BEAD Funding FAQ
The Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) Program is a federal initiative aimed at expanding high-speed internet access to underserved and unserved communities across the United States.
The Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) Program
The Broadband, Equity, Access and Deployment Program (BEAD) is a $42.5 billion federal initiative providing grants to US states and territories, to provide internet access, bridge the digital divide, and ensure that all Americans have the opportunities that the digital economy provides.
BEAD was established by Congress in 2022, and is administered through the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA). BEAD is a multi-year program, and is still evolving. It is now at the point where states are receiving funding. The total funding amount for states reached over $42 billion in 2024.
Being federal legislation, the program is very complex, and uses a lot of legal language. We created this FAQ to help explain the program, the terms it uses, and rules for allocating funding.
In addition to bridging the digital divide, it’s a major infrastructure project that will involve local ISPs and carriers, educators, and nonprofits, and jobs across the US.
Check our latest news on BEAD funding here, and blog posts about BEAD here.
FAQ: BEAD Basics
What is the BEAD Program?
The Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) Program is a federal initiative aimed at expanding high-speed internet access across the United States. Administered by the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), the program seeks to address digital disparities by providing funding to underserved and unserved areas. The ultimate goal of the BEAD Program is to ensure that all Americans, regardless of their geographic location, have access to reliable and affordable broadband services, thus fostering economic growth, educational opportunities, and civic engagement.
Who is eligible to apply for the BEAD Program?
The BEAD Program is open to various entities, including local governments, non-profit organizations, and private sector companies. Eligibility extends to those who demonstrate a commitment to expanding broadband infrastructure and services to areas that currently lack adequate internet access. Specific eligibility criteria and application procedures can be found on the program’s official website.
What types of projects are funded by the BEAD Program?
The BEAD Program funds a broad range of projects designed to improve internet connectivity. This includes infrastructure projects like laying fiber-optic cables and building wireless networks, as well as initiatives aimed at increasing digital literacy and providing affordable internet services to low-income households. The program prioritizes projects that demonstrate significant potential for long-term community impact and sustainability.
BEAD Program Program Eligibility
The Broadband Equity, Access & Deployment Program (BEAD) offers federal funding for grants to US states and territories. These grants support broadband planning, deployment, mapping, equity, and adoption projects.
What is an Eligible Entity?
Eligible entities are U.S. states and territories, and the District of Columbia.
- States, District of Columbia, Puerto Rico
- American Samoa, Guam, U.S. Virgin Islands, Northern Mariana Islands
What are the eligible uses of general funds for BEAD?
BEAD funds, following the prioritization scheme in the NOFO, can be used for the following purposes.
- Deploying or upgrading broadband network facilities for Unserved or Underserved Service Projects.
- Enhancing broadband network facilities to improve services for eligible community anchor institutions.
- Conducting data collection, broadband mapping, and planning beyond the initial fund allocation to achieve the goals of the BEAD Program.
- Installing internet and Wi-Fi infrastructure or offering reduced-cost broadband within multi-family residential buildings, particularly those housing a significant number of unserved households or low-income individuals.
- Facilitating broadband adoption through programs that provide affordable internet-capable devices.
- Supporting training and workforce development initiatives.
- Funding additional uses, such as other Digital Equity programs, that align with the program’s objectives.
How does BEAD define an Unserved Location?
An unserved location is identified by its lack of reliable broadband service or internet speeds below 25 Mbps for downloads and 3 Mbps for uploads, with latency of 100 milliseconds or less. Reliable broadband includes services delivered via fiber-optic, cable modem/hybrid fiber-coaxial, digital subscriber line, or terrestrial fixed wireless using licensed or a combination of licensed and unlicensed spectrum. Locations dependent on satellite or exclusively unlicensed spectrum are also considered unserved.
How does BEAD define an Underserved Location?
An underserved location is defined as having broadband services with speeds ranging from at least 25 Mbps downstream and 3 Mbps upstream to less than 100 Mbps downstream and 20 Mbps upstream, with latency at or below 100 milliseconds. The criteria for reliable broadband are consistent with those for unserved locations, covering fiber-optic, cable modem/hybrid fiber-coaxial, digital subscriber line, or terrestrial fixed wireless technologies using either entirely licensed spectrum or a mix of licensed and unlicensed spectrum. Before granting subgrants for broadband deployment, Eligible Entities must conduct a challenge process, allowing local governments, nonprofits, or broadband service providers to contest the determined service level of a specific location.
How does BEAD define a Community Anchor Institution (CAI)?
