California / AIANNHCE 1195 / Federally-recognized area

Fort Independence

The full tribal profile includes the report map, demographic tables, broadband tables, FCC provider sections, and interactive charts.

97.9%25/3 availability

19.1%100/20 availability

0.0%1000/100 availability

7Fixed providers

Figure 1. Location of Fort Independence within California, with boundary detail (inset).

About the Tribal Area

Fort Independence Reservation in California is the primary broadband planning geography for this federally recognized tribe, and it spans about 0.9 square miles. FCC BDC records show 7 fixed providers and 3 mobile providers across roughly 92 service locations, and current service levels of 97.9% at 25/3 Mbps, and 19.1% at 100/20.

Tribal Area Description

Tribal lands in California are associated with Fort Independence, a federally recognized tribe. The land base is relevant for broadband planning due to rural service coverage and middle-mile access constraints.

Website Summary: fortindependence.com

Fort Independence is a sovereign nation and a federally-recognized tribe of Paiute Indians. We are the Fort Independence tribe of Paiute Indians. We are a sovereign nation and a federally recognized Native American tribe, indigenous to the Inyo County area of Eastern California. Here at Fort independence, we are taking our future into our own hands and making impactful efforts toward changes for improvement. The California Rural Indian Health Board, Inc. and the California Tribal Epidemiology Center partnered with Tazbah Chavez to produce COVID-19 public service announcements (PSA) to help raise awareness during the current public... After a long hiatus, our Tribal Council meetings are resuming. We are diversifying our portfolio to secure our Tribe’s financial security and maximize our ability to strengthen future generations. From our Elders to our youngest children, our tribal members are our greatest resources.

Table 1. Demographics

Indicator	2019	2020	2021	2022	2023	2024
Population	82	115	148	129	119	121
Households	43	48	49	41	44	44
Median age	53.0	47.3	23.9	30.8	34.3	30.1
Male / Female	43.9% / 56.1%	51.3% / 48.7%	56.8% / 43.2%	59.7% / 40.3%	58.8% / 41.2%	62.0% / 38.0%
Avg. household size	1.91	2.40	3.02	3.15	2.70	2.75
Pop. density (per sq mi)	93.9	131.7	169.5	147.8	136.3	138.6
HH density (per sq mi)	49.3	55.0	56.1	47.0	50.4	50.4

Table 2. Economic & Education

Indicator	2019	2020	2021	2022	2023	2024
Median household income	$56,250	$60,000	$53,750	$58,125	$53,750	$43,750
Per capita income	$28,956	$26,501	$22,521	$21,772	$33,180	$28,253
Poverty rate	19.5%	17.4%	18.2%	41.1%	23.5%	31.4%
Unemployment rate	0.0%	0.0%	0.0%	13.0%	7.4%	16.7%
HS diploma or higher	50.8%	50.0%	50.0%	63.0%	53.5%	57.4%
Bachelor's degree or higher	12.7%	15.3%	15.3%	16.4%	7.0%	5.9%

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates. Queried by AIANNHCE code. Population and household density are calculated from Census population or households divided by land area in square miles.

Table 3. Download/Upload Speeds (Mbps)

Period	Download	Upload
2019Q1	1.9 Mbps	1.3 Mbps
2019Q2	1.7 Mbps	2.9 Mbps
2019Q3	3.1 Mbps	1.9 Mbps
2019Q4	6.8 Mbps	3.5 Mbps
2020Q1	12.6 Mbps	8.4 Mbps
2020Q2	7.1 Mbps	2.6 Mbps
2020Q3	0.0 Mbps	0.0 Mbps
2020Q4	0.0 Mbps	0.0 Mbps
2021Q1	22.5 Mbps	1.9 Mbps
2021Q2	10.6 Mbps	2.4 Mbps
2021Q3	18.3 Mbps	1.6 Mbps
2021Q4	16.7 Mbps	4.5 Mbps
2022Q1	47.0 Mbps	4.3 Mbps
2022Q2	24.6 Mbps	6.5 Mbps
2022Q3	20.7 Mbps	3.8 Mbps
2022Q4	34.8 Mbps	8.8 Mbps
2023Q1	51.2 Mbps	8.7 Mbps
2023Q2	37.9 Mbps	6.5 Mbps
2023Q3	78.9 Mbps	72.3 Mbps
2023Q4	55.4 Mbps	16.1 Mbps
2024Q1	19.6 Mbps	3.8 Mbps
2024Q2	65.2 Mbps	11.2 Mbps
2024Q3	51.8 Mbps	4.3 Mbps

