NTIA Extends Tribal Broadband Application Window

WASHINGTON, January 23, 2024 – The National Telecommunications and Information Administration extended on Monday the application window for its tribal broadband grant program.

Applications for funding under the second round of the Tribal Broadband Connectivity Program will now be accepted through March 22, 2024, rather than January 23.

The move is an effort to give Tribal governments more time to put together competitive proposals and form groups to apply for grants collectively, something the NTIA encourages. 

The agency said in a release that applicants who already submitted proposals can submit revised applications before the new deadline, but the entire application must be resubmitted.

The $3 billion program was stood up by the Infrastructure Act and the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021. Funds can be used to build new infrastructure and pursue other connectivity efforts like affordability programs and workforce development. More than $1.8 billion has already been allocated to 226 Tribal entities through the first round of funding.

The agency plans to award most of the remaining funds in this round, nearly $980 million in total. Infrastructure projects are expected to receive between $1 million and $50 million, with adoption and digital equity projects looking at $100,000 to $2.5 million. 

Those are not mandatory ranges, but Tribal governments applying for funds exceeding the upper ends will have to justify their need for additional money. 

The first round of funding, announced in June 2021, gave applicants just three months to submit proposals. The second notice of funding opportunity doubled that, with a six month application window. Monday’s extension pushes the total to eight months.