Draft National Broadband Map To Be Released November 18, FCC Says

WASHINGTON, November 10, 2022 – The Federal Communications Commission announced Thursday the preliminary draft of its national broadband map will be released on November 18.

Upon the draft’s release, individuals may review and challenge the map’s data for their location, the commission said. States, tribal governments, and other entities may submit bulk challenges. The data from draft map — mandated by the Broadband DATA Act of 2020 — will reflect coverage as of June 30, 2022, when the service provider data collection process opened.

Don’t miss the discussion about broadband mapping at Digital Infrastructure Investment–Washington on November 17, 2022: Broadband maps have bedeviled the broadband buildout. With promised, updated maps from the Federal Communications Commission just around the corner, is resolution just around the corner? What is the game plan for government and industry participants?

The FCC, whose chairwoman previously promised the map would come this fall, said when the draft map is released, individuals will also be able to challenge its broadband fabric, a nationwide dataset of all locations that have and could have fixed broadband service, overlaid with broadband availability data from service providers.

To account for error, the FCC instituted challenge processes by which stakeholders can correct both availability and fabric data. The commission will accept challenges on a continual basis, establishing an iterative correction process.

The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act of 2021 allocated $42.5 billion to the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment program – run by the National Telecommunications and Information Administration – and FCC’s availability data will determine how these funds are allocated to the states.

UPDATED, November 10, at 11:55 a.m. – An FCC spokesperson told Broadband Breakfast that the public will be able to view availability data through a user-friendly map interface, and in addition, the FCC will also post the availability data for download.

The spokesperson also said the November 18 draft will not include changes based on already submitted fabric challenges. This is so, the spokesperson said, because the provider data rendered in the November 18 draft is expected to show availability as of June 30, 2022.