Table 4. Coverage by Tier (%)

Year	25/3	100/20	1 Gbps
2015	0.0%	0.0%	0.0%
2016	0.0%	0.0%	0.0%
2017	0.0%	0.0%	0.0%
2018	0.0%	0.0%	0.0%
2019	0.0%	0.0%	0.0%
2020	0.0%	0.0%	0.0%
2021	100.0%	0.0%	0.0%
2022	31.9%	10.6%	0.0%
2023	40.0%	0.0%	0.0%
2024	97.9%	19.1%	0.0%

Table 5. Adoption (%)

Year	All households	Low-income households
2017	47.7%	0.0%
2018	48.6%	50.0%
2019	58.1%	85.7%
2020	60.4%	87.5%
2021	57.1%	88.9%
2022	46.3%	100.0%
2023	31.8%	100.0%
2024	31.8%	100.0%

Table 6. Current Status (2024, %)

Tier	Coverage
25/3 Mbps	97.9%
100/20 Mbps	19.1%
1 Gbps	0.0%

Table 7. Comparison with National Averages (%)

Metric	Tribal	National
25/3 Mbps	97.9%	92%
100/20 Mbps	19.1%	85%
Adoption	31.8%	78%

Sources: FCC Broadband Data Collection, Ookla Open Data Initiative, and U.S. Census Bureau ACS 5-Year Estimates. National benchmarks are carried over from the report comparison section.

Figure 2. Speed Trends (2019–2024)

Figure 3. Availability (2015–2025)

Figure 4. Adoption (2017–2024)

Figure 5. Current Status (2024)

Figure 6. Comparison with National Averages

Figure 7. Fixed Coverage by Technology (25/3 Mbps)

Figure 8. Mobile Area Coverage

Notes: speed trends reflect quarterly mean throughput. Availability shows the share of population with access. Tooltips on the charts expose the underlying values for each series.

Table 8. Broadband Provider Summary

Metric	Value
Fixed broadband providers	7
Mobile broadband providers	3
Broadband serviceable locations	92

Table 9. Broadband Providers

Fixed	Mobile
AT&T Inc.	AT&T Inc.
Frontier Communications Corporation	T-Mobile USA, Inc.
T-Mobile USA, Inc.	Verizon Communications Inc.
EchoStar Corporation	—
Verizon Communications Inc.	—
Viasat, Inc.	—
Space Exploration Technologies Corp.	—

Table 10. Fixed Coverage by Technology (% of locations)

Technology	25/3	100/20	250/25	1 Gbps
Any Technology	100.0%	100.0%	100.0%	0.0%
Fiber	0.0%	0.0%	0.0%	0.0%
Cable	0.0%	0.0%	0.0%	0.0%
Fixed Wireless	50.0%	17.4%	0.0%	0.0%
Copper (DSL)	23.9%	0.0%	0.0%	0.0%
Satellite	100.0%	100.0%	100.0%	0.0%

Table 11. Mobile Coverage (% of area)

Technology	Coverage
4G LTE	100.0%
5G-NR (Speed Tier 1)	100.0%
5G-NR (Speed Tier 2)	100.0%
Total area (sq mi)	2.212

Table 8. Coverage by Tier and Technology (% of locations)

Dec. 2022

Technology	2/2	10/1	25/3	100/20
All Fixed Wireless	91.9	18.6	18.6	0.0
All Satellite	100.0	100.0	100.0	0.0
All Wired	57.0	57.0	19.8	10.5
All Wired and Licensed Fixed Wireless	95.3	64.0	31.4	10.5
Any Technology	100.0	100.0	100.0	10.5
Any Terrestrial	95.3	64.0	31.4	10.5
Cable	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0
Cable/Fiber	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0
Copper	57.0	57.0	19.8	10.5
Fiber	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0
GSO Satellite	100.0	100.0	100.0	0.0
Licensed Fixed Wireless	91.9	18.6	18.6	0.0
NGSO Satellite	100.0	100.0	100.0	0.0
Other	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0
Unlicensed Fixed Wireless	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0

