West Virginia officials express frustration over delays in federal internet expansion program

In 2024, West Virginia officials celebrated getting a jump toward improving broadband connectivity after the state became one of the first three approved to unlock millions of federal dollars. Now state officials are expressing frustration over federal delays. “It’s a digital inequity that we have in our state,” Sen Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV) said in a briefing with reporters, saying the $1.2 billion allocated for West Virginia broadband “should have been out the door; it’s not.” Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick announced recently that Commerce would undertake a “rigorous review” of the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment program, part of the 2021 Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. West Virginia officials had believed the state was within striking distance of the real benefits of the broadband support. During a meeting of the West Virginia Broadband Enhancement Council, members reaffirmed support for fiber deployment to enhance broadband access, expressing concern over the BEAD program’s pause since March 5. The council unanimously approved a resolution saying a lengthy delay with respect to West Virginia is unnecessary because the state completed the comprehensive BEAD application process well before the deadline.