State officials are waiting for guidance on how they can spend billions of federal dollars earmarked for rural broadband projects.
The federal Broadband Equity Access and Deployment, or BEAD, Program is meant to help states connect far-flung places to high speed internet. Congress allocated about $42 billion for BEAD in 2023 through the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. It was the largest investment in federal broadband infrastructure in the nation’s history.
They spoke with the MN Office of Broadband Development…
Minnesota received $652 million through BEAD – which is not enough to connect the rest of the state, said Bree Maki, the Minnesota Office of Broadband Development’s executive director. She’s waiting for instructions for how she can spend about $270 million.
“We also know that weather in Minnesota is a big factor and so, just trying to maximize the construction season and when the non-deployment comes out, you know, we’ll deal with it,” Maki said. “We have always worked hard to meet deadlines and the requirements in front of us. I wish I could predict that, because then I would go hit the lottery up.”
She’s also unsure how an executive order on artificial intelligence signed by President Donald Trump last year might impact access to the leftover BEAD money. The order says that states with “onerous AI laws” are ineligible for the funds, but that definition remains unclear, Maki said.
There has been frustration with BEAD, but Maki said the mission of getting even one person connected to reliable broadband keeps her office motivated. Her state has other broadband projects in the works too, and she is confident they will keep moving forward.
“Sometimes, I think, in all the noise we forget how meaningful that is,” Maki said.