Vermont is set to receive nearly $229 million in federal funding to expand broadband access — a sum that will get state officials significantly closer to their goal of connecting every resident to high-speed internet.

Vermont’s latest allotment comes through a Biden administration initiative dispersing $42.45 billion across all 50 states, the District of Columbia and five territories to expand broadband. New Hampshire, for its part, is set to get about $197 million.

In the lead-up to Monday, state officials were anxious that Vermont would see only a fraction of the funds it deserved.

Federal officials divvied up the money based on internet connectivity maps generated by the Federal Communications Commission that, according to Vermont experts, overstated the number of Vermont households that were reliably connected. State officials implored Vermonters to report to the FCC any errors they found in the maps, saying that millions of federal dollars were on the line.

Reached by phone on Monday, Christine Hallquist, the executive director of the Vermont Community Broadband Board, said Vermonters clearly heeded the advice. The board hoped the state would receive $220 million and braced itself for as little as $150 million, Hallquist told VTDigger. The allotment announced Monday surpassed their most optimistic expectations.

“After working for two decades — and I know a number of people who have worked for a number of years on this — needless to say, I’m very happy and excited,” Hallquist said.

Hallquist estimates that it will cost about $650 million to get every Vermonter reliably connected to high-speed internet. Between Monday’s $229 million and another $245 million in broadband funding that came to Vermont through the American Rescue Plan Act, Hallquist said the state is approaching its goal. Hallquist said bonding can fill the gap of about $176 million.

Hallquist said fiber optic is the most reliable and best-suited type of broadband infrastructure for Vermont’s rural landscape.

“If it’s not fiber, it’s not broadband. If you look at fiber optic internet, it by far exceeds the capacity of cable, it’s much more reliable than wireless and it’s certainly a heck of a lot better than what people are using today,” Hallquist said.

“We believe that, in investing taxpayer money, we should invest in the best technology possible. We don’t want to be replacing the network in 10 years.”