Veterans

Maine faces a perfect storm of challenges in achieving digital equity. Our remote and rugged terrain makes our state one of the most difficult and expensive to reach with digital infrastructure. As the oldest state in the nation, we have a significant population that didn’t grow up with all of the technology available today. Maine’s median household and per capita income lag behind most other states. Almost all of us live in small, rural communities with limited resources. These forces combine to shape the contours of the digital divide in Maine.

As an aging workforce and a lack of interest among young people threaten to derail nationwide broadband buildout plans, the industry’s stakeholders must come together to tackle what has become a massive fiber workforce shortage, said Deborah Kish, VP of workforce development at the Fiber Broadband Association (FBA). The Government Accountability Office estimated that around 34,000 workers might be needed in 2023 to support the government’s broadband expansion programs, depending on unpredictable project timelines. And the workforce sh

Across the country, broadband advocates and representatives are crunching numbers to figure out how to implement an often under-examined piece of the Broadband, Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program puzzle: What does digital equity look like? Passed alongside BEAD as part of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), the Digital Equity Act (DEA) provides $2.75 billion dollars that will be parsed between states and territories to help them implement digital equity plans.

As states prepare to receive their allocations from the $42.5 billion Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment (BEAD) program, Louisiana is putting the finishing touches on its plan to put that money to work. The state’s broadband office released the first volume of its BEAD proposal, outlining Louisiana’s current efforts to deploy broadband, a breakdown of unserved and underserved locations as well as how it plans to tackle the challenge process.

This plan outlines Louisiana’s first coordinated effort to assess the state’s digital divide and move Louisiana toward digital equity.

Pennsylvania Broadband Development Authority Executive Director Brandon Carson is asking Pennsylvanians to provide input on the stakeholder engagement process for developing two plans: the State Digital Equity Plan and the Commonwealth’s Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) Five-Year Action Plan. The two-week public comment period began on February 27 and ends Friday, March 10, 2023. The State Digital Equity Stakeholder Engagement Plan will focus on engaging eight primary populations required through federal guidance – aging individuals, incarcerated individuals, veterans, indivi

On March 1, the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) sought public comment on the design and implementation of two components of the Digital Equity Act of 2021 (a part of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act): the $1.44 billion State Digital Equity Capacity Grant Program and the $1.25 billion Digital Equity Competitive Grant Program.

The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act of 2021 includes a historic investment of $65 billion to help close the digital divide and ensure that everyone in America has access to affordable, reliable, high-speed Internet service. The Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) is responsible for distributing more than $48 billion in funding through several different programs.

The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), which includes the Digital Equity Act of 2021 (DEA), establishes a broad framework and significant funding to advance broadband connectivity and digital equity. The law recognizes key factors and populations to address when striving for digital equity. To fully realize the full benefits of digital technology for individuals, communities, and society at large additional insights are needed. The Digital Opportunities Compass is an holistic framework for broadband and digital equity planning, implementation and evaluation.