Sens Shaheen, Collins Urge Department of Commerce to Immediately Release Funding Guidance to Help Communities Take Advantage of Broadband Expansion

Senators Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) and Susan Collins (R-ME) are calling on the U.S. Department of Commerce to immediately issue guidance regarding the use of Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment (BEAD) Program funds for non-deployment activities so that communities can get funding out the door to eligible projects. In a bipartisan letter to Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and the Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Communications and Information at the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), Arielle Roth, the Senators note that without guidance, up to $21 billion in funding intended to support the adoption of new broadband infrastructure is in limbo across the country. The letter is cosigned by Senators Angus King (I-ME), Bill Cassidy (R-LA), Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV) and Mark Warner (D-VA).