A Community Anchor Institution (CAI) encompasses organizations such as schools, libraries, health clinics, health centers, hospitals, public safety entities, institutions of higher education, public housing organizations, or community support organizations. These entities enhance broadband access for vulnerable populations, including but not limited to low-income individuals, the unemployed, children, the incarcerated, and the elderly.
A Community Anchor Institution that lacks access to Gigabit-level broadband service qualifies as an eligible service location under the BEAD Program.
Are BEAD funds restricted to last-mile broadband deployment, or can they also include middle-mile infrastructure?
An Unserved or Underserved Service Project can include Middle Mile Infrastructure if it is necessary to reach interconnection points or to ensure the technical feasibility and financial sustainability of a project serving an unserved or underserved location, or an eligible CAI.
FCC Broadband DATA Maps
The FCC Broadband DATA Maps, created by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), will be used by NTIA to allocate funding for each Eligible Entity in the BEAD program.
These maps will detail broadband service availability at the individual location level, offering more granular data than previous FCC maps, which provided information at the census block level. For more details on the FCC maps, refer to the FCC’s Second Report and Order on Establishing the Digital Opportunity Data Collection.
How the BEAD program defines Digital Equity
Examples of how an BEAD funds to digital equity initiatives include:
- Training users on cybersecurity, privacy, and other digital safety matters.
- Providing remote learning or telehealth services and facilities.
- Enhancing digital literacy and upskilling from beginner to advanced levels.
- Offering education programs in computer science, coding, and cybersecurity.
- Assisting with broadband sign-up and providing technology support programs.
- Conducting multi-lingual outreach to promote digital literacy and adoption.
- Implementing prisoner education programs to improve pre-release digital literacy, job skills, and online job acquisition skills.
- Deploying digital navigators.
- Offering direct subsidies for broadband subscriptions.
What defines a “high-cost area?”
a “high-cost area” as an unserved region where the expense of establishing broadband service is greater than the average cost in other unserved areas in the U.S. This determination is made by the Assistant Secretary, in collaboration with the Federal Communications Commission, and considers factors such as:
- Remote location
- Sparse population density
- Distinctive topography
- Elevated poverty rates
- Additional contributing factors identified by the Assistant Secretary in collaboration with the Commission
For the definition of “high-cost area,” an “unserved area” is one where at least 80% of broadband-serviceable locations lack service. NTIA will provide additional details on identifying high-cost areas for BEAD funding allocations later.
BEAD Program Program Eligibility
The Broadband Equity, Access & Deployment Program (BEAD) offers federal funding for grants to US states and territories. These grants support broadband planning, deployment, mapping, equity, and adoption projects.
What are the eligible uses of general funds for BEAD?
BEAD funds, following the prioritization scheme in the NOFO, can be used for the following purposes.
- Deploying or upgrading broadband network facilities for Unserved or Underserved Service Projects.
- Enhancing broadband network facilities to improve services for eligible community anchor institutions.
- Conducting data collection, broadband mapping, and planning beyond the initial fund allocation to achieve the goals of the BEAD Program.
- Installing internet and Wi-Fi infrastructure or offering reduced-cost broadband within multi-family residential buildings, particularly those housing a significant number of unserved households or low-income individuals.
- Facilitating broadband adoption through programs that provide affordable internet-capable devices.
- Supporting training and workforce development initiatives.
- Funding additional uses, such as other Digital Equity programs, that align with the program’s objectives.
Subgrants
What is a BEAD Program subgrantee?
A BEAD subgrantee is an entity that receives funding from the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program to support projects aimed at expanding high-speed internet access in underserved areas. Subgrantees can include local governments, non-profits, or private organizations that have demonstrated the capacity to implement broadband initiatives effectively.
What Are the Requirements for the Subgrantee Selection Process?
Each Eligible Entity must establish fair, open, and competitive processes for selecting subgrantees. This selection is crucial as it determines the providers bringing service to unserved and underserved locations and CAIs.
These processes must be transparent to potential subgrantees and clearly outlined in the Eligible Entity’s Initial and Final Proposals. The NTIA acknowledges that there are various competitive processes that Eligible Entities might employ and does not mandate a specific approach. Further guidance and technical assistance on subgrantee selection will be provided by the NTIA.
Principles for selection of subgrantees in the BEAD program:
- An “Unserved Service Project” or “Underserved Service Project” may be as small as a single unserved or underserved location. This principle ensures that isolated sites, which cannot be aggregated into groups that are 80 percent or more unserved or underserved, are still addressed by the BEAD Program.
