The one-time rebate can make connectivity more affordable for some Albertans in hard-to-reach places
On October 13, the Government of Alberta launched the Alberta Satellite Rebate Program. Under the rebate program, around 10,000 Albertan households located in rural and remote communities that lack access to land-based high-speed internet can apply for a one-time rebate up to $1,000 to assist with the cost of buying and installing satellite internet. The Rebate Program will be open until March 31, 2027.
As a number of ground-based rural broadband expansion projects are still in progress, not all areas of rural and remote Alberta will be eligible for the rebate. For more information on the Rebate Program and to check eligibility, applicants can check their address on the Satellite Rebate Program website.
Rural residents without internet access cannot benefit from online education, remote employment, virtual healthcare, or stay in touch with their families and friends. Those rural residents are effectively forced to choose from expensive satellite internet, rely on public Wi-Fi, or use wireless devices such as smartphones to stay connected, which has its own issues.
As such, RMA has long advocated for improved access to rural broadband and has been involved in several advocacy initiatives related to this issue over the past several years, such as the development of the 2022 RMA Internet Speed Testing Report.
While major advancements have certainly been made through initiatives such as the Alberta Broadband Strategy and Alberta Broadband Fund, many households still face barriers to connectivity that existing federal and provincial initiatives have not been able to solve. Therefore, RMA supports the Satellite Rebate Program, as it provides another pathway to help bridge those gaps and help ensure more rural Albertans get connected.
However, the Satellite Rebate Program does not solve all rural broadband and connectivity issues, and RMA will continue to advocate for increased rural broadband infrastructure capacity, improved data collection and monitoring, and ensure the rural perspective is shared in other connectivity engagements, such as those put on by the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) or Innovation, Science, and Economic Development Canada (ISED).
For more information, contact RMA’s Policy and Advocacy team at advocacy@rmalberta.com or 825.319.2383.