Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands

The Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands took a major step toward closing its digital divide as Governor David Apatang, the Broadband Policy and Development Office, and IT&E signed the Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment subgrant agreement at the governor’s office on Capitol Hill. The agreement commits more than $31 million in federal BEAD funds to a four-year project that will build a 100 percent underground, climate-hardened end-to-end fiber optic network reaching every home, business and community anchor institution in the Commonwealth.

Following a June 6 announcement from the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) that restructured the Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment (BEAD) Program, all states and territories have been tasked with reevaluating their plans to connect un- and underserved locations to high-speed internet.

The Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) has approved and recommended for award applications from Florida, Iowa, Montana, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and Guam, allowing them to request access to more than $61.2 million to implement their Digital Equity Plans. This funding comes from the $1.44 billion State Digital Equity Capacity Grant Program, one of three Digital Equity Act grant programs created by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. The states can now request access to:

The Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) has approved Utah, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and the U.S. Virgin Islands’ Initial Proposals for the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program, a cornerstone of the Biden-Harris Administration’s “Internet for All” initiative. This approval enables Utah, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and the U.S.

The Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) has accepted Digital Equity plans from American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Each territory received $150,000 from the State Digital Equity Planning Grant Program to create a plan aimed at addressing disparities in digital access, skills and affordability across the state. NTIA has now accepted digital equity plans from all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and U.S.

The Commonwealth of the North Mariana Islands (CNMI) Broadband Policy & Development (BPD) Office released its draft Digital Equity Plan, A Voyage to Digital Equity in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. In the dynamic landscape of the digital age, where information and opportunities surge like currents across the Marianas Trench, the concept of digital equity emerges as CNMI's northern star.