Broadband

The local government is in line to receive the funding through New York state’s ConnectALL Deployment Program. It will expand Internet access to nearly 1,300 unserved households, businesses and community facilities.

Nearly all locations in the state, or 99.5 percent, can now reach high-speed Internet — and work on the remainder is ahead of schedule, officials said. That includes Smith Island, which now has reliable Internet.

Plus, Puerto Rico is offering free technical training — ranging from cloud computing to AI — through a new partnership, Arlington County, Va., aims to build digital skills with a new navigator program, and more.

More city financing in lieu of federal funding will be sought by Traverse City Light & Power as it reaches the home stretch of its citywide fiber and smart grid expansion project.

The City Council wants a promise from an Internet fiber company that it will leave no neighborhood behind as it expands, and it has delayed granting approvals until it gets an assurance.

The Trump administration's changes to the BEAD Program have disqualified hundreds of thousands of locations — including homes, businesses and community buildings — from receiving Internet access.

Plus, a new Arizona partnership aims to expand Internet access in the state along Interstate 17; Cook County, Ill., is planning a learning symposium event for Digital Inclusion Week; and more.

Orange County and its wireless broadband partner have fallen short of a 2022 promise to deliver higher Internet speeds to all of the rural homes that currently lack reliable service.

Gov. Jeff Landry has written U.S. Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick, asking if remaining Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment grant money could go to “state-led initiatives” in artificial intelligence and elsewhere.

Plus, Baltimore’s new AI computer lab aims to bring digital skills to the community, stakeholder groups have submitted comments to the FCC on the state of U.S. broadband deployment, and more.

Plus, Hawaii has announced a Digital Aloha Month campaign, California is piloting improvements to an affordable broadband initiative, Santa Barbara launched a digital resource hub, and more.

Officials received the money through a grant originating with American Rescue Plan Act funds. One part will bring fiber Internet to Starbuck residents; the other will improve emergency communications.

Plus, members of Congress are calling for clarity on the use of nondeployment funds under the BEAD Program, New York is investing millions in broadband, and people who are incarcerated are learning digital skills.

The project has already connected its first users. Ultimately, it will add 325 miles of fiber to the county, on the shore of Lake Michigan, and bring high-speed Internet to about 2,500 homes and businesses.

Plus, tribal nations face connectivity gaps, Durham, N.C., is delivering hot spots to residents, Nebraska libraries expand skills training, and fiber expansion provides connectivity to states in the Midwest.

Nearly 23 miles of “high-capacity middle-mile broadband infrastructure” have been built, after a 2021 state bill provided $3.25 billion in funding. The endeavor will connect thousands of residents in the Hoopa Valley area.

Plus, Massachusetts is investing more than $31 million to get residents connected, a Cleveland digital inclusion nonprofit is coming to Detroit, a new resource outlines a blueprint for AI literacy, and more.

Historically Black colleges and universities are often located in broadband deserts, impacting their ability to give students the tools they need on campus. Strong partnerships and ongoing funding sources are key.