The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) has just announced they will give $1.5 billion to North Carolina to bolstering high-speed internet infrastructure in the state, as part of the federal Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) initiative.
Planning for the funds is being spearheaded by the North Carolina Department of Information Technology’s (NCDIT’s) Division of Broadband and Digital Equity. The Division has released a draft five-year plan outlining proposed investments of BEAD funding across the state, which is open for public comment until 5 p.m. on Monday, July 17 via email to NCDITpartnerfeedback@nc.gov. The finalized plan will be submitted to the NTIA by July 29, enabling North Carolina to tap into its allocated BEAD funds.
“We continue to work tirelessly to achieve the best return on our investment as we allocate federal resources to address unserved and underserved locations across North Carolina,” said NCDIT Secretary and State Chief Information Officer Jim Weaver in a press release. “We appreciate the strong partnerships that have helped us identify needs throughout the state so that we can take strategic steps to reach every North Carolinian.”
The broadband division recently revealed that their challenges to the Federal Communications Commission’s National Broadband Map resulted in uncovering an additional 115,000 North Carolina homes and businesses lacking high-speed internet access. This discovery led to North Carolina adding more new unserved locations to the map than any other state, subsequently increasing the state’s funding allocation from the BEAD program.
According to the Federal Communications Commission’s Broadband Deployment Report, about 21% of North Carolinians lack a wired broadband connection capable of delivering speeds of at least 25 Mbps. Furthermore, data from BroadbandNow indicates that 13% of the state’s population lacks access to a broadband service of any type, wired or wireless. This grant from the NTIA will significantly assist in addressing these disparities, and contribute to expanding digital equity across the state.
For more info about the NCDIT Division of Broadband and Digital Equity and Governor Cooper’s mission to bridge the digital divide in North Carolina, please visit www.ncbroadband.gov.
