Feds Grant $3.3B for BEAD; Many Broadband Projects Already Begun

The Biden administration announced Monday that $3.3 billion will be given to Texas as part of the nation’s Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment (BEAD) program.

This money is part of $42.45 billion in grants to all 50 states, the District of Columbia and five territories to deploy broadband to unserved locations, those with speeds below 25/3 Mbps, and underserved locations, those with speeds below 100 Mbps/20 Mbps.

The Texas Broadband Development Office (BDO) will receive and distribute the funds but must first create a five-year action plan to be submitted to the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) by Aug. 21.

The BDO, under the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts (CPA), is charged with setting a threshold speed for broadband, establishing a statewide plan, awarding grants and monies, providing community outreach, addressing barriers for future expansion and creating an accurate broadband map. In March the office released the Texas Broadband Map; however, many local government leaders and private-sector partners have questioned the map’s accuracy.

Meanwhile, projects across the state have been funded through partnerships using other grants. Implementations stretch north to south and west to east as cities hope to bolster economy, education and e-health.

Amarillo Connected, which used American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds in partnership with AT&T to lay down fiber, birthed Panhandle Connected. Amarillo CIO Rich Gagnon said the effort will bring broadband to 62 communities across 25,000 square miles. Programming will enable student access, workforce readiness and digital literacy.

Brownsville, in partnership with Lit Communities, launched BTX Fiber with plans to have the first middle-mile connections online this summer and the project complete by 2026, according to the most recent news release. City leaders told The Brownsville Herald that $20 million in ARPA funds were tapped for the project.

Center partnered with Etex Telephone Cooperative to install fiber and connect 6,000 residents in the next two years. City leadership and the co-op got together in 2021 hoping to receive a federal grant for rural areas. However, federal broadband maps showed adequate coverage, excluding the city, so leaders tapped $4.1 million in economic development monies to go with co-op money for the project, Etex CEO Charlie Cano said.

Pharr created its own municipal fiber network, called TeamPharr.net, with plans to connect 24,000 subscribers. The network will expand to San Juan and Alamo, said the mayor during his state of the city address. He also announced the project has reached 72 percent coverage.

In multiple regions, a 2021 Rural Digital Opportunity Fund (RDOF) grant from the FCC is connecting residents to broadband including those in Deep East Texas, El Paso and Wichita Falls. The $186 million RDOF grant in conjunction with $400 million pledged by Charter Communications (branded as Spectrum), will connect about 133,000 unserved homes and businesses by the end of the project. The rural areas will receive gigabit broadband with threshold speeds of 200 Mbps, according to a news release.

With the NTIA prioritizing fiber technology for funds, the BEAD dollars won’t be enough. Fiber costs more money to install than fixed wireless, and takes more time as well.

To respond to concerns such as map accuracy and technology preferences, Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar asked the federal government to reconsider data deadlines and is implementing new legislation regarding broadband deployment.