Carl Guardino

In June 2023, President Joe Biden announced how $42 billion in Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment funding will be allocated across the US and its territories to bring 100% broadband access to nearly 60 million unserved or underserved Americans within five years. That goal, and the billions of dollars and new tools available, will give policymakers, communities, and industry stakeholders a “once-in-a-generation” opportunity to bridge the digital divide. However, finances are finite and currently trending in a budget-busting “fiber-first” direction.

In June 2023, President Joe Biden announced how more than $42 billion in Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) funding will be allocated across the US and its territories to bring 100% broadband access to nearly 60 million unserved or underserved Americans within five years. Now, the real work begins: determining how 50 states and six territories will put that funding to work. Despite the many funding initiatives aimed to solve the problem in the US, those finances are finite and currently trending in a “fiber-first” direction.