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Grants Overview

Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act Overview

On November 15, 2021, President Biden signed the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act into law. This Act includes a significant investment of $65 billion to help close the digital divide and ensure that all Americans have access to reliable, high speed, and affordable broadband. This investment builds upon the funding for broadband deployment provided in the American Rescue Plan, the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021, the FCC’s Universal Service program, and USDA’s Rural Utilities Service broadband programs. This historic investment will lay critical groundwork for widespread access and affordability of broadband, creating new jobs and economic opportunities, providing increased access to healthcare services, enriching educational experiences of students, and improving overall quality of life for all Americans.

NTIA will implement the following programs:

Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) Program: Appropriates $42.45 billion for states, territories, the District of Columbia (D.C.), and Puerto Rico (P.R.) to utilize for broadband deployment, mapping, and adoption projects. Each state, D.C., and P.R. will receive an initial allocation of $100 million -- and $100 million will be divided equally among the United States Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands -- to support planning efforts including building capacity in state broadband offices and outreach and coordination with local communities. States, territories, D.C., and P.R., leveraging initial planning funds that will be made available through the program, will submit a 5-year action plan, which shall be informed by collaboration with local and regional entities. The remaining funding will be distributed based on a formula that considers the number of unserved and high-cost locations in the state, based on the maps to be published by the FCC in 2022. The first priority for funding is for providing broadband to unserved areas (those below 25/3 Mbps), followed by underserved areas (those below 100/20 Mbps), and then serving community anchor institutions (1/1 Gbps).

Enabling Middle Mile Broadband Infrastructure Program: The Middle Mile Grant Program provides funding for the expansion and extension of middle mile infrastructure across U.S. states and territories. In total, the program allocated $980 million to fund projects for the construction, improvement, or acquisition of middle mile infrastructure covering more than 370 counties across 40 states and Puerto Rico in Summer 2023. The ultimate purpose of this funding is to expand and strengthen U.S. high-speed Internet networks by reducing the cost of connecting areas that are unserved or underserved to the Internet backbone. Eligible recipients include States, political subdivisions of a State, Tribal governments, technology companies, electric utilities, utility cooperatives, public utility districts, telecommunications companies, telecommunications cooperatives, nonprofit foundations, nonprofit corporations, nonprofit institutions, nonprofit associations, regional planning councils, Native entities, economic development authorities, or any partnership of two (2) or more of these entities.

Tribal Broadband Connectivity Program: The Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 appropriated $1 billion for the TBCP.  IIJA, which Congress passed with bipartisan support, subsequently appropriated an additional $2 billion in new funding for TBCP, bringing the total amount of funding for the TBCP to $3 billion. Of this $3 billion total, and consistent with the CAA and IIJA, NTIA has already approved the use of approximately $2 billion to award applications submitted pursuant to the first TBCP Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO), released on June 3, 2021.

This second NOFO describes how NTIA will administer the remaining TBCP funds. Grant funds will be made available under this NOFO to eligible Native American, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian entities for broadband deployment on Tribal Lands, digital inclusion efforts (which may include digital equity planning and workforce development), telehealth, and distance learning. 

Digital Equity Act Programs: Dedicates $2.75 billion to establish three grant programs that promote digital inclusion and equity to ensure that all individuals and communities have the skills, technology, and capacity needed to reap the full benefits of our digital economy. The goal of these programs is to promote the meaningful adoption and use of broadband services across the targeted populations in the Act, including low-income households, aging populations, incarcerated individuals, veterans, individuals with disabilities, individuals with a language barrier, racial and ethnic minorities, and rural inhabitants.

  • State Digital Equity Planning Grant Program: $60 million formula grant program for states and territories to develop digital equity plans.
  • State Digital Equity Capacity Grant Program: $1.44 billion formula grant program for states and territories distributed via annual grant programs over 5 years to implement digital equity projects and support the implementation of digital equity plans.
  • Digital Equity Competitive Grant Program: $1.25 billion discretionary grant program distributed vial annual grant programs over 5 years to implement digital equity projects. Eligible applicants include specific types of political subdivision, agency, or instrumentality of a state; tribal governments; nonprofit entities; community anchor institutions; local educational agencies; and entities that carry out workforce development programs.

 

We will be updating the OICG grant programs webpage as additional information becomes available on program guidance and webinars. You can also sign up on our BroadbandUSA listserv to stay up to date on our latest events and updates.

 

Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021

The Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 directed NTIA to implement three new grant programs:

 

NTIA Funding at a Glance

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Grants Roundup

NTIA periodically provides the latest news across its grant programs including Notices of Funding Opportunity (NOFOs), new sets of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs), upcoming grant program webinars, and more. Please sign up to receive these and additional BroadbandUSA updates via email.