Kentucky grapples with broadband mapping, terrain hurdles

Kentucky, which only established its broadband office in 2022, is putting in some hard, and in some cases unique, work to enhance internet access and prepare for the $42.5 billion Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) Program. Meghan Sandfoss, executive director for Kentucky’s Office of Broadband Development, delved into some of the challenges the state has encountered. Naturally, rural deployment is at the forefront. The eastern part of Kentucky, which is comprised of 54 counties that are part of the Appalachian Regional Commission, has the “largest challenges in terms of developing infrastructure because of the terrain,” Sandfoss said. With regard to terrain, some providers have to get creative to deliver broadband to hard-to-reach locations across mountains and hills. In addition to prioritizing unserved areas—with speeds less than 25/3 Mbps—Sandfoss said the state is trying to identify “no service” locations—those with speeds below 10/1 Mbps. Because Kentucky’s broadband office is still relatively new, there’s no statewide broadband map currently available. But that will change soon, as Sandfoss said data collection for mapping will be done in May 2023. Thus far, Kentucky has submitted over 15,000 fixed availability challenges to the Federal Communications Commission's National Broadband Map. Some of those challenges have already been won, Sandfoss added. Kentucky has about $320 million in American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds allocated for broadband deployment. From that amount, $117.2 million comes from the State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds (SLFRF) program.