Digital Equity Competitive Grant Program

Digital inclusion organizations are reeling after the Trump administration announced the Digital Equity Act grant programs, embedded in the bipartisan infrastructure law, was being cancelled months after federal grants had already been reviewed and awarded. The Wiscasset, Maine-based National Digital Equity Center was one of 65 organizations and public entities

President Donald Trump turned his sights to the little-known Digital Equity Act, calling the program “racist” and “unconstitutional” in a post on his social media site Truth Social, vowing to end the program “immediately.” “Immediate” turned out to be the very next day, when states and nonprofits began receiving notices that said their grants had been terminated. “As the President determined and as Secretary Lutnick agreed,” the Act uses “impermissible and unconstitutional racial preferences.” President Trump referred to the Digital Equity Act as “woke handouts based on race,” but the act <

State broadband offices and nonprofits received notice on May 9 that digital equity grants had been canceled. States are weighing their next steps. The Vermont Community Broadband Board is meeting with the state attorney general’s office to discuss options, “up to and including filing a lawsuit that would address this head on, in terms of the constitutionality of this Congressional appropriation for these identified groups in need.” 

The Biden administration’s promise in 2022 was speedy internet access for every American as part of a $42.45 billion, once-in-a-generation U.S. infrastructure upgrade. Internet service giants Comcast and Verizon jumped in line with counties in submitting bids to make the dream come true by 2030. In Pennsylvania, contract awards for broadband expansion were anticipated before the end of 2025.

The Maine Connectivity Authority, the agency leading the statewide expansion of broadband and digital opportunity in Maine, has received a notification from the National Telecommunications and Information Administration that as of Friday, May 9, it has terminated three grants totaling $35 million in funding for Maine. These grants funded programs to improve digital skills, provide internet safety education and ensure people have affordable devices.

Senator Ben Ray Lujan (D-NM) said, “On the same day Senate Republicans voted to strip internet access from students and educators, President Trump is illegally attempting to end a program that connects millions of people to the online world. In New Mexico, we know the difference between slow internet, fast internet, and no internet and the challenges that come with it. Our students, seniors, veterans, and small businesses rely on internet access for education, health care, economic opportunity, and public safety. President Trump is leaving our communities in the dark.

President Donald Trump said he would end the Digital Equity Act, legislation that funds three programs that provide billions to extend internet access in underserved communities. Trump is casting the Digital Equity Act as unfairly providing grants on the basis of race. “I have spoken with my wonderful Secretary of Commerce, Howard Lutnick, and we agree that the Biden/Harris so-called “Digital Equity Act” is totally UNCONSTITUTIONAL," says the President.

The Digital Equity Act, an element of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, provides $2.75 billion for states’ digital equity efforts under three programs. States are currently waiting on this funding to ensure that all people and communities have the skills, technology, and capacity they need to fully participate in digital life. Older adults—aged 65+—face numerous barriers to robust digital access, adoption, and use. This funding, if dispersed, could help close the digital divide for older adults and ensure digital agency for all.

On March 27, a group of 55 Missouri stakeholders sent a letter to U.S. Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick urging him to allow Missouri's Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment (BEAD) and Digital Opportunity programs to proceed without delay or federal interference. Co-signers include six internet service providers (ISP), fifteen bipartisan state legislators, and high-ranking officials from the Farm Bureau, municipalities, universities, digital navigator organizations, healthcare providers, and members of Missouri's Show Me Broadband coalition.

Since taking office, President Trump has trampled on our nation's laws and choked off critical investments that families, businesses, and local governments in every zip code in America are counting on. This tracker offers a snapshot-in-time look, on Trump's 100th day in office, at the vast array of federal funding that should be going out the door, but that President Trump, Elon Musk, and Russ Vought, in an unprecedented scheme, are holding up or actively fighting in court to block. Some of the key funding being blocked or slow-walked: