Facing Spend-Or-Lose Deadline, Spokane County Awards $4.2 Million No-Bid Contract

The Spokane County Board of Commissioners unanimously approved a single-source, read no-bid, contract for $4.2 million dollars in a special session. The contract was awarded to New J LLC, a wireless provider operating out of Spokane, in a pilot program that all parties involved hope will become a more widely adopted model for rural broadband funding. Passing by a unanimous 5-0 vote, the funding was announced via a special session memorandum around 24 hours before the vote took place.