More than 60 people attended the 2024 CBAN Spring Summit on April 9, 2024 at Stoney Creek Hotel in Johnston. Another 20 or so folks from across the nation tuned into our live stream from 2pm to 5pm on the 9th.
We're still in recovery mode, so we will post more about the Spring Summit in next week's Broadband Bytes!
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As a followup to our well-attended 2024 CBAN Spring Summit, CBAN has set up a webinar to help educate the CBAN network about the upcoming round of digital equity grants available through states and, later, directly from the NTIA. The webinar is May 1, 2024 at 1pm Central. Every state’s digital equity plan is now approved, and money will start flowing later this year. In this session, CBAN’s Jon Willow and Bri Dillavou, and the NTIA’s Chris Hall (invited) will break down each of the three grants, what they’re for, and who can apply. Come ready to take notes and ask questions of our experts. The webinar is free, but registration is required. CLICK HERE to register and be a part of the conversation on May 1st!
The National Telecommunications Information Administration (NTIA) gave approval to the digital equity plans for all 50 states, Puerto Rico, and Washington D.C. on April 12, 2024. Earlier, states received funding that was used to develop their individual plans. With plan approval, states are now eligible to apply for funding to implement those plans. While the amount that each state is eligible has been announced, states have until May 28th to actually apply for the funds.
The City of Eagle, Idaho wants to build a city-wide fiber network, and has retained a consulting firm to help them identify the best way to make it happen. The council unanimously approved an agreement with Entry Point Networks to develop a build out plan and explore financing options. The city has already utilized $6.7 million in ARPA funds to connect city facilities and reach a limited number of homes and businesses. To build out the rest of the town, which could cost $40 to $60 million, the city will explore various models, such as the use of "local improvement districts" like Ammon, Idaho used for their open access network, or by creating a non-profit organization to finance and own the network, such as Bozeman, Montana did.
Check out our new addition of the Broadband Action podcast on your favorite platform! In this episode of Broadband Action, CBAN's Jon Willow and Curtis Dean talk with Karl Bode, a journalist who's been covering broadband for 25 years. Karl shares his perspective on the big issues facing the broadband industry and some insight on what further changes may be coming.
Still time to register and join the conversation!Remember - if you can't join us in person, join us online! We will be livestreaming the entire afternoon to persons who register. Or register and watch the recording at your leisure!
We're polling our members and subscribers - where are you with your digital equity planning? Options include "None" and "I don't know," so don't be afraid if you're still at the trail head. We're just working to understand where everyone is! Responses will first be revealed at next week's Spring Summit!
https://bit.ly/cban-survey24 ALLO Communications, a CBAN provider member, will build fiber-to-the-home in Joplin, Missouri under a development agreement approved by the Joplin City Council this week. Under the agreemeent, ALLO pledges to build fiber throughout the community of 52,000 over the next two years. The City is contributing $5 million of its ARPA allocation toward the project in exchange for "the construction of an additional and redundant CO, a fiber drop to the CIty's anchor institutions, and a buried mainline fiber backbone." Redundancy and resiliency are obvious priorities for Joplin leaders. A tornado in 2011 killed 158 people and caused massive destruction, including big impacts on emergency communications. The City Council approved the ordinance to adopt the agreement on a vote of 8-1.
The clock is ticking rapidly toward the end of the Affordable Connectivity Program, or ACP. A bipartisan bill to restore $7 billion for the program is langushing in the halls of Congress, and the recent federal budget doesn't even mention it. Is there still hope? This feature in Tuesday's Fierce Telecom newsletter lays out the likelihood of the return of the ACP, and what will need to happen to make that possible.
American states, territories, and indigeous organizations are on the clock to apply for funding to implement their digital equity plans. On March 28th, the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) released its Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO). Altogether, $811 million is available for state digital equity programs under this round of funding. Each entity has an allocation based on their size and need. The largest allocation is for the largest state by population - California - at over $70 million. A list of all allocations is available at StateScoop. This is the first wave of digital equity funding. Later, a nationwide competitive grant program will be announced for other entities to seek support for their efforts.
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