June 2023

Technology	2/2	10/1	25/3	100/20
All Fixed Wireless	41.6	0.0	0.0	0.0
All Satellite	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0
All Wired	57.3	57.3	22.5	0.0
All Wired and Licensed Fixed Wireless	64.0	57.3	22.5	0.0
Any Technology	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0
Any Terrestrial	64.0	57.3	22.5	0.0
Cable	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0
Cable/Fiber	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0
Copper	57.3	57.3	22.5	0.0
Fiber	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0
GSO Satellite	100.0	100.0	100.0	0.0
Licensed Fixed Wireless	41.6	0.0	0.0	0.0
NGSO Satellite	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0
Other	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0
Unlicensed Fixed Wireless	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0

Dec. 2023

Technology	2/2	10/1	25/3	100/20
All Fixed Wireless	52.8	16.7	16.7	0.0
All Satellite	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0
All Wired	72.2	72.2	29.2	0.0
All Wired and Licensed Fixed Wireless	75.0	75.0	37.5	0.0
Any Technology	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0
Any Terrestrial	75.0	75.0	37.5	0.0
Cable	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0
Cable/Fiber	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0
Copper	72.2	72.2	29.2	0.0
Fiber	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0
GSO Satellite	100.0	100.0	100.0	0.0
Licensed Fixed Wireless	52.8	16.7	16.7	0.0
NGSO Satellite	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0
Other	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0
Unlicensed Fixed Wireless	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0

June 2024

Technology	2/2	10/1	25/3	100/20
All Fixed Wireless	52.1	50.0	50.0	13.8
All Satellite	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0
All Wired	69.2	69.2	25.5	0.0
All Wired and Licensed Fixed Wireless	73.4	73.4	55.3	13.8
Any Technology	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0
Any Terrestrial	73.4	73.4	55.3	13.8
Cable	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0
Cable/Fiber	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0
Copper	69.2	69.2	25.5	0.0
Fiber	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0
GSO Satellite	100.0	100.0	100.0	0.0
Licensed Fixed Wireless	52.1	50.0	50.0	13.8
NGSO Satellite	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0
Other	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0
Unlicensed Fixed Wireless	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0

Dec. 2024

Technology	2/2	10/1	25/3	100/20
All Fixed Wireless	57.8	57.8	57.8	15.6
All Satellite	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0
All Wired	70.0	70.0	24.4	0.0
All Wired and Licensed Fixed Wireless	74.4	74.4	60.0	15.6
Any Technology	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0
Any Terrestrial	74.4	74.4	60.0	15.6
Cable	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0
Cable/Fiber	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0
Copper	70.0	70.0	24.4	0.0
Fiber	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0
GSO Satellite	100.0	100.0	100.0	0.0
Licensed Fixed Wireless	57.8	57.8	57.8	15.6
NGSO Satellite	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0
Other	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0
Unlicensed Fixed Wireless	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0

June 2025

Technology	2/2	10/1	25/3	100/20	250/25
All Fixed Wireless	53.3	50.0	50.0	17.4	0.0
All Satellite	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0
All Wired	68.5	68.5	23.9	0.0	0.0
All Wired and Licensed Fixed Wireless	77.2	77.2	52.2	17.4	0.0
Any Technology	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0
Any Terrestrial	77.2	77.2	52.2	17.4	0.0
Cable	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0
Cable/Fiber	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0
Copper	68.5	68.5	23.9	0.0	0.0
Fiber	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0
GSO Satellite	100.0	100.0	100.0	0.0	0.0
Licensed Fixed Wireless	53.3	50.0	50.0	17.4	0.0
NGSO Satellite	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0
Other	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0
Unlicensed Fixed Wireless	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0

FCC Broadband Data Collection (BDC), June 2025 filing vintage. Coverage values show the share of residential broadband serviceable locations by technology and speed tier across D22, J23, D23, J24, D24, and J25 filings.

Source: FCC Broadband Data Collection (BDC), June 2025 Filing (J25). Fixed coverage shows the share of residential broadband serviceable locations, and mobile coverage shows the share of tribal land area.