telecompetitor

Oklahoma’s application window for its Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment Program Pool 1 funding, which is exclusively for fiber, opened April 21 and extends until May 26. In a funding alert, the National Rural Telecommunications Cooperative shared information about the state’s plans beyond Pool 1. Pool 2 applications, which are for non-fiber technologies, can be submitted from April 28 to May 26.

The U.S. Commerce Department appears to be shooting for mid-May to announce anticipated reforms to the $42.5 billion Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment rural broadband funding program, according to Washington insider Blair Levin. In a research note, Levin said the four options under consideration include:

Residents of Meigs County (OH)—a county whose eastern edge borders West Virginia and the winding Ohio River—are set to benefit from a $352,000 grant from the Appalachian Regional Commission.

The ConnectALL Deployment Program in New York has released their Request for Applications for priority, reliable, and alternative technology solutions for the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment Program. The RFA seeks proposals for about $644 million in funding.

Which network operators have been cleared to apply for funding in the $42.5 billion Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment Program? Telecompetitor checked state broadband office websites and polled states to find out. In the process, we obtained answers for most of the states. Rumors continue to circulate that the rules for the BEAD program may change.

“A good friend of mine… calls this ‘the single mom with two kids bill,’” said California Assemblymember Tasha Boerner, about the $15 internet bill she introduced in March 2025. “I always think about the single mom working two jobs — and her kids still have to get online and upload their homework to Google Classroom,” said Rep Boerner. Rep Boerner, whose district extends along the coastline of southern California between San Diego and Carlsbad, serves as chair of the state’s Committee on Communications and Conveyance.

T-Mobile is asking the Federal Communications Commission for permission to expand its SpaceX satellite messaging service to more phones. The reason the request is necessary? Paperwork. According to T-Mobile, the issue centers on obscure FCC waivers and authorizations for SCS services as well as for standard smartphones.

The Indiana Connectivity Program has awarded almost $1.7 million in new funding to bring connectivity to 371 addresses in the thirteenth round of funding. The total investments in the projects reached almost $7.8 million for the funding round. In all, the precise investment totals for the round and its 371 locations are $1,660,949 in state funds and $7,768,342 in total investment, according to the program.