Stimulus funding for broadband questioned | News-Leader.com | Springfield News-Leader

Missouri's telecommunications industry and some Republican state senators are raising questions about Gov. Jay Nixon's plans to expand broadband Internet access to rural parts of the state.

In mid-August, Nixon endorsed a proposal by Marshfield-based Sho-Me Power to apply for $142.3 million in federal stimulus money to lay 2,500 miles of new fiber-optic cable and build 200 new wireless towers to improve access. But the plan aims to address what's known as the "middle mile" in broadband networks...