Idaho Gets NIST Approval to Advance Broadband Deployment

MILPITAS, Calif., Jan. 28, 2026 — Idaho received clearance from the National Institute of Standards and Technology, a federal oversight agency this week, allowing the state to advance deployment of its $583 million allocation under the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment program.

Officials from Idaho, Washington, and Nebraska outlined deployment plans and remaining federal reviews at a panel held at the Tarana Wireless headquarters in California’s Silicon Valley, moderated by Chip Pickering, chief executive of telecom trade group INCOMPAS.

Ramon Hobbey-Sánchez, director of the Idaho State Broadband Office, said the state received NIST approval and awarded 92 projects to 23 subgrantees, targeting 92,500 homes and businesses.

Idaho approved a deployment mix of 50 percent fiber, 25 percent fixed wireless, and 25 percent low-Earth-orbit satellite, reflecting June 6 guidance from the National Telecommunications and Information Administration that eased fiber-preference rules. After deployment and administrative costs, the state identified about $110 million potentially eligible for non-deployment uses, subject to NTIA approval.

Hobbey-Sánchez said Idaho planned to seek approval to direct non-deployment funds toward additional internet exchange points, noting the state currently operates only one, as well as toward regional traffic-routing hubs and public safety communications, including advanced 911 systems.

In Washington state, Ariane Schmidt, executive director of the Spokane-based broadband development authority Broadlinc, said the state’s $1.24 billion BEAD allocation spanned 235 project areas with a roughly even mix of fiber, fixed wireless, and satellite.

She said states were now pressing to use non-deployment funds to accelerate permitting and harden networks, often by reusing existing municipal infrastructure such as water towers and public buildings.

Schmidt said Washington’s approach relied on no-cost franchise agreements and closer coordination with local governments. She cited Spokane County, Wash., which owns 20 existing public safety towers with “enormous capacity,” allowing providers to expand service without building new towers.

Patrick Haggerty, director of the Nebraska State Broadband Office, said Nebraska approved a BEAD mix that was roughly 50 percent fixed wireless, 40 percent satellite, and 10 percent fiber, after engineering studies found much of the state’s terrain was flat and largely treeless, favoring lower-cost deployment alternatives.

Haggerty said Nebraska’s plan was approved by NIST and the U.S. Department of Commerce, the cabinet agency overseeing NTIA, and that the state intended to advocate for non-deployment funding to support agricultural technology, secure computing, and artificial intelligence infrastructure.