Commerce Secretary Says Broadband Infrastructure Program Under Review

WASHINGTON, March 5, 2025 – In news that many in the broadband industry have been bracing for, the Commerce Department said Wednesday it was launching a sweeping review of the $42.5 billion Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment program, and vowed to strip Biden-era requirements.

It said that the program would favor a technology-neutral approach.

In a press release, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick confirmed the overhaul, just as House lawmakers sat down to discuss BEAD and broadband policy in a high-profile Communications and Technology subcommittee hearing entitled “Fixing Biden’s Broadband Blunder.”

At the hearing, Committee Chair Richard Hudson, R-N.C., confirmed: “Lutnick, just a few minutes ago, announced that he’s launching a review of the BEAD program to cut red tape, eliminate waste, and make sure Americans get connected faster. I’m thrilled to have him join me in this effort.”

Lutnick's announcement emphasized that the Trump administration’s new priority for the program would be to deliver broadband at the “lowest cost”.

“Under my leadership, the Commerce Department has launched a rigorous review of the BEAD program,” Lutnick wrote. “The Department is ripping out the Biden Administration’s pointless requirements. It is revamping the BEAD program to take a tech-neutral approach that is rigorously driven by outcomes, so states can provide internet access for the lowest cost.”

At the State of the Union event on Tuesday Lutnick told Broadband Breakfast: “We want the lowest-cost broadband access to Americans,” he said, repeating, “the lowest cost.”

When asked by Broadband Breakfast whether that meant favoring satellite over fiber, Lutnick responded: “It could. It means whatever is the lowest cost to make that person’s home get broadband.”

A Wall Street Journal article published Tuesday said the new rules could drastically increase the share of funding available to Elon Musk’s Starlink. With Lutnick’s overhaul, Starlink could receive $10 billion to $20 billion, the Journal said. The LEO provider had been expected to get up to $4.1 billion under BEAD’s original rules, the Journal said.

If the Commerce Department directs the National Telecommunications and Information Administration to strip what Republicans believe are “pointless requirements,” among the BEAD policy reversals that could be affected:

• Eased credit requirements for BEAD applicants
• Workforce mandates weakened or removed
• Environmental permitting streamlined
• Buy America provisions rolled back
• More funding eligibility for satellite and fixed wireless