Steve Kromer, Uprise Fiber, was scheduled to be in Reno Justice Court on July 8 to face criminal charges brought against him by the Nevada Attorney General’s Office in May.
Reno reporter Joe Hart is reporting for KRNV News 4, that attorney for Kromer, Frank Toddre, has filed a motion asking Washoe District court to pause the civil proceedings so Kromer can focus efforts in his criminal defense.
“The criminal case is of primary importance to the public,” Toddre stated in the filing.
A civil lawsuit involving Uprise LLC and the Nevada Department of Transportation (NDOT) is currently in Washoe District Court and scheduled for trial in April of 2026 in front of Judge David Hardy. Kromer, faces 31 felony counts of theft related to the now-collapsed broadband project in rural Nevada.
The civil case was brought in 2023 by Comm NV, a subcontractor that alleges non-payment for work performed on the Lovelock fiber optic project. The suit names both Uprise and NDOT as defendants. NDOT has reportedly indicated it does not object to the request for a stay.
The case gained national attention earlier this year when the USDA pulled $27 million in federal funding from the project after news reports revealed that $9 million in state funding had gone missing from Uprise’s accounts. The missing funds and failed broadband expansion led to Kromer being criminally charged.
In a new twist, attorney Toddre also claimed in court filings that the Lovelock fiber optic project “has been completed by a new contractor.” But that statement has been challenged as false by Pershing County Commissioner Connie Gottschalk, who told KRNV, “The Lovelock fiber optic project has not been completed and as far as we know there is no plan for it to be completed.”
The outcome of both the civil and criminal cases could have wide-reaching implications for how state and federal broadband dollars are administered in rural communities.
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