Service providers shouldn’t let reporting requirements or a requirement to offer low-cost service stop them from applying for Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) funding, said Evan Feinman, BEAD program director for the National Telecommunications and Information Administration. The requirement to offer a low-cost service has become a particularly big concern as funding for the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP) is set to run out. Many providers had seen the FCC $30-a-month ACP benefit for low-income customers as a means of meeting that requirement. Without the ACP, some providers might be reluctant to participate in the BEAD program. Feinman also offered providers some potential relief on another BEAD requirement that may be holding some providers back from applying: reporting requirements. “We have a very aggressive goal of reducing the amount of reports that [providers] have to do,” he said. “We will try to get guidance out as soon as possible.” Nevertheless, Feinman encouraged providers to enlist the help of people with federal grant writing experience, perhaps on a shared basis with other providers. It should be possible to use a portion of BEAD winnings to go toward the cost of hiring that expert help, he said.

One hundred fifty billion dollars in new funding is expected to add an additional 59.3 million US homes to be reached by fiber over the next five years, according to the latest research from RVA Market Research & Consulting, with a total of over 137 million US homes passed by fiber by 2028.  At the end of 2023, 78 million US homes were passed by fiber with a total of 5.1 million route miles of fiber construction completed. An additional 4.2 million route miles of fiber is expected to be added over the next five years. Michael Render, Founder and CEO, of RVA said that BEAD funding, and unprecedented capital from private equity companies, makes for "a rather spectacular period." Render noted that the RVA five-year US FTTH forecast for 2024-2028 has been reduced to factor in potential constraints expected to come into play during the second half of the projected timeframe. Network operators have concerns around workforce shortages, rising costs, work process constraints such as approvals and access, and materials shortages slowing the pace of deployment, while smaller operators are concerned about BEAD requirements and regulation being significant obstacles to participating in the NTIA grant program.

The Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) announced Minnesota's Digital Opportunity Plan has been accepted by the US Department of Commerce's National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA). The acceptance means the state is now eligible for federal grants to implement the plan, which will help reduce gaps in internet adoption, and expand digital skills and digital technology access. The Digital Equity Act, part of the Internet for All initiative and a key piece of President Biden's Investing in America Agenda, provides $2.75 billion to establish three federal grant programs—the State Digital Equity Planning Grant, Digital Equity Capacity Grant and Digital Equity Competitive Grant—that promote digital equity and inclusion. DEED's Digital Opportunity Plan, produced by the Office of Broadband Development (OBD), details how Minnesota will use its Internet for All grant funding to expand digital access.

The Commonwealth of the North Mariana Islands (CNMI) Broadband Policy & Development (BPD) Office released its draft Digital Equity Plan, A Voyage to Digital Equity in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. In the dynamic landscape of the digital age, where information and opportunities surge like currents across the Marianas Trench, the concept of digital equity emerges as CNMI's northern star. Embracing the rich heritage of CNMI's traditional art of island navigation, this plan emerges as the compass, guaranteeing fair and inclusive access for every resident of the Commonwealth.