- It's been a year since we found out how much BEAD money each state will get
- Only 15 states and territories have had their Initial Proposals approved, unlocking access to BEAD funds
- The slowing communications industry is pinning its hopes on BEAD money boosting revenue but the wait continues
One year has passed since the White House announced how much money each state and territory will receive from the $42.5 billion Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment (BEAD) program. But those dollars have yet to make it out the door.
“There is an undeniable tension between the urgent need to close the digital divide and the time that is required to create a well-functioning government program,” said Jake Varn, associate manager for Pew’s Broadband Access Initiative.
Thus far, BEAD has basically been a game of hurry up and wait. States didn’t get immediate access to their BEAD allocations when the figures were announced. The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) required eligible entities to submit an Initial Proposal, which is essentially an outline of the state’s objectives for broadband deployment, how it will identify unserved locations, how the state will run its grant program and more.
NTIA, which previously touted 2024 as “the year of execution” for BEAD, is still chipping away at approving those proposals.
The BEAD statute required NTIA to wait on allocating funds to states until the FCC released its updated national broadband map, an NTIA spokesperson told Fierce. Once the map became available in November 2022, NTIA gave time for states and stakeholders to review the map to make sure it was accurate before allocations were announced.
The spokesperson also noted states have had BEAD funding through planning grants since 2022 and "many states have funding or requested funding as part of the approval of their initial proposal."
According to the agency’s Initial Proposal Progress dashboard (last updated June 14), just 15 states and territories have received approval on Volume 2 of their BEAD proposals.
It's no secret that the struggling communications industry is pinning its hopes on BEAD money for a revenue boost, but funding delays could quash those hopes.
“While frustrating for broadband vendors, the process for allocated funds to trickle down into projects that break ground should have been anticipated," said Leonard Lee, executive analyst and founder at neXt Curve.
"Delays are simply part of the game and can be quite painful as we have seen with the Rip and Replace program taking years beyond plan and initial expectations," Lee told Fierce.
Indeed, getting Volume 2 greenlit allows states to request 20% or more of their allocated BEAD money and begin selecting award subgrantees. That is, the broadband providers who will build the BEAD-funded networks.
Once states get their Volume 2 approved, they have 365 days to select projects and submit a final list to NTIA for review.
So, when will BEAD deployments actually get started?
Obviously, BEAD is a large-scale endeavor with a multi-year timeline. Funding isn’t expected to start reaching projects until 2025 at the earliest, as NCTA – The Internet and Television Association, has noted.
But that hasn’t stopped media and people like Elon Musk from publicly criticizing BEAD for taking too long to connect folks to high-speed internet.
BEAD reality check
Varn told Fierce it’s important to remember BEAD is the first time Congress has set a goal and deadline for achieving universal, affordable broadband coverage. Furthermore, it’s a huge investment in internet infrastructure that won’t come again anytime soon.
And reaching universal coverage requires a lot of planning. “It is important for states and NTIA to ‘measure twice and cut once,’” Varn said.
“Our research has shown that these plans are important tools in measuring and evaluating progress, communicating with the public and facilitating public-private collaboration,” he added.
“We hope that will help avoid the mistakes of past federal programs," Varn said.
NTIA’s challenge process tracker lists the states that are actively determining which locations are eligible for BEAD funds. It also shows the states that have closed their challenge portals (but they may still be in the process of resolving challenges).
So far, 36 states and territories have closed their challenge portals and four are actively undertaking their challenge processes. Meanwhile, the industry waits patiently for now.
This story has been updated to include a comment from neXt Curve's Leonard Lee.
7/1/24: The story has been further updated to include comment from NTIA and to note states can request 20% or more of their allocated BEAD money.