News and Events

By:  Will Arbuckle, Senior Policy Advisor, NTIA  

The $42.45 billion Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) Program aims to connect 25 million Americans currently without high-speed Internet access. Building these broadband networks on time and at scale across 56 states and territories will require tens of thousands of broadband construction workers: from network designers to pole surveyors, from locators to drill operators, from general laborers to fiber splicers. 

WASHINGTON — The Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) today has approved and recommended for award an application from Illinois, allowing the state to request access to more than $23 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.  

$6.5 million for Nebraska, $4.9 million for New Hampshire, $9.9 million for Oregon, $12.8 million for South Carolina, $5 million for South Dakota, $55.6 million for Texas, and $5.2 million for Wyoming

WASHINGTON — The Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) today 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.  

Texas Requested Access to BEAD Funds Totaling Over $3.3 Billion; All 56 States and Territories Now Approved

WASHINGTON – The Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) has approved Texas' Initial Proposal for the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program, a cornerstone of the Biden-Harris Administration’s “Internet for All” initiative.  

$4.8 million for Delaware, $12.7 million for Louisiana, $14.2 million for Missouri, $11.2 million for Oklahoma, $15.8 million for Tennessee, and $9.8 million for Puerto Rico

WASHINGTON — Today, the Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) awarded the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands (DHHL) more than $72 million from the Tribal Broadband Connectivity Program to expand high-speed Internet access and adoption in Native Hawaiian households.

$5 million for Alaska and $23 million for Ohio

WASHINGTON — The Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) today awarded more than $28 million to Alaska and Ohio to implement their Digital Equity Plans. 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.  

WASHINGTON — The Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) today has approved and recommended for award an application from West Virginia, allowing the state to request access to more than $9 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.  

$13 million for Alabama and $7 million for Utah

WASHINGTON — The Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) today has approved and recommended for award applications from Alabama and Utah, allowing them to request access to more than $20 million to implement their Digital Equity Plans. 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.  

WASHINGTON — The Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) today has approved and recommended for award an application from Wisconsin, allowing the state to request access to more than $13 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.  

WASHINGTON — The Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) today has approved and recommended for award an application from New York, allowing the state to request access to more than $36 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.  

WASHINGTON — The Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) today has approved and recommended for award an application from Minnesota, allowing the state to request access to more than $12 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.  

WASHINGTON — The Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) today has approved and recommended for award an application from Connecticut, allowing the state to request access to more than $9 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.  

WASHINGTON — The Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) today has approved and recommended for award an application from California, allowing the state to request access to more than $70 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.  

WASHINGTON — The Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) today has approved and recommended for award an application from New Mexico, allowing the state to request access to more than $8 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.  

$22 million for Georgia and $15 million for Indiana

Two States Requested Access to BEAD Funds Totaling Over $2.5 Billion

WASHINGTON – The Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) has approved Alabama and Florida’s Initial Proposals for the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program, a cornerstone of the Biden-Harris Administration’s "Internet for All" initiative.  

WASHINGTON — The Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) today awarded more than $6.3 million to Idaho 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.  

By: Will Arbuckle, Senior Policy Advisor, NTIA

President Biden and Vice President Harris made a historic commitment to connect everyone in America to affordable, reliable high-speed Internet service while creating good-paying jobs and boosting American manufacturing. These investments are, in part, thanks to efforts made by the Biden-Harris Administration to enforce Buy American and impose Made in America requirements, going further than any previous Administration to reinforce these actions.

By: Maya C. James

Estephanie (Stephanie) Solano sees herself as a vessel for change.

A recent graduate of California State University, Dominguez Hills (CSUDH), Solano currently works as a career advisor at Goodwill in southern Los Angeles, where she helps connect community members with job opportunities and resources.

Her pathway to her current role emerged not only from her desire to counsel vulnerable populations, but from a paid internship through an NTIA-funded workforce development program.