Engaging State-Level Broadband Offices

With the 2010 Broadband Technology Opportunities Program (BTOP), the National Telecommunications Infrastructure Association’s State Broadband Initiative (SBI) created State Broadband Offices to support efficient and creative use of broadband technology to improve states’ digital economic competitiveness. When the SBI grant program officially ended in 2015, many State Broadband Offices thrived through local funding, while others closed. In some states, the governor (or head of the territory) assigned responsibility to similarly-purposed agencies like Economic Development Offices, Departments of Commerce, Education, Tourism or Technical Services. In some cases, states contracted third-party organizations to fulfill the duties of state broadband offices. With an expanded role in the 2022 Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment Program (BEAD), these broadband offices, along with agencies, task forces, and councils, are set to define most statewide broadband strategies and activities. Therefore, communities need to know how to locate and work with them, particularly as new funding opportunities emerge.