- An “Unserved Service Project” or “Underserved Service Project” may include Middle Mile Infrastructure in or through any area necessary to reach interconnection points or to ensure the technical feasibility and financial sustainability of a project providing service to unserved or underserved locations, or eligible Community Anchor Institutions (CAIs).
- When identifying an Unserved or Underserved Service Project, an Eligible Entity must not classify any location as “unserved” or “underserved” if it is already subject to an enforceable commitment from federal, state, or local authorities to deploy qualifying broadband by the end of the challenge process. However, this requirement may be waived if it can be demonstrated that such classification is essential to meet the program’s objectives.
- An Eligible Entity must implement a competitive process aimed at maximizing public benefits throughout the subgrant process.
- Eligible Entities can seek proposals to serve unserved, underserved locations, and CAIs either collectively or separately. However, funding must first prioritize Unserved Service Projects.
- Eligible Entities must not exclude any categories of applicants, including cooperatives, nonprofit organizations, public-private partnerships, private companies, public or private utilities, public utility districts, or local governments, from being considered as subgrantees.
- Eligible Entities have the discretion to solicit proposals at their preferred geographic level, whether by location, census block, town, county, or another unit. They may define project areas themselves or permit prospective subgrantees to do so. If subgrantees delineate their own areas, the Entity must establish a mechanism to resolve overlapping proposals, ensuring fair comparison. Regardless of the chosen process, the Entity must have a comprehensive plan to serve all unserved areas and, if funding allows, underserved locations as well.
- Each proposal from a prospective subgrantee must specify the BEAD funding requested for each location to be served.
- If no proposals are received to serve unserved or underserved locations, the Eligible Entity may collaborate with existing providers or other potential subgrantees to identify willing providers to expand their service areas. Incentives such as state funding for matching requirements or benefits during the grant selection process (e.g., points or credits) may be considered.
Caveats with selecting Subgrantees under BEAD
- An Eligible Entity may opt not to select a proposal if it demands a BEAD subsidy exceeding the Extremely High Cost Per Location Threshold at any location. Should a more cost-effective alternative Reliable Broadband Service technology meeting the BEAD Program’s technical requirements exist, the Eligible Entity should consider it. Through fair, open, and competitive processes, the Eligible Entity has the discretion to devise a selection method that engages with prospective subgrantees to revise their proposals, ensuring no location requires a subsidy beyond the Extremely High Cost Per Location Threshold.
- If no Reliable Broadband Service technology that meets the BEAD Program’s technical requirements can be deployed at a given location for a subsidy below the Extremely High Cost Per Location Threshold, the Eligible Entity may choose a proposal using a more affordable technology for that location. This is applicable even if the chosen technology does not meet the definition of Reliable Broadband Service but still satisfies the Program’s technical criteria. In such instances, Eligible Entities should aim to select the most robust, cost-effective, and scalable technologies feasible for the specific conditions of that location.
Are “non-traditional” providers eligible to apply as subgrantees?
Eligible Entities must not exclude cooperatives, nonprofit organizations, public-private partnerships, private companies, public or private utilities, public utility districts, or local governments (“potential providers”) from eligibility for grant funds.
When evaluating an Eligible Entity’s Initial or Final Proposal, the NTIA will assess whether the entity, following the enactment of the Infrastructure Act, has implemented any laws, regulations, policies, procedures, or other rules that, in the NTIA’s judgment, aim to exclude or effectively exclude potential providers from subgrant eligibility. This includes new laws that might prevent providers from offering broadband services or hinder their ability to compete effectively for subgrants.
Can pre-existing laws disqualify subgrant awards?
Certain pre-existing laws within Eligible Entities related to broadband, utility services, or related topics may disqualify specific public sector providers from subgrant competition or impose particular requirements on them. These requirements might include limitations on financing sources, mandatory imputation of costs not actually incurred, or restrictions on the services a public sector entity can offer. The NTIA encourages Eligible Entities to waive such laws for Program purposes.
If an Eligible Entity opts not to do so, it must identify all such laws in its Initial Proposal and explain how these laws will be applied in the subgrant competition. In its Final Proposal, the Eligible Entity must disclose each unsuccessful application affected by these laws and articulate how these laws influenced the decision to deny the application.
Grant Award and Reporting Requirements
Reporting Obligations and Deadlines for Eligible Entities
Eligible Entities must comply with the reporting obligations outlined in Section VII.E.1. of the NOFO. Specifically, these include:
Within 90 days of receiving any Program grant funds, Eligible Entities must submit an initial report to the Assistant Secretary. This report should:
- Detail both the planned and actual use of funds.
- Outline the planned and actual subgrant process.
