Utah

A new TV ad is running in Utah, criticizing government-run internet providers. The ads are part of a $1 million blitz to warn about problems associated with municipal internet systems, including high costs and a lack of regulatory oversight. The Domestic Policy Caucus is running them under the name NoGovInternet.com. The campaign makes the argument that government should not be involved in providing internet access.

The Utah Broadband Center (UBC), part of the Governor’s Office of Economic Opportunity, asks for public feedback on Utah’s draft of the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) Initial Proposal Volume 2. Comments can be submitted online until Dec. 15, 2023. The second volume of the BEAD Initial Proposal outlines Utah’s strategies for allocating BEAD grant funds to broadband deployment projects across the state.

The Utah Broadband Center (UBC) has important updates about significant progress on its Broadband Access Grant projects. The Broadband Access Grant is an American Rescue Plan Act-funded grant that set aside $10 million to help households and businesses impacted by COVID-19.  The UBC awarded the grant to subgrantees All West Communications, Box Elder County Government and CentraCom Interactive.  Beehive Broadband placed 36,000 feet of fiber In Mantua, installed 72 handholes for splice enclosures, and completed 100 percent of all aerial pole attachments.

The Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) has awarded 28 grants totaling $74,424,986.73 to 28 Tribal entities as part of the Tribal Broadband Connectivity Program (TBCP). Grants were made to tribes in Alaska, Arizona, California, Michigan, Nevada, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and Wisconsin.

The Utah Broadband Center (UBC), part of the Governor’s Office of Economic Opportunity, asks for public feedback on Utah’s draft of the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) Initial Proposal Volume 1. The total funding allocation for Utah is $317.4 million, which will be distributed to various broadband projects through a competitive grant process. To ensure the greatest impact for Utahns, community members and stakeholders are encouraged to provide input to the state’s proposed process to identify areas needing broadband service.