  • Grants will assist 103 public television station convert to digital broadcasting.
  • Funds were awarded to support the digital television conversion of statewide systems in 18 states:

    Alabama Arkansas Colorado Georgia Hawaii Iowa Kentucky Louisiana Mississippi

    Montana New Jersey North Carolina New Mexico Oklahoma South Carolina South Dakota Texas West Virginia

  • Digital television conversion projects also support individual stations in 13 states:

  California Florida Illinois Kansas Michigan Minnesota Missouri

  New York Ohio Pennsylvania Tennessee Virginia Washington

• Distance learning: 11 projects received $1,445,842.
• The largest distance learning award is $304,872 to the North Slope Borough School District to provide distance education and videoconferencing services among seven schools in Alaska in remote Native villages on the Arctic Coast.
• The University of Hawaii/PEACESAT received an award of $484,977 to continue distance education, videoconferencing and medical services to 22 Pacific Island nations/entities.

• In addition to the above 170 projects, NTIA awarded two grants, for a total of $2.6 million in Federal funds from a special supplemental appropriation to two stations in New York City–WNET-TV and WNYC-FM. These grants are helping to re-establish the stations’ transmission facilities that were destroyed by the September 11, 2001 terrorist attack on the World Trade Center.