Today the Office of Broadband Development (OBD) presented on BEAD…
OBD will be providing up to date information on the BEAD program, including the upcoming pre-qualification process, and an overview of the anticipated BEAD timeline in Minnesota. There will also be time for Q+A from attendees, and a preview of resources available for 2025.
The OBD BEAD webpage is being updated with additional resources, so please be sure to check that ahead of the webinar.
Notes:
It’s important for everyone to get pre-qualified.
The first round is your time to create your own project areas; after that OBD will need to define them. Also, first round is best for fiber.
OBD will be hosting Tuesdays at 11am and run from January 14 to April 1. Registration is open for the sessions below, these will also be posted to the webpage, and sent out in an email blast:
- January 14, register here
- January 21, register here
- January 28, register here
- February 4, register here
- February 11, Instead of office hours, OBD will be offering in collaboration with the Department of Labor and Industry (DLI) a webinar on the new Safety-qualified Underground Telecommunications Installer Program. Register here to attend and visit the DLI webpage to learn more about the program.
- February 18, register here
- February 25, register here
- March 4, register here
- March 11, register here
- March 18, register here
- March 25, register here
- April 1, register here
Questions:
How do you define project areas?
Census block groups.
Are joint powers considered eligible organizations for Digital Opportunity grants?
There’s a combination of elements. We’ll take it into consideration.
When will final BEAD eligibility map come out?
Maybe Jan 20 but we don’t know. We’re hoping mid-February.
