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State broadband official urges Albemarle County to track addresses missed by BEAD as March 11 guidance nears
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Summary
Chandler Vaughn of the Virginia broadband office told the Albemarle County Broadband Authority that about $800 million in BEAD-era funds remains unallocated, Comcast proposed serving some infill locations without state funds, and counties should compile missed addresses for upcoming VADI/LECAP-style applications ahead of federal guidance on March 11.
Chandler Vaughn, a senior official with the state broadband office, told the Albemarle County Broadband Authority that Virginia has about $545 million in BEED awards currently allocated and roughly $800 million remaining unallocated under the federal broadband program. He urged county staff to track specific addresses that were missed by earlier rounds of mapping so they can be submitted in future VADI or line-extension applications.
"Residents will be able to go in, click on their location, determine what Internet service provider is going to provide their service, and see the specific stage of construction that their address is at," Vaughn said, describing a consumer-facing lookup tool the state plans to roll out in the next couple of months. He said the state is finalizing build-out timelines with providers and will share more information publicly when contracts are signed.
Vaughn said some providers — including Comcast — submitted proposals to serve certain infill locations without requesting BEED funding, a development the state accepted because those offers represented infill on existing networks. "They did not request any funding to reach these locations," he said. That, he said, indicates some additional private investment and expected localized construction in parts of Albemarle County.
The state will publish guidance on how leftover BEAD-era funds can be used on March 11, Vaughn said, a date staff and the authority marked as important for planning. "March 11 is a date we're all looking forward to," he said. County staff and authority members discussed how the forthcoming guidance could affect eligibility for costs such as infrastructure relocations or pole-attachment expenses under proposed VADI changes.
Vaughn also described an expected reshaping of VADI to function more like the Line Extension Customer Assistance Program (LECAP), allowing counties to submit batched applications for dozens of addresses rather than one-off requests. "A county, Albemarle for example, can bring us a list of 25 or 50 or 75 homes," he said, and the state will score and consider those applications on a rolling basis.
Why it matters: the guidance could determine whether counties can use leftover federal dollars to cover costs previously borne by providers — for example, infrastructure relocations when road projects require moves — and whether counties should prioritize collecting specific missed-address lists from residents and real estate records.
No formal action was taken by the authority; members thanked Vaughn for the briefing and asked staff to monitor the March 11 guidance and to prepare outreach about the consumer lookup tool when it launches.
