WASHINGTON, January 4, 2024 – The National Telecommunications and Information Administration has approved Volume 1 of Delaware’s proposal for implementing the agency’s flagship broadband program.

“We’re pleased that NTIA has approved Volume 1 of Delaware’s BEAD proposal and excited to continue moving forward with these efforts,” said Roddy Flynn, Delaware Broadband Office executive director. “Making high-speed internet accessible for all Delawareans has been a top priority for Gov. John Carney. We are proud to be one of the fastest moving states, and with the support of the federal investment from BEAD we are on track to become the first to be fully-connected.”

The Infrastructure Act’s $42.5 billion Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment program makes money available to states and territories to expand broadband infrastructure, of which Delaware was allocated $107 million. States finished submitting their initial proposals for implementing the program on December 27, and the NTIA is now in the process of reviewing those proposals.

Two-step process for each state

They come in two volumes. Volume 1 details how states plan to accept and process challenges to government data on broadband availability. The Federal Communications Commission’s map, updated through its own challenge process, was used to determine relative need and make state-level allocations, but states are required under BEAD rules to field challenges on a local level to get a more accurate picture of which homes and businesses lack adequate internet access.

Virginia, Kansas, and Montana have also had Volume 1 approved, while Louisiana remains the only state to receive approval on both volumes. Volume 2 outlines plans for scoring applications and awarding grants under the program.

With its Volume 1 given the go-ahead, Delaware is free to kick off its challenge process, which the state’s broadband office said in an email it plans to do “within the next few weeks.” Like almost every other state, Delaware will be adopting the model challenge process created by the NTIA.

Challenges can allege that current data on things like the internet speed, technology type, latency, and data caps available at a location is inaccurate. They can only be submitted by nonprofits, municipal governments, and internet service providers, meaning eligible challengers must source evidence of these inaccuracies from their communities or, in the case of providers, internal plans and network management systems.

Delaware is making optional modifications outlined in the model process. It will designate any area served only by DSL – digital subscriber line – technology as “underserved,” and thus eligible for BEAD-funded projects, regardless of what speed the provider advertises. The option was included in the model to phase out copper telephone wires in favor of more future-proof broadband technologies like fiber-optic cable.

In a change from the public draft posted last year, the state’s NTIA-approved plan shows it will also be using the optional area and MDU, or multiple dwelling unit, challenges. Under these rules, if six locations in a census block group or 10 percent of the units in an apartment building challenge the same provider’s technology or coverage, the provider must provide evidence that they serve the entire block group or building as reported in government data.

WASHINGTON, December 28, 2023 – All 56 states and territories have submitted their initial proposals for implementing the $42.5 billion Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment program.

A National Telecommunications and Information Administration spokesperson told Broadband Breakfast in an email on Thursday it received all proposals by the December 27 filing deadline.

Those proposals come in two volumes, which states and territories could submit separately or together. The first volume details how the entities plan to accept and adjudicate challenges to government broadband coverage data, an effort to get an as accurate as possible picture of which homes and businesses lack adequate internet access. The second volume outlines how states and territories are looking to fund new infrastructure with their BEAD allocations.

The December 27 deadline went into effect when the NTIA formally made those allocations on June 30 – recipients were given 180 days after that notice to submit initial proposals under BEAD rules.

Now, the timeline will depend on NTIA approval of the submitted plans. Once volume one is approved, states and territories can begin their challenge processes. Most are slated to adjudicate challenges within 90 days, but the agency allows for up to 120. After receiving approval on volume two, entities will have exactly one year to review grant applications and make tentative awards, which will be submitted to the NTIA in a final proposal.

Once that final proposal gets the go-ahead, projects can start breaking ground in earnest.

Some early bird states were able to get the process started already. Louisiana got its volume one approved in September and is slated to wrap up its challenge process in the coming weeks. The state was also the first to have its volume two approved on December 15, giving it one year from that date to award grants for new broadband infrastructure.

Virginia and Kansas also received approval on their volume ones and their challenge processes are underway.

WASHINGTON, December 18, 2023 – Kansas kicked off its BEAD challenge process on Friday, becoming the third state in the nation to start refining broadband coverage data for the program.

The Infrastructure, Investment and Jobs Act’s Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment program allocates $42.5 billion among states and territories to fund broadband infrastructure in areas that lack adequate connectivity. Both are in the process of refining and submitting initial proposals for implementing the program, due to the Commerce Department by December 27.

The state’s challenge process can begin because the Commerce Department approved the first volume of its proposal, which details how Kansas will accept and process claims of incorrect broadband coverage data before funding projects with its $451 million BEAD allocation. Louisiana and Virginia received their approvals earlier this fall.

That’s a mandatory first step states and territories must take before awarding grants under the program. The Federal Communications Commission’s coverage map, which has an ongoing challenge process of its own, was used to determine relative need and allocate program funds, but is not considered accurate enough to determine which individual homes and businesses lack broadband.

Like all other states, Kansas adopted a model challenge process from the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, the Commerce agency tasked with handling BEAD. 

Challenges can allege that current data on things like the internet speed, technology type, latency, and data caps available at a location is inaccurate. They can only be submitted by nonprofits, municipal governments, and internet service providers, meaning eligible challengers must source evidence of these inaccuracies from their communities or, in the case of providers, internal plans and network management systems.

That evidence can broadly come in the form of provider documents or communications with information on service and equipment or, in the case of latency, speed tests showing an excessive delay in network communications.

Kansas is making some changes to that baseline procedure with optional provisions the NTIA laid out. The state is marking all locations served only by copper DSL as “underserved,” and thus eligible to get BEAD-funded infrastructure, in an effort to phase out older technology for the fiber cable favored by BEAD. More than 30 states are planning on doing the same, according to their draft proposals.

The state is also allowing area challenges and MDU, or multiple dwelling unit, challenges. Under these rules, if six locations in a census block group or 10 percent of the units in an apartment building challenge the same provider’s technology or coverage, the provider must provide evidence that they serve the entire block group or building as reported in government data. These two options also proved popular among states, with only 7 opting out.

Eligible organizations will be able to submit challenges to the Kansas Office of Broadband Development until January 14. The full process is slated to wrap up in February, with a 14 day window for providers to rebut challenges and a 30 window for the state to review evidence and make a final determination.

With the challenge process done, Kansas will be able to begin selecting BEAD subgrantees after volume two of its initial proposal is approved by the NTIA.