Qwest, the nation's fourth largest traditional phone company, is seeking $350 million in federal stimulus funds to provide high-speed Internet service to people living in rural areas.

Qwest Communications International Inc. wants to build facilities that will serve more than 500,000 homes, schools, businesses with download speeds of 12 to 40 megabits per second.

The company said Thursday that expanded access on that scale would cost $467 million. Stimulus funds from the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Rural Utilities Service would cover 75 percent of the costs under the company proposal.

The federal stimulus bill included $7.2 billion in funding for expanding broadband.

The stimulus money is expected to be disbursed by the end of September.