The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation has announced grants to 18 US states to help public libraries continue to provide no-cost access to computers and the Internet for the public. The Staying Connected challenge grants, totaling $5.8 million, are going to state library agencies in Alabama, Arizona, Colorado, Delaware, Florida, Maine, Michigan, Montana, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and West Virginia