Idaho Publishes BEAD Application Project Areas

Nov. 22, 2024 – The state of Idaho announced Thursday that it published a map of proposed project areas for public comment under the nation’s largest broadband funding program.

Idaho’s Office of Broadband and the Idaho Broadband Advisory Board noted in a new update provided by Idaho Office of Broadband Director Ramón Hobdey-Sánchez that the state’s proposed application project areas under the Biden administration’s $42.45 billion Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment program have been opened for public comment.

The state was approved for $583 million from BEAD in June, 2024.

The state noted that it is still working with the National Telecommunications and Information Administration to process the state’s BEAD challenge process data, and that a list of final broadband service location eligibility will be published as soon as it is approved.

Public comments on the application project areas will be open until Dec. 19, 2024. IBAB is hosting an informational meeting online on Dec. 18, 2024 in order to educate potential BEAD recipients about the application areas.

The application project areas and comment portal can be viewed online on the Idaho Office of Broadband website.