Empire Access is expanding its reach throughout areas in Chemung County in the next year. 

Based out of Steuben County, the Southern Tier fiber and internet company has already began services in Elmira Heights. A ribbon cutting ceremony was held Tuesday to mark the expansion. 

The local, family-owned telecommunications company offers high speed fiber internet, TV, phone services and security for portions of the Twin Tiers. 

Services will be launched in Horseheads, the City of Elmira, West Elmira and Southport in the coming year. 

This comes as New York Governor Andrew Cuomo moves to ban Charter Communications from New York State. 

“We offer competition to Spectrum and Verizon and we also offer the fastest internet in town, and people want faster internet, they want to stream videos they want to download movies, and we offer a service that is a non-blocking internet service,” Jim Baase, the chief operating officer for Empire Access, said. 

The company also says they will be adding close to 40 jobs in the area within the next few years.

Empire Access currently reaches Steuben, Schuyler, Yates, Tioga (N.Y.) Chemung and Bradford Counties.