Friday, September 4, 2026
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BEAD Supplemental Deployment Policy Notice
NTIA Opens a Second Round of BEAD Funding for Locations the Program Missed the First Time
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The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) provided new guidance to Eligible Entities (States, Territories, and the District of Columbia) regarding the next step in Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) Program implementation. In furtherance of the BEAD program’s core statutory mission—to ensure universal broadband availability throughout America—NTIA will allow Eligible Entities to access additional BEAD funding to address locations that may remain unserved due to defaults in other federal and/or state programs, misreporting by providers, and other changes to the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) broadband DATA maps since the completion of Final Proposals. This Supplemental Deployment Policy Notice modifies and replaces certain requirements outlined in the BEAD Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO). Each Eligible Entity must comply with this Supplemental Deployment Policy Notice to access additional BEAD funds. The core statutory objective of the BEAD Program is to ensure broadband availability for all Americans. Since NTIA’s approval of Final Proposals, external factors may have resulted in additional unserved locations qualifying for BEAD funding. NTIA will conduct a final “true-up” review of the Fabric to identify any remaining locations that may be unserved and provide this Supplemental BEAD Eligible Location List to each Eligible Entity. NTIA will review and approve the final Supplemental BEAD Eligible Location Lists and authorize Eligible Entities to proceed with a second Benefit of the Bargain round to serve these locations.
On September 3, 2026, the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) released the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) Program Supplemental Deployment Policy Notice to allow states, territories, and the District of Columbia (known collectively as Eligible Entities) to access additional BEAD funding to address locations that may remain unserved due to defaults in other federal and/or state programs, misreporting by providers, and other changes to the Federal Communication Commission’s (FCC) broadband DATA maps since the completion of their federally approved deployment plans (called "Final Proposals"). Adhering to the requirements of this new guidance will likely add nine months or more to the BEAD process.
A substantial project to deliver over 1,000 miles of fiber internet has concluded. 123NET, a Michigan-based provider of fiber internet, colocation, and voice services, announced it completed the Allegan County broadband expansion project. The $65 million project, launched in 2022, built an expansive fiber network of roughly 1,100 miles for over 17,000 addresses, 123NET said in a release. Funding for the project was provided through a combination of state, federal, county, and private investments, including the State of Michigan's Realizing Opportunity with Broadband Infrastructure Networks program, Allegan County American Rescue Plan Act funds, and capital investment from 123NET.
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman gave Axios an eye-opening preview of the power and the risks of coming AI models, including his own Astra, which is expected to be released any day now. "Take our word for it that we have much, much, much more capable models coming soon," Altman said on September 2. "The next generation of models are going to be sobering for everybody. ... I think no one intellectually honest can look at what's happening and not feel the weight of responsibility in front of us."
After years of studying how human beings write, the cognitive psychologist Ronald T. Kellogg concluded that drafting a basic persuasive essay was as mentally taxing as digging a ditch was physically exhausting. Writing well requires a command of vocabulary, spelling and grammar. It forces writers to comprehend a subject, to sift through their working memory of that topic, to organize and plan. Writing an essay is so difficult that a person in the throes of it can do hardly anything else—as anyone who has shushed a spouse or child while trying to compose a decent sentence can attest. Very few people would volunteer to dig a ditch. Likewise, it is hard—almost impossible, many English teachers will admit—to turn a reluctant writer into an enthusiastic one. Yet the American education system expects nearly all students to learn how to write an essay. It’s little wonder, then, that as soon as a tool arrived promising to lessen the pain people grabbed it.
Gov. Landry appoints Veneeth Iyengar to Louisiana Rural Health Transformation Program Advisory Council
Veneeth Iyengar, executive director of ConnectLA, has been appointed to the Louisiana Rural Health Transformation Program Advisory Council by Gov. Jeff Landry (R-LA). The advisory council was created as a result of Gov. Landry’s executive order signed in April, establishing the Office of Rural Health Transformation and Sustainability within the Louisiana Department of Health, advancing efforts to strengthen health care access and outcomes for rural communities across the state. The office will lead the implementation of Louisiana’s RHTP, supported by federal funding totaling approximately $208,374,448. The state’s award is among the highest in the nation, positioning Louisiana to secure more than $1 billion in total funding over the next five years.
Light Source Communications signed its second major hyperscale tenant on a 500-mile, dark fiber route it’s building between Tulsa (OK) and St. Louis (MO). The company says the new hyperscaler deal highlights the fact that the central U.S. is becoming a critical corridor for the massive data center demands of AI. Debra Freitas, CEO of Light Source Communications, said, “If you see where all of the major builds are happening, they're primarily in the central U.S. and going east and west, north and south from there.” She said the reason was because of cheaper land and power in the central part of the country. Pete Empie, Light Source’s chief strategy officer, said, “We don't decide that these are the markets we want. Our customers come and ask us to build it. We don't build anything on speculation.” The company always has an anchor tenant before it starts building. But Light Source says it can’t name its hyperscaler customers because of non-disclosure agreements.
Benton (www.benton.org) provides the only free, reliable, and non-partisan daily digest that curates and distributes news related to universal broadband, while connecting communications, democracy, and public interest issues. Posted Monday through Friday, this service provides updates on important industry developments, policy issues, and other related news events. While the summaries are factually accurate, their sometimes informal tone may not always represent the tone of the original articles. Headlines are compiled by Kevin Taglang (headlines AT benton DOT org), Grace Tepper (grace AT benton DOT org), and Zoe Walker (zwalker AT benton DOT org) — we welcome your comments.
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