Getty Images | Alan Schein
The US Treasury Department has begun approving broadband subsidies to states from a $10 billion fund created to expand access to Internet services and other digital connectivity tools.
The Treasury Department announcement on Tuesday said the first approved projects would connect “more than 200,000 homes and businesses to affordable, reliable, high-speed Internet” in Louisiana, New Hampshire, Virginia and West Virginia. The funded networks will provide a symmetric service with download and upload speeds of at least 100 Mbps, the department said.
The four states will receive a total of $583 million from the $10 billion Coronavirus Capital Projects Fund (CPF), which Congress passed in March 2021 as part of the American Rescue Plan Act. “Treasury designed its guidelines to prioritize connecting families and businesses with poor and inadequate service, especially those in rural and remote areas. Treasury also requires states to explain why communities they have identified are being served with funds from the CPF, have a critical need for these projects,” the department said.
The fund isn’t just for broadband, as legislation says the $10 billion will be used “to make payments to states, territories and tribal governments to implement critical capital projects that enable direct employment, education and health monitoring, including remote options, in response to the [COVID-19] public health emergency.” In addition to broadband, grant recipients “can make investments in other capital projects designed to enable direct employment, education and health monitoring and that meet the Treasury’s other criteria,” the department says.
More money on the way
The Ministry of Finance has also approved more than 30 capital projects for tribal areas, many of which are planned to expand broadband networks, purchase computers and equipment, or provide Internet access to the public in community facilities. Treasury said it would continue to approve state and tribal projects on a rolling basis.
The Capital Projects Fund is separate from the $42.45 billion Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment program approved in November 2021, which will provide grants to ISPs building in unserved and underserved areas. That larger fund hasn’t spent any money yet, but the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) announced rules for the program on May 13.
As the Biden administration gets broadband funding to states, plans to reintroduce broadband regulations repealed during the Trump era have been put on hold because Biden won’t cross the finish line with his Federal Communications Commission nominee, Gigi Sohn. got in the Senate. As Axios reported last week, “Democrats currently have no votes after nearly eight months of drama surrounding her nomination.”
Affordable internet option required
The plans filed by Louisiana, New Hampshire, Virginia and West Virginia require ISPs who receive wagering money to participate in the FCC’s Affordable Connectivity Program. “The ACP helps ensure that households can afford the broadband they need for work, school, health care and more by offering a discount of up to $30 per month,” the Treasury Department said. Biden recently announced voluntary commitments from major ISPs to offer subscriptions of $30 per month to eligible households, essentially making the service free along with the discount.
“These four states have wisely chosen to prioritize local, affordable, and future-proof networks,” said Joshua Stager, deputy director of broadband and competition policy at New America’s Open Technology Institute.
Each state will eventually get money from the fund. The March 2021 law said the Treasury Department must give at least $100 million to each state, with the remaining payments to states being apportioned based on total population, rural population and household income. States must submit their plans by September 24, 2022. The Capital Projects Fund is on “a significantly faster timeline than other broadband infrastructure funds, such as the new NTIA program, so officials need to act quickly,” Stager said.
The Capital Projects Fund has earmarked $100 million for tribal governments. There is also $100 million to be distributed among the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, the Northern Mariana Islands, the Marshall Islands, the Federated States of Micronesia, and Palau.
