Chairperson Strand of the Wisconsin Public Service Commission on Sept. 3 approved the commission's revised BEAD (Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment) final proposal and directed staff to finalize and submit the document to the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, including making any modifications necessary to gain NTIA approval.

The vote, made under agenda item 5 BD 20 25, comes one day before a federal submission deadline tied to guidance issued June 6 by NTIA that required states to revise earlier BEAD awards and submit new proposals within 90 days. The commission authorized staff to complete the submission process and to negotiate with NTIA as needed.

Strand said the commission's broadband team built the state's BEAD proposal over several years and carried out extensive outreach, then had to pivot after the June federal guidance. "Our hands were tied, and in order to preserve our opportunity to receive this crucial funding, these changes had to be adopted," Strand said. She thanked the broadband team, Internet service providers, local governments and tribal nations for their work and described the tight timeline staff met to comply with the revised federal rules.

Why it matters: The BEAD program, created by the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, provides federal funds for broadband deployment. The NTIA's June notice changed key program requirements — including technology neutrality, removal of a mandated low-cost service requirement, and the exclusion of local endorsements from award consideration — forcing states to revise previously planned awards. Wisconsin's revised proposal seeks to preserve the state's eligibility for BEAD funding while complying with the new guidance.

Key details discussed at the meeting: Strand summarized the state's multi-year planning and outreach: the broadband team attended more than 300 municipal meetings, engaged tribal nations, worked with the Wisconsin Technical College System on workforce development, and issued regular public updates. The commission previously approved volume 1 (location identification and challenge process) in November 2023 and volume 2 (subgrantee selection and award process) in January 2024; both were later approved by NTIA according to the timeline Strand recounted.

Strand said the commission received 35 letters of intent (30 of those were approved), 425 ISP applications in round 1 proposing service to about 95% of BEAD-eligible locations, and 259 new or amended applications in round 2; combined preliminary awards reached roughly 98% of eligible locations. Strand said planned awards from rounds 1 and 2 would have reached about 93% of eligible locations with fiber-to-the-premises service at an average cost of about $5,004 per location under the earlier design. Under the revised guidance and resulting preliminary awards, Strand said the total locations expected to receive service dropped from an anticipated 190,000 fiber locations to about 130,000 locations under the current results, with a technology breakdown she gave as 73.5% fiber, 13.3% fixed wireless and 13.2% satellite.

Strand said other major changes in the June NTIA notice removed the previously required affordability commitment (the state's original $40/month target), noting that under the new round only nine applicants proposed a low-cost option at or below $40/month and that the current average retail cost in Wisconsin is about $64/month. She also said the federal guidance eliminated local coordination and endorsements from award consideration and left uncertainty about "non-deployment" funding authorized in IIJA that supports adoption, workforce, and other non-infrastructure activities.

Discussion vs. decision: Commissioners discussed the compressed timeline and the staff's work to pivot the program to meet federal requirements. Commissioner Hawkins echoed Strand's remarks, expressing both frustration and support for staff's execution. After remarks, an unnamed commissioner moved approval of the final proposal under agenda item 5 BD 20 25; Commissioner Hawkins seconded. Chairperson Strand and Commissioner Hawkins explicitly recorded "aye" on the motion; the motion passed and the commission directed staff to finalize and submit the proposal to NTIA with flexibility to make NTIA-required changes.

What the commission did not resolve: The meeting record does not provide a roll-call showing each commissioner's final vote beyond the two recorded affirmations, nor does it include additional detail on how unresolved "non-deployment" funding will be requested or used. The transcript also contains a numeric reference to Wisconsin's total federal allocation that is garbled in the meeting record; the exact statewide allocation amount was not clearly stated in the transcript provided.

Next steps and timeline: The commission authorized staff to finalize the application for NTIA submission and to make necessary modifications to obtain NTIA approval. Strand emphasized the looming federal deadline and the expectation that staff will engage in follow-up negotiations with NTIA after submission.

Closing: Commissioners adjourned the open meeting and scheduled the next meeting for Sept. 11, 2025, at 10:30 a.m.