Innovation Economy Institute

Congress: BEAD's biggest obstacle isn't funding, it's the 8-agency permitting gauntlet providers face on every build. Give USDA, Interior, DOD, Forest Service, Army Corps & DOT clearer coordination authority — and stop sticking providers w/relocation costs on fed funded projects.

NTIA's own waste, fraud & abuse mandate points the same direction as the data: w/69% of BEAD projects now over the statutory unserved-location cap, refocusing awards isn't red tape..it's stewardship. The map was a 2022 snapshot; the facts have moved. Time for NTIA to move w/them

The broadband market is delivering — 97% fixed access, 5G reaching ~95% of homes, wireless prices down nearly 30% since 2010. But BEAD's last mile isn't a money problem, it's a permitting problem: 86,402 permits across 6,933 projects. Fix that and finish the job.

Private buildout means 69% of BEAD projects now exceed the statutory unserved-location threshold — triggering rescoping under the law. That's not a problem, it's proof the market is closing the gap. NTIA should refocus funds accordingly and protect taxpayers from paying twice.

The market is outpacing the map. New @ACLP research: 79% of locations originally flagged for BEAD funding in 2022 are now served, ineligible, or covered by another federal program — ⬆️ from 65% just a year ago. Private investment is doing the work. BEAD needs to adapt.

If providers can't get on poles at reasonable, predictable rates, "shovel-ready" broadband stalls before it starts — costlier, slower, less competition. BEAD's poles requirement isn't the problem; unpredictable attachment terms are. Get pole policy right and deployment follows

NRECA's op-ed ignores the o/half of the pole story. Co-ops want BEAD $ but object to fair FCC pole attachment rates on their systems — yet those same predictable rates are what let competing providers build without getting priced out. Fair rules cut both ways.