Broadband grants paused as critics allege favoritism toward Elon Musk’s Starlink

The Texas Broadband Development Office placed a temporary hold on August 12 on all disbursements of billions of dollars in federal funds related to the Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment program. The hold comes after the office was accused of favoritism to certain companies, specifically Elon Musk’s Starlink, which led to lawmakers announcing an audit. In an email obtained by The Texas Tribune, the state broadband office shared with subgrantees that the hold was effective as of August 11, and will be in place “until further notice.” The office did not give a reason as to why the disbursements were paused. Comptroller Don Huffines recently announced a comprehensive internal review of his office, which includes the broadband office. Lawmakers began questioning the Broadband Office in June on how it doled out more than $3 billion in BEAD funding.