The National Rural Electric Cooperative Association (NRECA) announces…

NRECA CEO Jim Matheson today issued the following statement after the National Telecommunications and Information Agency (NTIA) announced a new round of Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment (BEAD) program funding to be made available for states to address locations that may remain unserved.

“BEAD’s initial investment is failing rural America. Delayed implementation, shifting guidance, cost constraints and unrealistic funding assumptions have slowed progress, discouraged participation and weakened a historic opportunity to bring long-overdue broadband service to rural communities. Directing further investment under the same misguided approach will not deliver universal connectivity to rural America.

“NTIA must allow flexibility for cost increases created by program delays, align funding levels with the actual cost of deploying broadband infrastructure in America’s hardest-to-reach communities and remove fatally flawed pole attachment rules that clearly break from long-standing federal policy. Without correcting course, BEAD risks leaving rural America behind.”

More than 200 rural electric cooperatives across the U.S. are working to bridge the digital divide. NTIA and State Broadband Offices are important partners in amplifying these efforts and expanding access to affordable broadband in rural areas.