BEAD Under Pressure

The three-year anniversary of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) is fast approaching. Zero households have been connected through the Broadband Equity Access and Deployment (BEAD) program, IIJA’s signature $42.5B broadband program that aims to bring universal internet service to all Americans. While all infrastructure programs take years to implement, BEAD’s pace has led to increased congressional scrutiny of the program. Whether or not the BEAD program is off track is a point of contention amongst stakeholders. The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) posits that they are right on schedule with a program that was always intended to unfold over a 10-year timeline. But the American public has grown accustomed to seeing a headline about grant dollars for broadband and observing those grant dollars put to work in their community to address internet service gaps. It will not be easy to convince everyone that we need to return to the days of taking 6-10 years from passage of legislation to connect a home. 

[Jade Piros de Carvalho is Vice President of Broadband Advocacy and Partnerships at Bonfire Infrastructure Group. From June 2022 to June 2024, she was Director of the Kansas Office of Broadband Development.]