A look at the latest effort to get more Americans in rural communities online

For years, federal and state governments have been working to expand internet connectivity, especially in rural communities. In 2023, Congress allocated about $42 billion for states through the Broadband Equity Access and Deployment Program. States were gearing up to start those projects, but in June, the Trump administration pressed pause and issued new guidance. Mike Sanders, the executive director of the Oklahoma Broadband Office, says his state's plans had to change. The Trump administration wanted states to consider different types of technology and the lowest cost options. "Where we had eight to 10 months leading up to that, we had 90 days," said Sanders. "Everything was condensed in a year's work - I kid you not - into three months." Drew Gardner is with the Benton Institute for Broadband and Society, which advocates for reliable and affordable internet nationwide. He says fiber-optic lines have been the gold standard for years. Now, satellite and fixed wireless are playing a bigger role in state proposals. The National Telecommunications and Information Administration, or NTIA, is the agency overseeing the program. It says Oklahoma would save about $225 million under a new plan in which about 35% of the state's broadband network would be satellite and fixed wireless. Although cheaper to install than fiber, some question whether those other technologies will be as reliable and long-lasting. In Wisconsin, Gail Huycke is the community development specialist at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She says that state decided to lower its broadband fiber content from 93 to 73%. Garner said, "So we're not going to be looking at sort of the best quality network. We're going to be looking at the least expensive networks."