For @lightreading.bsky.social: NTIA appears to deny SpaceX's attempt to get states to sign a contract absolving Starlink from meeting BEAD performance standards.
But will this create new chances for providers to re-bid in BEAD? New Street's Blair Levin says no.
www.lightreading.com/broadband/nt...
New for @lightreading.bsky.social: Wrote about @profgalloway.com's Resist and Unsubscribe campaign, which encourages an economic boycott of companies that are "active enablers of ICE" - a list that includes AT&T, Charter and Comcast. www.lightreading.com/broadband/at...
The FCC will vote next month on changing rules for the low-income Lifeline program, a move that @agomezfcc.bsky.social calls "especially shortsighted in the aftermath of the lapse of the Affordable Connectivity Program." www.lightreading.com/broadband/fc... | @lightreading.bsky.social
Here are just a few of many pieces on @lightreading.bsky.social that offer more background into the BEAD saga:
>> www.lightreading.com/broadband/20...
>> www.lightreading.com/broadband/th...
>> www.lightreading.com/broadband/ne...
3. NOW, HOWEVER, BEAD has *still* not connected a single home bc the Trump admin halted plans approved under Biden and rewrote the program to gut it and give more funds (meant for fiber deployments) to Musk's SpaceX, forcing states to spend last year re-doing the plans they spent years working on.
2. IN THE MEANTIME, the Biden administration spent over $10 billion through the American Rescue Plan on broadband deployments for over 1M households. The governor doesn't mention that PA has been steadily connecting homes w/those funds. BEAD was the bigger program meant to finish the job.
1. The BEAD program by law had a built-in timeline that delayed allocation of funds until the FCC produced a new broadband map, which itself took over a year. States couldn't finalize their plans until those allocations were set. Funding was set to start rolling just as the Biden admin was ending.
Frustrating to hear @governor.pa.gov repeat the "abundance" take on BEAD on the @ragingmoderates.bsky.social podcast w/ @jessicatarlov.bsky.social yesterday, blaming the Biden admin for not connecting a single household w/the $42B IIJA broadband program. A few things this argument leaves out, below:
After BEAD freezes, rewrites, and delays, we head into 2026 with new rules, fewer fiber builds, and a shrinking promise for rural America.
For @nicfer.bsky.social's 2025 recap, including @gbsohn.bsky.social's podcast appearance on public broadband, check out:
www.lightreading.com/broadband/20...
Light Reading's @nicfer.bsky.social has an excellent recap of the eighteen podcast conversations she's conducted this year on aspects of the broadband divide. It's all still pretty current and worth checking out.
The FCC will vote this morning on an order to rescind security rules imposed on ISPs after the Salt Typhoon hack. The move comes "after heavy lobbying from the very telecommunications carriers whose networks were breached," said Sen. Cantwell in a letter to Carr: www.lightreading.com/broadband/go...
The FCC will vote next week on a notice of proposed rulemaking to roll back some requirements for consumer broadband labels. But as @publicknowledge.bsky.social warns "the Commission could create a permission structure for ISPs to continue to act without accountability." | @lightreading.bsky.social
House Dems, along w/@agomezfcc.bsky.social, continue to raise alarm over Carr's use of the FCC to serve Trump, w/Dems saying in a new letter Carr's "misuse of regulatory processes represent an unprecedented weaponization of the agency." www.lightreading.com/video-broadc... |@lightreading.bsky.social
Amazon is seeking to roll back the FCC's five-year deorbit rule, and I had something to say about that. 😁 #spacedebris #satellites
People need to understand that Carr is at best only a step or two removed from your average internet shitposter and he has always wanted to regulate speech that he hates. He is living his best life right now as the industry knuckles under.
I've been saying this for years, but welcome to the party.
This FCC does not have the authority, the ability, or the constitutional right to police content or punish broadcasters for speech the government dislikes.
Free speech is the foundation of our democracy, and we must push back against any attempt to erode it.
New for @lightreading.bsky.social: preliminary BEAD results from several states in the past week show fiber is still winning the majority of broadband serviceable locations and funding, but LEO satellite is picking up a bit of steam.
"This set of regional outcomes is within potential awardee capacity ... supplies universal coverage of eligible locations, and demonstrates a technology-neutral approach prioritizing low-cost projects," said WV of its final BEAD proposal. || @lightreading.bsky.social
This week's episode of #TheDivide pod for @lightreading.bsky.social explores @nycfuture.bsky.social's illuminating report on the digital divide in the Bronx, which includes some great policy recommendations for targeting issues around device access and skills training. Listen here:
New for @lightreading.bsky.social: Advocates for fixed wireless access were among the first to cheer the Trump administration's rewrite of the Broadband Equity Access and Deployment (BEAD) program, but early results show a low level of FWA activity and wins.
NYC will host a network design and procurement process this summer to roll out Liberty Link: a city-owned fiber network, operated by the NYPL, offering free Internet service for at least three years to 35 affordable housing buildings. @lightreading.bsky.social
California is advancing a broadband bill that was intended to follow in New York's footsteps with a low-cost service mandate. But consumer advocates now oppose the bill over amendments that weaken enforcement and lower speeds.
Read more on Light Reading:
This week on The Divide for @lightreading.bsky.social we hear from NDIA's Angela Siefer on the immediate and long-term impact of Trump (unlawfully) terminating grants from the Digital Equity Act and how advocates and states can fight back. www.lightreading.com/broadband/th...
4500 Cleveland households are now getting <$20 wireless home broadband from growing nonprofit ISP DigitalC... another excellent "Divide" interview by @nicfer.bsky.social at @lightreading.bsky.social. (Listen close, my name is dropped.)
New for @lightreading.bsky.social: Over 40 fiber suppliers increased domestic manufacturing in 28 states to comply with BEAD's "Buy America" rules, as set by the Biden admin. But program delays, new tariffs & the Trump admin's push to strip BEAD of its fiber focus may threaten those US investments.
"We've built smart broadband plans tailored to our communities, and federal changes at this stage risk undermining years of progress and deliberation. The best thing Washington can do is let states finish the job," said Missouri State Rep. Louis Riggs, a Republican. #BEAD
The framework of the Universal Service Fund (USF) is "more likely than not" to be upheld, said analyst Blair Levin after yesterday's SCOTUS hearing. But if Trump/Musk rewrite broadband rules to favor satellites, that could still blow up the program's future. More on @lightreading.bsky.social:
2. There may have been delays within the NTIA worth critiquing, but by and large BEAD was designed to take years to roll out, and moreover the Biden admin did connect many rural households w/billions in ARPA funds, through an effort spearheaded by the US Treasury Dept.
