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Broadband Advisory Council outlines BEAD deployment progress and $500M in proposed non-deployment priorities
Summary
State broadband staff told the Broadband Advisory Council that BEAD deployment is advancing, with about 131,000 eligible locations and rising contract activity, and presented $500 million in proposed non-deployment (digital equity) priorities including cellular coverage, multi-dwelling connectivity, digital navigators and precision agriculture.
The Broadband Advisory Council on Thursday heard updates from state broadband staff on federal BEAD-related deployment and a plan for how roughly $500 million in non-deployment (digital equity and adoption) funding could be spent.
Office of Broadband presenters said deployment activity for fiscal years tied to BEAD has accelerated: staff reported an increase of roughly 12,000 locations in prior BEAD funding years and said FY23 awards and contracts are starting to move, prompting a shift from annual to quarterly performance reporting to track milestones, expenditures and emerging project risks.
"We have built out over 135,000 locations over the last 2 years," a presenter said, summarizing recent deployment work and the rationale for continuing to track project performance more frequently. Staff estimated about 131,000 locations will be eligible for the BEAD program in the state and said awards are expected to be announced in spring 2025 with projects beginning in 2026.
Why it matters: the state is balancing fast-moving deployment requirements with a parallel federal allowance to use some BEAD funds for programs…
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