$1B for WA broadband gets Trump administration approval

Washington was one of the last states to get the OK from the feds for the $42 billion Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment, or BEAD, program

Jake Goldstein-Street
Washington State Standard

More than $1 billion to bring high-speed internet to more than 166,000 homes and businesses will soon flow in Washington.

The federal government approved the state’s plans for spending the money this week, a final hurdle to accessing the funds.

Washington was one of the last states to get the OK from the feds for the $42 billion Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment, or BEAD, program. 

Most of the money, $736 million, comes from the federal government. The state match makes up $112 million, and private dollars add another $163 million, according to the state Department of Commerce. The state expects further guidance on roughly $464 million in additional money in the spring, to bring its total federal funding to $1.2 billion. It’s unclear what that pot of funding can be used for.

The funding is meant to reach 238 projects in unserved and underserved communities across Washington over the next four years. 

The director of the state broadband office, Jordan Arnold, called this a “transformative moment for Washington.”

“For rural and underserved communities, internet access is a lifeline to economic opportunity, education, health care, and the modern world,” Arnold said in a statement.

It’s been a winding path to federal approval. The BEAD program was created under the infrastructure law former President Joe Biden signed in 2021. It was billed as a way to expand high-speed internet service into rural areas and other parts of the country where it was unavailable or lacking. Some compared it to the telephone system buildout in the 20th century.

Utilities, tribes, counties and others spent years planning on how best to deploy the once-in-a-generation funding. But last June, the Trump administration threw that work up in the air as it overhauled guidance on how states should choose applicants to receive the money. This left applicants and the state with just a couple months to rework their plans.

One of the biggest changes the federal government made dealt with what technology should be prioritized for the new infrastructure. 

The program had favored fiber-optic cables, but shifted to a tech-neutral stance that opened the door for more satellite and fixed wireless technologies. This had the potential to send more money toward Elon Musk’s Starlink satellite internet service. Musk was an influential adviser for President Donald Trump and contributed heavily to his campaign.

Washington submitted its proposal in September, and has been waiting for the go-ahead from the feds since. State officials expected approval within 90 days. At one point last month, Washington was added to the list of approved states on the online dashboard from the National Telecommunications and Information Administration. But the state’s checkmark was later removed.

In the end, Washington’s projects are just about evenly split between the three tech options. Fixed wireless makes up 38% of the locations, fiber 35% and low-earth orbit satellite 27%. Construction timelines vary, but the work must be done within four years.

The state broadband office expects some projects to break ground this year.

“This marks a new chapter for addressing our state’s digital access needs and we’re eager to get started,” state Commerce Director Sarah Clifthorne said.

Only California, Illinois, Oklahoma and Washington, D.C., still await federal approval for their broadband plans, according to the National Telecommunications and Information Administration’s online dashboard.

This report was first published by the Washington State Standard.