Gov. Kemp Congratulates Central Georgia EMC and Conexon Connect On First Broadband Connection

Atlanta, GA – Today, Governor Kemp congratulated Central Georgia Electric Membership Corporation (CGEMC) and Conexon Connect as the partners celebrated their inaugural “fiber lighting” last week by connecting Monroe County and Conexon Connect’s first broadband customer on the new fiber network. The ceremony, held on Tuesday, September 28, was attended by state and local elected officials, representatives from Central Georgia EMC, Conexon Connect, and Monroe County residents.

"This is an exciting time for further expansion of access to high-speed internet across the state," said Governor Kemp. "I'm proud of the progress we've made to expand broadband across the state, but there is more work to do. Just this past February, I announced the newly formed partnership between Central Georgia EMC, Conexon Connect, and Monroe County, which was made possible by 2019’s Senate Bill 2. Less than eight months later, these partners are delivering on their promise."

"These tangible results prove that EMCs are walking the walk," said Public Service Commissioner Bubba McDonald. "In my role as a Commissioner on the Georgia Public Service Commission, we are continuing to foster a regulatory environment that expands broadband access, and it’s exciting to see projects like these begin to take shape."

"I am thankful for the leadership and quick work at Central Georgia EMC, Conexon Connect, and at the Monroe County Commission which is making broadband a reality in our area," said Rep. Susan Holmes. "Rural residents deserve access to the best high-speed internet, and with two gigabit service being offered, that is exactly what they are getting."

"Many thanks to our board of directors for their vision and confidence; to our legislators for enabling EMCs to be part of the broadband solution; to Monroe County; and the Monroe County Board of Education for their financial commitments to support our local efforts; to Conexon Connect for delivering world-class internet to rural Georgia; to the contractors who have helped keep us on schedule; and to the employees of Central Georgia EMC who have worked tirelessly to meet such a demanding schedule," said Central Georgia EMC President/CEO George Weaver.

After remarks were shared at the ceremony, a connection speed test demonstrated Conexon Connect’s two gigabit per second (2 Gbps) download speed.

Jeff and Barbara Dean of Forsyth will serve as beta customers as Conexon Connect, powered by Central Georgia EMC, expands throughout the county. Over the next few weeks, they will provide routine feedback about their experience with the internet provider’s product. They are among a small group of customers testing the service during the initial rollout.

"Once our service was turned on, we immediately connected everything," said Barbara Dean. "We were like kids at Christmas. We have been enjoying our Conexon Connect service, and our extended family is more than a little bit jealous. They are anxious to connect, as well."

Central Georgia EMC began construction on its fiber network in June 2021. The project will span 5,300 miles across 14 counties in the CGEMC territory and is expected to take four years to complete. Connect, powered by Central Georgia EMC, fiber broadband service will expand to additional Monroe County residents by mid-November 2021.

About Central Georgia EMC 
Central Georgia EMC is a member-owned cooperative providing electricity and related services to over 60,000 billed accounts in 14 counties (Bibb, Butts, Clayton, Fayette, Henry, Jasper, Jones, Lamar, Monroe, Morgan, Newton, Pike, Putnam, and Spalding).

About Conexon Connect 
Conexon Connect is the internet services provider (ISP) arm of rural fiber broadband design and construction management leader Conexon. The subsidiary was formed to operate and manage cooperative and investor-owned fiber-to-the-home networks. Connect leverages Conexon’s decades of co-op operations, fiber-optic design and construction, telecommunications, federal and state lobbying and customer experience management expertise to successfully launch and operate projects. The Connect approach is to work with electric cooperatives to launch and deploy high-speed fiber-optic networks – the gold standard of communications transmission – enabling them to offer world-class fiber broadband to 100% of their members.