Preparing for BEAD broadband funding

Written by Gary Bolton

Through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, a once-in-a-generation $42.45-billion investment into high-speed internet access through the Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment (BEAD) Program will be available to close the digital divide and provide a future-proof telecommunications network for the country. The challenge now is preparing at the local and state levels to ensure funds go to where they are needed and are spent in an effective manner.

Some states are pressed in finding seasoned people capable of running broadband projects to staff up their offices while other are shifting modes into figuring out how to navigate the rules and regulations put out by NTIA for securing BEAD funding while keeping track of the various NOFOs, FAQs, and other inevitable modifications as stakeholders ask more questions and better understand the process.

In this process, knowledge is power, with the most accurate knowledge likely to ensure access to the most appropriate level of funding. Already, communities are being asked to check the accuracy of the latest Federal Communications Commission (FCC) broadband maps, with the data being used by NTIA to allocate additional dollars. Local communities with good granular, street-level information on current broadband availability and speeds are finding discrepancies between their ground truth and what the FCC has estimated and are going through a challenge process to get the information updated.

Previous FCC maps relied on self-reported data from internet service providers at the census tract level and counted an area served so long as it had two addresses within a square mile. The latest generation of maps incorporate ISP-reported data. Many communities say the information shows they have higher speeds than are actually available, affecting the ability to obtain funding for unserved and underserved locations.

One way local communities can help themselves is to hire a mapping or GIS consultant to help quickly verify FCC data and provide corrections where necessary. With billions of dollars in play, inaccurate maps mean funding will flow to other areas, not into local communities with a right to it.

Another necessity for making the most out of BEAD is to empower citizens to help local and state officials advocate for their communities. There are a lot of passionate people who will help their neighborhoods and towns get broadband, but they need boundaries and guidance to most effectively use the resources at their disposal. Government leaders need to view such advocates as partners, not gadflies, building collaborative efforts to make sure communities get the broadband resources they so vitally need.

For communities with initial broadband projects started with ARPA funding, BEAD provides the opportunity to leverage that initial foundation into providing high-speed fiber connectivity to the entire town or area, building out higher-cost areas and expanding beyond the initial network coverage areas ARPA enabled.

Finally, communities may not wish to be solely dependent upon federal monies to start and complete their broadband networks but to investigate other alternatives. Funding priorities can change, and service providers sometimes don’t deliver what they promised. For example, some service providers who had applied for FCC RDOF funding to provide broadband services later reneged or were otherwise disqualified, leaving the communities they were meant to serve in the lurch.

One funding source communities may wish to explore is bonds. Investors want to understand the broadband space more and are willing to get involved by providing capital to public projects at reasonable rates. Local municipalities who have recently offered bonds have been significantly oversubscribed, showing significant demand in the market.

In short, BEAD funding is providing a once-in-a-generation opportunity for the entire nation to close the digital divide. State and local leaders need to engage with community stakeholders as partners to provide informed and constructive activism. Additionally, government leaders at all levels need to consider all alternative funding sources to start and complete broadband projects.

Gary Bolton serves as president and CEO of the Fiber Broadband Association—the largest trade association in the Americas dedicated to all-fiber-optic broadband. With more than three decades in the telecom industry, Bolton joined the Fiber Broadband Association as president and CEO in 2020 after serving on the association’s board as vice chairman, treasurer and vice chairs of public policy and marketing committees. He can be reached at [email protected].