Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act

By completing the National Environmental Policy Act review process for broadband projects covering over 50,000 serviceable locations, Louisiana has made significant progress in its effort to deliver high-speed, reliable internet access across the state. Louisiana is first in the nation to complete NEPA approvals for Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment projects, and internet service providers have reached yet another milestone in helping bring high-speed internet to unserved and underserved communities across the state.

Broadband construction in Louisiana is advancing and moving quickly, with construction for nearly 15,000 broadband serviceable locations projected to be complete by the end of the first quarter of 2027 across 23 parishes. Nearly 1,800 miles of fiber are being deployed across the state to help Louisiana create the infrastructure needed to connect more communities and expand economic opportunities.

Access to broadband is critical for work, school, and healthcare. Federal programs have received billions of dollars in recent years to build broadband networks in remote or underserved areas. Some programs expect to complete these networks before the end of 2029—others in 2030 and beyond. Federal programs use Federal Communications Commission data to target funding to underserved areas. FCC accepts challenges from the public on the accuracy of its data and updates it as needed. But small communities and providers with few resources find the challenge process burdensome.

Michigan Broadband Services will acquire “substantially all assets” of the Educational Access Network from Northern Michigan University’s if the agreement between the organizations closes. MBS would receive licensed 2.5 GHz Educational Broadband Service spectrum covering portions of 41 counties, Nokia AirScale radio equipment deployed across more than 70 tower sites, licensed microwave facilities, and related network infrastructure. EAN has approximately 7,500 subscribers and generates about $2.5 million annually. MBU is a subsidiary of publicly traded MachTen.

It used to be a real challenge to talk to someone across Alaska, or across the country. Many Alaskans remember waiting in line to use the only telephone in a village. For me, it was the phone at the winter watchman's house in Ekuk. We each got a few minutes because everyone was waiting. Long-distance calls were expensive, and simply talking to family or conducting business required patience and persistence. Even after the internet arrived, connectivity remained limited in many parts of Alaska.

Permitting sits on the critical path to broadband deployment, and understanding what agencies require can decide whether a project finishes on schedule. That was the central message of a National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) webinar held August 26, which brought together federal permitting officials and a broadband provider who navigated a large Alaska fiber project. NTIA acting Chief Environmental Review and Permitting Officer Amanda Pereira moderated the session.

Earlier this month, we reported that the Department of Commerce told a federal court it would reinstate the Digital Equity Competitive Grant Program and was targeting a December 2026 opening. Three things have happened since. The parties agreed to pause the litigation and put their remaining disagreements on the record. Judge John D. Bates set the dates by which the government must report its progress.

Before the Senate paused for recess, it passed a bill introduced by Senator Deb Fisher of Nebraska that would require the Federal Communications Commission to undertake a major review of its broadband mapping system. The bill is labeled the Modernization, Accountability, and Planning for Broadband Funding Act. It’s not hard to understand why there are folks who lobbied Congress to ask the FCC to pay more attention to the maps.

The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) has approved its last Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) Program Final Proposal, completing approval of all 56 state and territorial BEAD Final Proposals—a major achievement in ensuring broadband availability across the country. The BEAD Program was established to ensure universal broadband availability across the United States and to serve as the final federal broadband deployment program.

The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) published a public notice on August 25 seeking public comment on the application forms it will use for a revived Digital Equity Competitive Grant Program, the first public confirmation that work on the program's relaunch is underway. The notice opens a 60-day comment period under the Paperwork Reduction Act, with comments due October 26, 2026, and is a revision of an existing clearance (OMB Control Number 0660–0055) rather than a new one.