- Explain the establishment of mechanisms to ensure subgrantees comply with BEAD Program eligible uses.
- Include any additional information requested by the Assistant Secretary.
Within one year of receiving grant funds
And semiannually thereafter until all funds are expended, Eligible Entities must submit a semiannual report to the Assistant Secretary. This report should cover the preceding six-month period and must:
- Detail the expenditure of grant funds.
- Describe each service provided with the grant funds.
- Specify the number of locations where broadband service was made available and utilized, along with comparative demographics of those served.
- Certify compliance with the requirements of this Section and any additional reporting requirements.
The semiannual report must also include an SF-425 and a Federal Financial Report, meeting the criteria described in 2 C.F.R. §§ 200.328 and the Department of Commerce Financial Assistance Standard Terms and Conditions, as well as the information prescribed in 2 C.F.R. § 200.329.
Within one year of expending all grant funds
Eligible Entities must submit a final report to the Assistant Secretary. This report should:
- Detail the expenditure of funds.
- Describe each service provided with the grant funds.
- Specify the number of locations where broadband service was made available and utilized, along with comparative demographics of those served.
- Include every report received from a subgrantee under Section 60102(j) of the Act.
- Certify compliance with the requirements of this Section and any additional reporting obligations prescribed.
Reporting Requirements for Subgrantees and Deadlines
Subgrantees must comply with the reporting obligations detailed in Section VII.E.2. of the NOFO. These obligations include:
Subgrantees are required to submit regular reports to the Eligible Entity at least semiannually throughout the subgrant period. These reports should assess the effectiveness of the allocated funds and provide a comprehensive description of the projects undertaken with the subgrant.
For broadband infrastructure projects, the report must, at a minimum, include:
- A list of addresses or locations served by the newly constructed broadband infrastructure.
- The aggregate percentage of customers using services at new locations within each project area.
- An identification of whether each address or location is residential, commercial, or a community anchor institution.
- A description of the types of facilities constructed and installed.
- The actual broadband service speeds during peak and off-peak times.
- The maximum advertised speed of the broadband service offered.
- The non-promotional prices, including any associated fees, for various tiers of broadband service offered.
- A list of all requested interconnection agreements and their current status.
- The number and value of contracts and subcontracts awarded by the subgrantee, categorized by recipients who are Minority Business Enterprises (MBEs) or Women Business Enterprises (WBEs).
- Any additional data required to comply with the Commission’s data and mapping collection standards under Section 1.7004 of Title 47, Code of Federal Regulations, or any successor regulation, for broadband infrastructure projects.
- An SF-425 Federal Financial Report and compliance with the Department of Commerce Financial Assistance Standard Terms and Conditions (dated November 12, 2020), Section A.01 for Financial Reports.
- For projects exceeding $5,000,000 (based on expected total cost), certifications regarding the laborers and mechanics employed by contractors or subcontractors. If certification is not provided, the subgrantee must submit a project employment and local impact report, along with a project workforce continuity plan.
- Adherence to any additional reasonable reporting requirements determined by the Eligible Entity or the Assistant Secretary, and certification of the accuracy of the report.
Reallocation of Funds if Not Allocated to an Eligible Entity
Should funds remain unallocated to an Eligible Entity, they may be redistributed among other Eligible Entities according to the proportion of unserved locations within each. Detailed information about the handling of unallocated funds can be found in Section II.D. of the NOFO.
Reallocation of Unused Funds
If an Eligible Entity fails to utilize its full allocation by the specified deadline, NTIA may reassign the leftover funds to other Eligible Entities with approved Final Proposals, again based on the proportion of unserved locations. Further details on the management of unused funds are available in Section II.D. of the NOFO.
Will NTIA Grant Extensions for the Period of Performance? How Will These Be Granted?
Yes, under certain conditions. NTIA may extend deadlines for both Eligible Entities and subgrantees under the following circumstances:
Section II.B.1. of the NOFO allows an Eligible Entity to extend the four-year network deployment deadline for subgrantees by up to one year if:
- The subgrantee has a comprehensive plan for utilizing the grant funds, with project completion expected within one year after the original four-year deadline;
- The construction project is already underway; or
- Extenuating circumstances necessitate additional time for project completion.
Extensions for Eligible Entities at any stage in the process may be granted at the sole discretion of the Assistant Secretary, particularly when extenuating circumstances suggest that additional time will advance the overall goals of the BEAD Program.
If an Eligible Entity seeks an extension beyond what the Act authorizes it to grant independently, it must submit a written request to NTIA, explaining the rationale for the extension.