The leading broadband industry associations have come together to launch a series of monthly educational webinars for State Broadband Leaders, NTIA, communities, ISPs and key stakeholders focused on key topics related to the $42.45 billion in NTIA BEAD broadband infrastructure funding program implementation and deployment. This is a once in a lifetime opportunity to connect every American with broadband, elevating quality of life for generations to come.

Please join us for next week’s second installment, Leveraging BEAD for Workforce Development, on Wednesday, October 12 at 1 p.m. ET, delivered by the Fiber Broadband Association and the Wireless Infrastructure Association. In order to receive funding from the BEAD program, states are required to lay out strategies to meet the workforce demands of universal connectivity. Join WIA and FBA experts to learn how states can meet the NTIA workforce development requirements. Register here.

Upcoming 30-minute webinars will be held the second Wednesday of each month at 1 p.m. ET will focus on:

• November 9 - Affordability
• December 14 - Permitting/Rights of Way
• January 11 - Cybersecurity

INCOMPAS recently joined NTCA – The Rural Broadband Association and the Fiber Broadband Association in hosting the first series of monthly webinars on September 14 with Broadband Supply Chain Mitigation Strategies for NTIA BEAD. In case you missed it, you can rewatch it here.

The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) announced preliminary data that shows more than 235 applications were submitted totaling more than $5.5 billion in funding requests for the Enabling Middle Mile Infrastructure Grant Program. The program is part of the Biden-Harris Administration’s commitment to investing in affordable high-speed Internet for all, which provides $1 billion in funding to projects that connect high-speed Internet networks to each other and reduce the cost of bringing Internet service to communities that lack it. 

Applications for the Middle Mile program were due by September 30, 2022. NTIA will evaluate the applications and make awards on a rolling basis no earlier than March 2023. Additionally, NTIA has temporarily waived the application deadline for eligible entities that submit Middle Mile Grant Program applications for projects that would deploy middle mile infrastructure in Puerto Rico, as well as parts of Florida, South Carolina and Alaska impacted by natural disasters. The deadline for such applications is 11:59 p.m. EDT, November 1, 2022. Eligible Entities that intend to file applications that rely on this waiver are requested to email notice to [email protected]. 

For more information on the Biden-Harris Administration’s high-speed Internet programs as well as quotes from the awardees, please visit InternetforAll.gov. 

The FCC announced a tentative agenda for its October 27, 2022, open meeting, where it will consider:

• Uniendo a Puerto Rico Fund and the Connect USVI Fund – An FNPRM that would ensure continued support for mobile carriers and extend the support phase down for incumbent fixed broadband providers in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands to enhance their networks’ reliability and resiliency in the face of hurricanes and other natural disasters.
• Considering 12.7 GHz Band for Next-Generation Wireless Services – An NOI seeking information on the current use of the 12.7-13.25 GHz band, ways to encourage more efficient and intensive use of the band, and whether the band is suitable for mobile broadband or other expanded use. The Commission will also consider an order to extend the temporary freeze on applications in the 12.7 GHz band.
• Caller ID Authentication on Non-IP Networks – An NOI launching a broad inquiry on caller ID authentication technology for non-IP networks.
• Improving the Security of the National Alert and Warning Systems – An NPRM to strengthen the operational readiness of the Emergency Alert System and Wireless Emergency Alerts, including by reducing the vulnerability of these systems to cyberattacks.

Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) joined Sens. Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.) and John Thune (R-S.D.) last week in pushing the FCC to take action to increase broadband speed requirements in its existing programs. The Senators argue that improving these programs would help ensure that Americans, particularly those in rural and underserved areas, have access to the download and upload speeds necessary to participate in telehealth, telework and remote learning.

The FCC is considering proposals to update two programs – the Alternative Connect American Cost Model (ACAM) and Connect America Fund Broadband Loop Support (CAF-BLS) – that help connect people in rural America to affordable broadband services that are provided by local, smaller telecom companies. These updates, which would extend financial support in exchange for commitments to serve more people at higher broadband speeds, would connect thousands more Iowans to the kind of internet service necessary to participate in Iowa’s modern digital economy.

In a bipartisan letter, the Senators urge the FCC to move forward with updates to these programs that would give more Iowans, and all Americans, access to higher-speed broadband than what is currently required. The letter was also signed by Sens. Michael Bennet (D-Colo.), Mike Rounds (R-S.D.), Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.), Deb Fischer (R-Neb.), John Hickenlooper (D-Colo.), Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.), Ben Ray Lujan (D-N.M.), Jacky Rosen (D-Nev.), Jerry Moran (R-Kan.), Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.) and Gary Peters (D-Mich.).