The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) has approved the full initial proposals for Alaska and Ohio for the $42.5 billion Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program. Alaska will have access to more than $1 billion and Ohio will have access to more than $793 million to fund BEAD projects. The states can now move to the implementation phase of the BEAD program, during which they can select providers and projects to pass the funding to. Alaska and Ohio will have one year to submit a final proposal that details the outcome of the subgrantee selection process and how the state will ensure service to all unserved and underserved locations. 53 jurisdictions have now had their full initial BEAD proposals approved.
