Former Trump NTIA Chief Says BEAD Shift From Fiber Possible

WASHINGTON, Nov. 15, 2024 – The director of the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment program director said he doesn’t foresee major changes under a Trump administration, and that he has no plans to leave the Commerce Department agency.

But a former head of the agency administering the BEAD program – the National Telecommunications and Information Administration – said a shift away from fiber could be possible.

“Certainly, I could be shown the door, but you know, I am not planning to leave, nor are any of my team,” BEAD Director Evan Feinman said Wednesday. “The program guidelines, much of which are already in statute, are also going to stay pretty consistent. We don’t have any reason to believe at present that there’s going to be any sort of significant shift.”