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Feeling the BEAD – States Embracing the Federal Broadband Grant Program

a working earning BEAD Program grants

In an effort to bring America fully into the digital age, the Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment (BEAD) Program was created. In essence, the BEAD Program provides $42.45 billion in state grant funding in allowing all Americans to access high-speed Internet. Though the program was launched well over a year ago, the actual fruits of the program are now being realized. State broadband expansion programs are numerous today, and many are taking full advantage of the BEAD Program grants. This even includes creating new state programs designed to match or enhance federal funding.

BEAD Program grants paying for a field worker
The BEAD Program grants means more workers in the field connecting the nation.

(Read this Bold article and learn all you need to know on the ins and outs of the BEADS Program.)

Under the BEAD Program grants, states had to develop a five-year action and digital equity plan. This meant determining how federal dollars would be spent and how unserved and underserved areas would be supported. Given that millions of dollars were at stake, all states have now created their own specific state broadband expansion program. And with the support of key stakeholders, many are now implementing these plans effectively. This doesn’t mean the process was easy or that barriers didn’t exist. But with the right personnel, many states are making tremendous progress to attain the goals of the BEAD Program.

State Barriers to Broadband Expansion

As part of the criteria to receive BEAD Program grants, states must provide high-speed Internet to all regions. This means ensuring upload speeds are at least 3 Megabytes per second (Mbps) and that downloads are a minimum of 25 Mbps. While this is easy to accomplish in densely populated areas, rural regions pose tremendous difficulties. Notably, costs are the most significant barrier to realizing the goals of state broadband expansion programs. Others involve the lack of an existing framework and at times low digital literacy levels. Because of this, state broadband expansion programs have emerged to address these issues. In fact, over two-thirds of states created broadband authority structures via legislation to better support these efforts.

a dude holding a helmet
The BEADS Program is providing the money–who’s got the technicians to do the work?

As far as most state broadband expansion programs go, each tends to target several key areas. States invest significant energy into developing broadband maps to identify unserved and underserved regions. They also construct organized frameworks on how expansions should proceed and how federal funds will be allocated. Part of the criteria of accessing BEAD Program grants include these efforts. At the same time, states are also promoting public and private partnerships and collaborations to better realize these objectives. These types of partnerships involving field services and consultants are precisely what’s accelerating progress in key states.

Notable State Broadband Expansion Programs

state broadband expansion programs and a dude on an antennae
State broadband expansion programs mean more skilled workers in the field–is the industry capable?

While all states are actively pursuing BEAD Program grants, some states have performed better than others. Louisiana became the first state to gain approval for its action and digital equity plan in December of 2023. Arizona and Texas are both pursuing legislation that hopes to provide some level of matching funds to federal dollars. For Arizona, it plans to allocate $23 million to counties with less than a million people with additional matching fund support. Texas is similarly doing the same thing with a current state bill pending. Other states like Colorado and New Mexico are addressing longstanding legislative and policy barriers. For example, prior restrictions on local governments being able to provide broadband are being removed. These are the proactive actions that the more proficient states are adopting to take advantage of BEAD Program grants.

In addition to these strategies, most states are also leveraging private talent to get the job done. Certainly, the new state broadband expansion programs have hired additional staff to assist with grant requirements. But at the same time, seeking out consultants and services to network development and hardware installation is a must. Companies like MercuryZ are expediting broadband implementation and deployment through such efforts. Thus, while states are paving the way through policy and legislative change, so too are the private sector.

Speeding Into the Digital Age

For states, having all its residents enjoy high-speed broadband Internet is a dream. Every state has pockets of unserved and underserved regions in this regard with some worse than others. But with the substantial federal BEAD Program grants, the opportunity to improve digital access and literacy now exists. States that appreciate the potential of this are aggressively investing in structures and collaborations to accelerate the process. And it’s precisely these same states that will be well-poised for success in the coming years.

 

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