Kansas Commerce outlines $662 million in broadband projects and remaining coverage gaps

Rachel Willis, director of legislative affairs at the Kansas Department of Commerce, told the Kansas Senate Committee on Utilities on Oct. 12 that the state is administering nine broadband programs with 86 active projects and an anticipated total investment of about $661,900,000 that officials estimate will connect more than 100,000 homes and businesses by fiscal year 2026.

Willis said the Department of Commerce manages a mix of state and federal funds, including the state's Broadband Acceleration Grant (BAG) program, ARPA allocations and larger federal programs such as the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act.

"We really think of broadband ... as a utility," Willis said, arguing the state must continue to invest in deployment and long-term maintenance to keep rural communities and businesses competitive.

Context: the department reported that BAG is the only state-funded broadband program and that its statute initially allocated $5 million per year for the first three years (2021–2023), followed by $10 million annually for the subsequent seven years. Willis said BAG and other programs require matching funds and that to date the BAG program has connected 11,036 homes and businesses with roughly $56 million in state and matching funds.

Willis described federal grants the department is managing: ARPA capital projects funds, a $30 million "LINK" program for infrastructure, USDA technical-assistance grants for rural pre-engineering studies, and a digital-skills program (DOC) using $5 million in ARPA funds to support workforce and essential-technology training. She summarized the state’s BEAD allocation under IIJA at about $451.7 million and said the BEAD application period drew more than 200 requests seeking $673 million in BEAD funds with proposed project costs of about $942 million.

"That really speaks to the need and the demand that's still out there related to broadband," Willis said, noting the department had to prioritize projects because available BEAD funds were smaller than total requests.

Committee members asked about specific projects and coverage maps. One committee member asked whether a line shown near U.S. Highway 83 was an active program; Willis confirmed and noted many decisions follow route constraints and project eligibility. Another senator asked why southeast Kansas appeared heavily dotted as underserved on the map; Willis said economic and last-mile cost challenges complicate deployment in low-density or low-income areas and that grant support tries to make such projects "pencil out" for providers.

Willis said the department co-manages a middle-mile open-access fiber project that will build roughly 671 miles of fiber along primary freight routes in coordination with KDOT and a private network and said the department is partnering with local and federal agencies to ensure projects meet speed standards (100/20 Mbps minimum where applicable).

She also described programs that distribute devices and public Wi‑Fi (ADOPT), digital-skills grants that awarded roughly $2.6 million across 15 projects in 2024, and a USDA technical-assistance award that supports pre-engineering and cost studies for rural communities.

Willis told the committee the department produced a detailed handout listing awarded grantees and award amounts and that some areas will remain unserved even after BEAD spending because last-mile costs and new construction can create persistent coverage gaps.

The presentation lasted roughly 12 minutes and ended with committee questions; the committee took no formal votes during the session.