Author: Jesse Ghost Dog

(Pine Ridge, SD) Oglala Lakota Telecommunications (OLT), a 100% tribally owned telecommunications company, announced today that two major broadband infrastructure projects totaling $54.5 million, marking one of the most significant expansions of high-speed internet access in the history of the Pine Ridge Reservation.

These transformative initiatives will expand reliable broadband service to thousands of residents, businesses, and community institutions, strengthening education, healthcare, economic development, public safety, and digital sovereignty across the region.

The combined investment includes a $19.6 million NTIA Fixed Wireless Project supported by fiber optic backhaul infrastructure and a $34.9 million Fiber-to-the-Home (FTTH) project funded through the USDA ReConnect Program.

“Getting the pilot project advanced will go a long way toward solidifying who we are as a company,” said Dwight Weston, OLT Board Secretary/Treasurer.

$19.6 Million NTIA Fixed Wireless Project

The Fixed Wireless Project will deploy advanced wireless broadband technology powered by robust fiber optic backhaul. The project will deliver reliable, high-speed internet service to 99.94% of currently unserved locations on the reservation.

By leveraging strategically placed fiber-fed wireless towers, OLT will bring scalable, high-capacity broadband to areas where traditional wired infrastructure can be difficult and time-intensive to construct. The integration of fiber backhaul ensures strong network performance, low latency, and the capacity to meet growing bandwidth demands for years to come.

“This project closes the digital divide for nearly every unserved location on Pine Ridge. Reliable broadband is no longer a luxury; it is essential infrastructure that is a human right. This $54.5 million investment secures the Oglala Lakota Nation’s digital sovereignty and ensures that our people, no matter how remote, have access to education, telehealth, economic opportunity, emergency services, and cultural preservation. We are grateful for the support of Tribal Council, each of the standing committees, and our district representatives. With their support, we are building fiber and advanced fixed wireless infrastructure that will strengthen our Nation for generations to come.” — Petra Wilson, Chairperson, OLT Board of Directors

$34.9 Million Fiber-to-the-Home ReConnect Project

OLT’s second major initiative is a $34.9 million Fiber-to-the-Home project serving a Proposed Funded Service Area (PFSA) entirely classified as Frontier and Remote Area (FAR) Level 4 — the highest level of remoteness recognized under federal broadband programs.

This future-focused fiber network will bring direct, high-speed connectivity to homes and businesses in the communities of:

• Swett
• Batesland
• Denby
• Wounded Knee
• Manderson
• Porcupine
• Sharps Corner
• The outskirts of Kyle

The service area includes approximately 4,137 people, 846 households, 13 businesses, and 9 community anchor institutions, including schools, healthcare facilities, and public service organizations.

Fiber-to-the-home infrastructure offers unmatched speed, reliability, and long-term scalability. The network will support multi-gigabit capabilities and provide the digital foundation necessary to serve future generations.

“Bringing fiber directly to homes in some of the most remote areas of our nation is transformational,” said Wilson. “This investment empowers our youth, strengthens our healthcare systems, supports tribal sovereignty, and creates the digital foundation for long-term economic growth.”

Strengthening the Future of Pine Ridge

Together, these projects represent a comprehensive strategy to expand both immediate and long-term broadband access across the reservation. By combining fixed wireless coverage for widespread reach with fiber-to-the-home infrastructure in highly remote communities, OLT is building a resilient and future-ready communications network.

Expanded broadband access will support:

• Remote education and workforce training

• Telehealth and behavioral health services

• Small business development and entrepreneurship

• Government operations and emergency response communications

• Cultural preservation and digital storytelling

• Digital sovereignty and self-determination

Construction is scheduled to begin in the spring, with service offerings launching in 2026.

Jeff Little, Vice-President of the western region of Palmetto Engineering and Consulting, LLC, one of the Nation’s top engineering-consulting Company retained by OLT, stated that “construction is scheduled to begin in the spring, with service offerings launching in 2026.”

Dustin Twiss, Vice-Chairman of the OLT Board, said that “OLT remains committed to delivering reliable, affordable telecommunications services and to building infrastructure that strengthens the social, economic, and cultural fabric of the Pine Ridge Reservation.”

Media Contact:
Tawny Zimiga, Program Manager Oglala Lakota Telecommunications, LLC
Office 605.405.0708
www.oltllc.com

BRIEF OF THE OGLALA SIOUX TRIBE AS AMICUS CURIAE IN SUPPORT OF PETITIONER SHLB COALITION

Amicus Brief PDF

The universal-service contribution scheme does not violate the Constitution’s nondelegation doctrine; Congress sufficiently guided and constrained the discretion that it lodged with the Federal Communications Commission to implement that scheme, and the FCC has retained all decision-making authority within that sphere, relying on the Universal Service Administrative Company only for non-binding advice.https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/24pdf/24-354_0861.pdf

PINE RIDGE — In an era when reliable internet is essential to economic survival and educational success, vast stretches of the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation have remained digitally dark. That’s changing—fast.

