Representative Bill Owens has joined with a Hudson Valley Republican to get some funding restored to the federal rural broadband program.

Owens, a Democrat from Plattsburgh, and Republican Chris Gibbon of Kinderhook, introduced an amendment to the House version of the Agriculture Appropriations Act that would restore funding to the Rural Utilities Service (RUS) Broadband Loan and Loan Guarantee program.

That amendment passed today in the House on a vote of 221-198.

The program helps municipalities and organizations in underserved, rural areas to get money for the costs of the construction, improvement, and acquisition of facilities and equipment for broadband service. The amendment to restore modest funding to the RUS loan program is supported by the American Farm Bureau, the New York State Farm Bureau, the National Telecommunications Cooperative Association, the Western Telecommunications Alliance, and the Business Council of New York State.

That program was among those proposed to be cut under Republican budget plans.

“It is critical to the future success of upstate New York that we work to invest in broadband infrastructure,” said Owens. “This amendment will give local officials and business leaders the tools they need to connect rural communities to each other and enhance access to health care, education and government facilities.”

In April, Owens joined the Development Authority of the North Country to announce the beginning of a partnership between local and federal departments that would extend infrastructure through Clinton, Essex, Franklin, Lewis, Madison, Oneida, Onondaga, and St. Lawrence counties.

St. Lawrence County Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Pat McKeown says the chamber supports such efforts.

“Ours is a sprawling county, 2,850 square miles, mostly populated by lakes, rivers and trees,” McKeown said.

“This Chamber, plus its 800 members, is involved in an effort to create a four-legged stool so that our people can compete with the more urban centers. These legs are broadband accessibility, reliable air service, good highways, and passenger/freight rail programs with reliable service and competitive pricing. We do not encourage our people to leave home in order to have what their city-dwelling counterparts have. We fear that this migration to technologically-progressive neighborhoods will decimate our rural landscape.”

“When we look at the pockets of increased economic development and medical advances in recent years, there is a direct relationship between broadband access and the success of small business, as well as the efficient delivery of health care in a region,” said Owens. “This amendment will ensure that we can continue to invest in rural economies in a fiscally responsible way.”

The RUS Broadband Loan and Loan Guarantee Program was created by Congress in the 2002 Farm Bill and was last reauthorized in the 2008 Farm Bill through 2012.

The program received $22.3 million in FY 2011. Without the Gibson-Owens amendment, the Agriculture Appropriations Act would zero out the program for fiscal year 2012. The proposed amendment restores $6 million in funding, below the amount appropriated for fiscal year 2008.

The announcement of the amendment’s passage from Owens’ office says that the amendment is fully paid for by reducing the amount U.S. Department of Agriculture spends on office space.