Enabling Middle Mile Broadband Infrastructure Program

Three years ago, President Joe Biden signed the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, which included $65 billion to connect everyone in America to reliable, affordable high-speed Internet service while providing connected devices and digital skills training to those who need it. As of today, NTIA has approved 55 of 56 Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program Initial Proposals  and expects to approve the State of Texas in the coming days.

The Biden-Harris Administration’s Internet for All initiative addresses the Nation’s digital divide by bringing high-speed Internet availability, device affordability, and digital literacy to left-behind communities. Some of those programs and their impacts:

The federal government has set aside $42 billion to connect last-mile communities and just under $1 billion for the middle mile networks that will provide the backbone to reach those unserved homes.

On August 7, 2024, the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) released the third funding report showing fiscal year (FY) 2022 data reported by 13 agencies across 70 programs making investments in broadband.

This is the third Federal Broadband Funding Report produced by NTIA, showing fiscal year (FY) 2022 data reported by 12 agencies across 70 programs making investments in broadband. This is the first Federal Broadband Funding Report to highlight trends across three fiscal years of data collected. For the first time, this report not only will release a dashboard of major findings but will also include a comprehensive view of broadband investment data reported across the last three data collections—reflecting broadband investments from FY 2020 to 2022.

Middle-mile may have become more important than ever in terms of fiber networks because all the last-mile networks that will be built for the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program need to connect to something. But honing-in on a precise definition of middle-mile is a challenge even for industry insiders. Joe Pellegrini, president and COO with Great Plains Communications, said, “It’s an end-to-end system with real estate, points of presence….

Across six Internet for All grant programs, the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) is already funding hundreds of individual projects, with hundreds more to come. A new type of data dashboard shows how the public can monitor the progress of construction and implementation related to projects in their area.

Generations before us built infrastructure such as electricity, water, and sewer systems to serve everyone in America.

A project funded by a $24 million high-speed Internet grant from the Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) broke ground in Reno, Nevada. Internet service provider Zayo Group, which received the Enabling Middle Mile Broadband Infrastructure Program grant.

Digital connectivity is important for everyone to gain access to productivity and life-improving technologies. As we march into the era of generative artificial intelligence and the acceleration of fintech for businesses and personal banking, digital inclusion (DI) becomes an increasingly important topic for community development and economic inclusion.