The Oglala Sioux Tribe (OST) has launched a multi-pronged broadband initiative that may be one of the most ambitious tribal connectivity campaigns in the country. Armed with more than $60 million in federal grants and a unified vision of digital sovereignty, OST is forging a new era of infrastructure self-reliance—one tower, one fiber line, one household at a time.

“The competitors had their chance to serve us,” Hughes said in an interview. “They didn’t. Now we are stepping up and doing it ourselves.”

The first tangible step in this transformation is the Internet Access Project, a pilot effort distributing 800 Starlink satellite kits to Oglala Sioux tribal households currently without internet access. The kits—offered free of charge— allow rural households to leapfrog traditional infrastructure and gain high-speed service via low-orbit satellite.

To qualify, the head of household must be an enrolled OST member and must complete a verification process through OLT. Recipients are responsible for the $90 monthly service fee, but for many, this offers the first realistic chance at reliable internet.

Customer Service Representatives will also guide applicants toward more affordable options under the federal Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP).

This is triage—getting families online while long-term infrastructure comes online.

While the Starlink rollout offers immediate relief, it is only a stopgap. The real muscle behind OST’s broadband revolution lies in the pair of major federal grants the Tribe has secured over the past year:

1. $19.6 million from the Tribal Broadband Connectivity Program (TBCP)
2. $35 million from the ReConnect Program under the U.S. Department of Agriculture

The TBCP funds are being deployed to construct a wireless broadband backbone across the reservation. The technical scope is formidable:

• 15 RAN sites (radio access network stations)
• 10 microwave links for signal backhaul
• 93 miles of fiber optic lines between key communities
• New towers capable of withstanding the punishing winds of the High Plains

Meanwhile, the ReConnect funds will lay direct fiber to 3,300 residents, 47 businesses, 55 farms, and seven educational institutions in communities like Wounded Knee, Batesland, Porcupine, and Manderson. When completed, many homes will have internet as fast and reliable as any major U.S. city.

Behind the fiber cables and satellite dishes is a deeper mission: sovereignty.

“In the 1868 Fort Laramie Treaty, the U.S. promised us ‘works of utility,’” Hughes said. “In today’s world, that includes broadband.”

Tribal attorney Mario Gonzalez agrees, citing case law that instructs treaties must be interpreted in the context of modern life.

“This isn’t just about speed,” Hughes adds. “It’s about self-determination. It’s about making sure every child can learn online, every elder can access telehealth, and every entrepreneur can build a future right here at home.”

Hughes and OLT are partnering with the Cheyenne River Telephone Authority (CRTA)—the country’s oldest tribal telco—to guide their development. The CRTA has served the Cheyenne River Reservation for over 65 years, offering a proven template for tribal-run telecom success.

The collaboration, formalized through a Memorandum of Agreement, brings technical support and institutional knowledge to the OST effort, ensuring the infrastructure is not only built—but maintained and grown with tribal oversight.

OLT currently employs 13 staff members, all enrolled members of OST, with more hiring planned. Hughes says the goal is not just connectivity, but –“digital inclusion”— helping tribal citizens gain the skills, equipment, and support needed to thrive online.

That means everything from job training to device access to IT literacy workshops.

“We’re putting Oglala to work on our digital future,” Hughes said.

And that digital future won’t be subcontracted out to faceless providers. “We’re not just the customer anymore,” he said. “We’re the provider.”

Internet access on Pine Ridge has long been a patchwork of promises and neglect. Vast areas—especially on the western and southern stretches—have never had reliable service. For years, families cobbled together cell boosters, public Wi-Fi drives, and slow DSL lines that barely supported email, let alone Zoom classrooms or telemedicine.

Then came COVID. Suddenly, the broadband gap turned deadly— isolating elders, disconnecting students, and gutting access to basic services. It was a reckoning, and one OST has not forgotten.

Thanks to ARPA funds, NTIA grants, and the determination of OST leadership, the reckoning is now turning into restoration.

The initial fixed wireless site at Wakpamni Lake/Batesland, is already under construction and expected to deliver high-speed service to 168 homes and businesses within weeks.

“We’ll have some homes connected this spring,” Hughes said. “It’s not five years away. It’s happening now.”

If Hughes and OLT have their way, in a few years every home on Pine Ridge will have highspeed internet, phone service, and television—on par with anything in Rapid City, Denver, or Minneapolis. And it will be provided by a tribally chartered company, accountable to the community it serves.

“This isn’t a federal project. This is an Oglala project,” Hughes said.

And it’s just getting started.

Originally published in Native Sun News
Written by: James Giago Davies