When BEAD Map Challenges Are Based on Misinformation

Though the challenge process for the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) Program is intended to create more accurate broadband maps, the Institute for Local Self-Reliance (ILSR) warns that the opposite may happen. If, during the challenge process, a local broadband provider promises they can provide speeds and services in a particular community—but are overstating their abilities or simply making false claims—the resulting broadband coverage maps will be less accurate. The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) requires states to determine areas eligible for BEAD funding via a three-stage process: challenges to existing National Broadband Map data, rebuttal, and determination. ILSR is urging community representatives—including local government leaders, nonprofit organizations, and Tribal entities—to get involved in the rebuttal stage to verify that the claims made by broadband providers in the challenge stage are realistic.