Haywood County says federal, state programs have cut unserved broadband locations to roughly 120–131
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Summary
At the Jan. 5, 2026 meeting, community and economic development manager Hannah White told commissioners multiple federal and state awards and provider builds have reduced Haywood County’s unserved locations from thousands to about 120–131 remaining and urged residents to verify service on the FCC map.
At the Jan. 5 Haywood County Board of Commissioners meeting, Hannah White, the county’s community and economic development manager, told the board federal and state broadband programs have closed most service gaps and that only about 120–131 locations remain listed as unserved.
"We have since received that right before Christmas," White said, referring to a recent federal approval for the BEAD program that adds funding and coverage requirements for rural areas. She reviewed several programs and provider awards that together reduced the county’s unserved counts from the thousands recorded in early COVID-era maps to the low hundreds now.
White described prior awards under the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund (RDOF), which aimed to cover roughly 5,000 locations in earlier years; she said about 3,500 of those were reported as served in December. She said Spectrum is a primary RDOF awardee in Haywood County and cited additional rounds that added roughly 304 and 301 locations under subsequent grants, and a separate award where Sky Runner was selected for multiple locations in county HOAs.
White also said a recently approved federal package will add about 660 locations countywide, roughly 331 of which are planned as satellite connections while the remainder will be fiber, and that buildout timelines vary: some providers have contractual deadlines into the late 2020s while many expect to finish substantial work by 2026 and earlier phases by the end of the current year.
White urged residents to use the FCC mapping tool to confirm whether their address is listed as served and to file a challenge when a provider is shown but does not actually deliver service. "If it's not a provider who's actually serving your location, please do a challenge so you get recognized as unserved," she told commissioners, saying accurate lists matter for targeted "stopgap" funding aimed at the last-mile locations.
Commissioners commended the broadband team for pursuing multiple funding streams and for persistent follow-up with providers. Several commissioners noted the difficulty of mountain terrain and the "last mile" costs in Haywood County, saying the progress was a long-sought milestone for residents and local businesses.
The county presentation did not include a guaranteed completion date for every location; White cautioned that mountain canopy and line-of-sight issues can limit satellite performance and that some remaining locations will require additional funding or targeted programs.
Next steps White outlined included publication of the county broadband tab with awarded locations, follow-up with providers to confirm service lists, and public guidance to challenge incorrect FCC map entries so the county can secure additional stopgap resources for the truly unserved areas.
