Under the BEAD Restructuring Policy Notice issued by NTIA on June 6 (“Policy Notice”),[1] state and territory broadband offices must rescind all preliminary and provisional BEAD awards made under the prior rules and must, in very short order, run a single competitive round with a strong preference for providers that promise to
This is the first of several planned blogs on the recently released NTIA BEAD Restructuring Policy Notice (“Notice”).
In early March, Department of Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick paused all funding under the $42.5 billion BEAD program pending a “rigorous review” by the new administration. At that time, the Secretary announced his intention to “rip out”
In March 2022, we published a blog post explaining that broadband grants are apparently subject to federal income taxation. Three years later, and with $42.5 billion in BEAD grants on the verge of disbursement, nothing has changed.
As discussed in 2022, the taxability of broadband grants seems to be an unplanned quirk of the 2017
On January 16, 2025, the FCC closed out Jessica Rosenworcel’s term as Chairwoman by releasing a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (“NPRM”) seeking to expand the use of the 896-901/935-940 MHz (“900 MHz”) band for broadband use. The NPRM builds on the Commission’s 2019 rulemaking, which created a 3/3 MHz broadband allocation at 897.5-900.5/936.5-939.5 MHz and
On October 18, 2024, the FCC adopted an Eighth Report and Order in its 4.9 GHz band proceeding. The new rules will permit a yet-to-be-selected Band Manager to be eligible for a nationwide license in the band, overlaying the licenses of incumbent public safety licensees. The Band Manager will be authorized to enter sharing agreements
On May 7, 2024, the FCC released a Declaratory Ruling reclassifying “broadband Internet access service” (“BIAS”) as a “telecommunications service” subject to the jurisdiction of the FCC under Title II of the Communications Act. It was accompanied by an Order removing BIAS from most Title II regulations and a Report and Order applying a set
The Treasury Department has released the final version of important compliance guidance applicable to broadband projects funded through SLFRF or CPF awards. The “SLFRF and CPF Supplemental Broadband Guidance” (“Guidance”) addresses several crucial issues relating to the use of SLFRF and CPF funds for broadband projects, including the crucial distinction of ISPs acting
While there is no one solution to deploying affordable broadband, broadband partnerships have emerged as an attractive option in many areas of the country; indeed, in some instances, partnerships may be the only feasible option.[1] Recognizing the attractiveness of broadband partnerships, Congress and many states have sought to encourage such partnerships to help accelerate
On March 28, 2023, the Treasury Department issued and invited comments on proposed compliance guidance applicable to broadband projects funded through SLFRF[1] or CPF[2] awards (“Proposed Guidance”).
The Proposed Guidance addresses a variety of important questions relating to the use of SLFRF and CPF funds for broadband projects, including:
Just over a month ago, the FCC released its pre-production draft of its new Broadband Maps. The initial map is based on service availability data collected from broadband providers through the ongoing Broadband Data Collection (“BDC”) and reflects services available[1] as of June 30, 2022.[2]
The release of the Broadband Map initiated