Press Release

Spectrum launched Spectrum Internet, Mobile, TV and Voice services to more than 660 homes and small businesses in Leelanau County (MI). Spectrum’s newly constructed fiber-optic network buildout to residents and businesses in portions of Cleveland, Glenn Arbor, Empire, and Kasson Townships. “Bringing high-speed connectivity to Northern Michigan families remains a top priority for me,” said Representative Jack Bergman (R-MI).

Seven Star Communities is a new initiative to honor and celebrate Native nations accomplishing digital inclusion work. The Seven Star Communities program hopes to highlight outstanding work, and also provide an opportunity for Native nations to learn from each other. The application for Seven Star Communities 2024 will open towards the end of August. Seven Star Communities are Tribal governments, Native entities and organizations that are working toward digitally inclusive communities.

Gov Greg Gianforte (R-MT) announced that the State of Montana will be the first state in the nation to open its Broadband Equity Access and Deployment (BEAD) application portal. On August 1, Gov.

President Biden and Vice President Harris are launching “Time Is Money,” a new governmentwide effort to crack down on all the ways that corporations—through excessive paperwork, hold times, and general aggravation—add unnecessary headaches and hassles to people’s days and degrade their quality of life. Today and in the coming months, the Biden-Harris Administration will take wide-ranging action to crack down on unfair practices and save Americans time and money. Key actions include:

The Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) has approved New York’s Initial Proposals for the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program, a cornerstone of the Biden-Harris Administration’s “Internet for All” initiative.

Federal Communications Commission Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel shared with her fellow commissioners a Notice of Inquiry that, if adopted, would seek information on ways to ensure that consumers have appropriate and efficient access to customer service resources when working with their phone, cable and broadband providers.

The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) announced the fifth round of recommended awardees for last mile broadband projects as part of the $2 billion Last Mile Federal Funding Account Grant Program. This program expands broadband internet access for underserved and unserved communities across California.

The Maine Connectivity Authority (MCA) awarded two grants totaling $9,600,633 to connect 15,561 homes and businesses across Waldo and Lincoln Counties to expand access to the internet. The grants were made through MCA’s Partnerships for Enabling Middle Mile (PEMM) Program which addresses large-scale, regional broadband needs by leveraging middle-mile infrastructure. These two grants demonstrate 12 collective years of concerted community-driven broadband planning, regional collaboration, and highlight the value of public-private, regional-scale partnerships.

The N.C. Department of Information Technology’s (NCDIT) Division of Broadband and Digital Equity announced the notice of funding availability and guidance for the Stop-Gap Solutions program, which will provide $86 million in federal American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds to facilitate additional high-speed internet infrastructure deployments across North Carolina. The Stop-Gap Solutions program funds are available for the following two uses: 

As part of his commitment to connect every home and business in Kentucky to high-speed internet, Gov. Andy Beshear announced today that the state has opened the Broadband Grants Management Portal for user registration. Registering is the first step in applying for funds from Kentucky’s $1.1 billion allocation from the federal Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment (BEAD) Program. Internet service providers, local governments and nonprofits are all eligible.