NTCA and ACA Connects Establish BEAD Program State-by-State Tracking Project

On November 15, President Biden signed the historic, bi-partisan infrastructure law, which provides $65 billion in funding for broadband deployment and adoption programs. By far, the most significant new deployment program is the $42.5 billion Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) Program, which the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) will oversee and States/Territories will implement by issuing grants to broadband providers. NTCA and ACA Connects have joined to establish the BEAD Program State-by-State Tracking Project. As NTIA awards funding to each State/Territory in 2022 and as each State/Territory moves forward to award grants, we will be providing NTCA and ACA Connects Members with State/Territory reports that include up-to-date information about requirements and actions for each State/Territory, including the terms and conditions a State/Territory has adopted for awarding deployment grants and the deadlines for applying for those grants, as well as for the process for challenging whether a location is unserved or underserved. We hope that this project will empower you to help your State/Territory benchmark to how other jurisdictions are implementing the BEAD program, recognizing what might constitute best practices and effective timelines for distribution of funds.