Vermont

Vermont’s Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment Program is now accepting proposals from Internet Service Providers to implement Vermont’s $239 million, federally funded program to deploy broadband internet service throughout the state. The VT-BEAD Full Proposal portal will close at 11:55pm on April 16, 2025.

Vermont Community Broadband Board is sponsoring a new Broadband Technician Pre-Apprenticeship Training in partnership with North Country Career Center. It will be comprehensive training for an entry level broadband network technician. The first three-week course will be offered in Montpelier starting March 26 and is available to participants at no cost. The training starts as Vermont is well on its way to making fiber broadband available to every Vermonter.

Vermont Community Broadband Board (VCBB) is proud to announce the kickoff of its Digital Empowerment Plan. The DE Plan is the way Vermont will make sure every Vermonter has high-quality, accessible, affordable technology resources and knows how to use them.

Like most internet service providers, municipalities face their fair share of challenges when building broadband networks. Particularly, they need to convince financiers that it’s a worthwhile investment. Securing funds is especially tricky when the incumbents don’t want to play ball. Ernie Staten, Public Service Department Director for the City of Fairlawn, Ohio, said when Fairlawn asked some local internet service providers if they were interested in a partnership to build a citywide network, they basically laughed at the idea.

Vermont Community Broadband Board (VCBB) has preliminary applications from internet service providers (ISPs) to serve nearly every eligible address in the state under Vermont’s Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (VT-BEAD) Program. Vermont’s allocation of BEAD funds is almost $229 million. The applications were from a preliminary round, which was a mandatory step for any ISP seeking VT-BEAD funds for broadband construction.

The Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) has recommended for award more than $250 million to 24 organizations to support digital skills and inclusion projects in communities across the country. The funding will support 24 projects across 39 states and territories. Awards will be issued following budget review and processing. 

The Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) has approved and recommended for award an application from Vermont, allowing the state to request access to more than $5 million to implement its Digital Equity Plan. This funding comes from the $1.44 billion State Digital Equity Capacity Grant Program, one of three Digital Equity Act grant programs created by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.  Vermont will use the $5,299,150 in funding to implement key digital equity initiatives, including:  

Vermont Community Broadband Board (VCBB) is pleased to announce the availability of $8 million in additional funds for the state’s broadband buildout. The money is interest earned on initial American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) money that the General Assembly entrusted to the Vermont Community Broadband Fund.

The state of Vermont has awarded all the broadband funds that it received through the federal Capital Projects Fund (CPF), said Rob Fish, deputy director for the Vermont Community Broadband Board (VCBB). As a result of the construction, some previously unserved and underserved areas of the state won’t need funding through the rural broadband Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program, according to Fish. VCBB awarded more than $184.5 million through its CPF-funded Broadband Construction Program, which was supplemented by funding raised by individual communities and network opera

Vermont Community Broadband Board (VCBB) is pleased to welcome Sarah Hofmann as a new Board Member. Ms. Hofmann was appointed to fill the vacancy resulting from the October resignation of former VCBB Board Member Holly Groschner. Ms. Hofmann was appointed by the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rep. Jill Krowinski, to fill a three-year term from February 2024 to February 2027. Ms. Hofmann served on the Vermont Public Utility Commission from 2015 to 2021. . Ms. Hofmann is a graduate of Rollins College and the University of New Hampshire School of Law.