- New York Law School as crunched the numbers of BEAD eligible locations based on updated mapping data
- This translates to the removal of about 312,000 locations that were slated to be served by LEO
- BEAD is taking so long that a lot of locations are getting service via private ISPs
Originally, the Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment (BEAD) program looked like it would be awarding about 20% of locations to low-Earth-orbit (LEO) satellite operators. But now, states may be removing as many as 35% of locations that they awarded LEO operators.
Lawyers from New York Law School today published an analysis after they crunched the numbers in light of the FCC’s updated Broadband Serviceable Location Fabric - Version 9, which is the underlying dataset used in its Broadband Data Collection (BDC) program. That mouthful of government lingo is long for “FCC mapping data.”
According to some reports, the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) has asked states to remove LEO BEAD project locations if they are now considered served per the latest FCC mapping data. Fierce has reached out to NTIA for verification of this and will update the story if we hear back.
Michael Santorelli, director of the Advanced Communications Law & Policy Institute at New York Law School, said, “We estimate that about 35% of locations awarded BEAD funds for satellite service are likely no longer in need (that figure rises to 42% if unlicensed fixed wireless is included in the analysis).”
This translates to the removal of about 312,000 locations that were slated to be served by LEO. If unlicensed fixed wireless access (FWA) is included in the analysis, the number of removed BEAD locations increases to about 374,000. From a funding perspective, this yields a savings of roughly $354 million in expenditures ($423 million if unlicensed fixed wireless is included).
“In our analysis, we note that this should not be surprising since the BEAD map — and the digital divide BEAD has sought to close — has always been a moving target,” said Santorelli.
He attributed this latest development regarding the removal of many location from LEO and FWA operators to the fact that there’s been a lot of private investment in fiber deployments by internet service providers.
“This also highlights once again how long it has taken to get BEAD funds out the door,” Santorelli said. “Even though NTIA has approved just about every state's Final Proposal, many BEAD projects are still in their preliminary phases as ISPs navigate lengthy permitting, ROW, pole and related processes. Consequently, we might see additional adjustments to the map down the line to protect against wasteful overbuilding.”
NTIA Administrator Arielle Roth is a big proponent of making sure BEAD dollars don’t go to places that aren’t legitimate homes or businesses or that are already served. For instance, in March Roth published an opinion piece in the Wall Street Journal, boasting that NTIA was not giving a single penny of BEAD funds to the District of Columbia because NTIA determined that D.C. doesn’t have any locations that meet BEAD’s guidelines for being “unserved” with broadband.
At the time, Gary Bolton, president of the Fiber Broadband Association (FBA), indicated that the problem in D.C. was related to the national broadband map. He said, “The FCC is responsible for providing accurate broadband mapping to support state broadband offices. While mapping has been complex and highly dynamic, it continues to improve with each iteration.”
Non-deployment funds
It’s great to save taxpayer dollars. But the irony is that the current NTIA revised BEAD to funnel less money to fiber deployments and more money to satellite and FWA. This has resulted in about half of the $42.5 billion that Congress allocated for BEAD being left-over as non-deployment funds. NTIA seems flabbergasted about how to allocate this remaining $20 billion.
Now, with even more locations being removed from BEAD awards, NTIA might face additional pressure to finally release its long overdue guidance on how states can use those non-deployment funds.
More stories related to BEAD:
More than 20% of BEAD locations will go to satellite
Is BEAD turning into a dud? Voices raise various concerns about the program
NTIA chief says 2 states have deployed BEAD dollars – but not for fiber