Media Coverage
Source: Law360
Media Coverage
Press Contacts: Erik Cummins, Matt Hyams, Olivia Thomas
02.08.22
States are gearing up to receive billions of dollars in federal broadband funding grants that will be distributed through unique public-private partnerships funded by the executive branch but doled out according to criteria designed by state broadband regulators to meet local needs, according to a recent report by Law360.
By going through the grant-preparation process, states are learning where they have gaps in broadband resources and where the federal funding will be most useful, sources told Law360.
The National Telecommunications and Information Administration, under the U.S. Department of Commerce’s umbrella, is currently sorting out the best way to distribute some $48 billion in broadband infrastructure funding allocated through the infrastructure act in November.
"The existing framework is kind of scattershot across the country," said Lee Petro, special counsel with Pillsbury’s Communications practice in Washington, DC. "Different states had different levels of agencies or task forces set up to deal with broadband issues prior to the [Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act], and so a number of states are ramping up their staff and capacity to determine what areas are unserved and underserved within their borders."