West Virginia’s newest plans for expanding broadband access throughout the state involve just using half of its $1.2 billion federal allocation through the Broadband, Equity, Access and Deployment (BEAD) program.
The state plans to award $625 million in federal grant funding to nine provisional subgrantees that will expand broadband internet to 73,701 locations across the state, according to a draft of its final proposal — a hurdle to formally receiving the allocation — which was published Aug. 19.
The BEAD program is a partnership between the federal government and states seeking to digitally connect Americans by building the infrastructure necessary to increase the adoption of high-speed internet.
These awardees, which were not named in the report, will provide $186 million in private contributions towards these projects, with West Virginia kicking in $37.5 million in funding made possible by the Appalachian Regional Commission.
The matching funds provided by the unnamed awardees resulted in “substantial cost savings” and require subgrants that total only half the BEAD allocation, according to the draft report.
“This process has resulted in substantial cost savings and will require subgrants that total only approximately half of the $1.21 billion allocated to West Virginia for BEAD under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA),” according to the draft report.
The state was granted a 90-day extension in April to submit its final BEAD proposal after the White House paused the program earlier this year.
The state said in April it was using the extra time to ensure the proposal is completed in a way that aligns with changes to the program that took effect following the inauguration of President Donald Trump.
The state has previously submitted two preliminary proposals.
West Virginia’s initial proposal, or Volume I, was submitted in November 2023 and approved Jan. 29, 2024. Volume I outlined the state’s process for executing a challenge process, through which units of local government, nonprofit organizations and broadband service providers can challenge whether a location should be eligible for BEAD funding.
Volume II, submitted in December 2023, addressed key elements of the state’s BEAD implementation plan. The National Telecommunications and Information Administration gave approval for West Virginia’s Volume II proposal in May 2024.
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