Policyband

NTIA Roth’s Celebrates Major Policy Victory – All BEAD Plans Have Been Approved by the Trump Administration

Now it’s up to the 50 states, five territories, and Washington, D.C., to sign contracts with ISPs (or Subgrantees in BEAD parlance) to get the backhoes digging and the networks humming

Ted Hearn

Aug 26, 2026 — 8 min read

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BEAD: America is finally seeing light at the end of the BEAD tunnel. NTIA Administrator Arielle Roth said on Aug. 25 her agency has now approved all 56 state and territorial final proposals for the $42.45 billion BEAD program. Her announcement marked what she called a major step toward universal broadband access. Roth, also yesterday, traveled to Moneta, Virginia, with Rep. Morgan Griffith (R-Va.) to tour Bedford County fiber and satellite projects funded through the program. Virginia’s Roth-approved BEAD plan is to connect more than 85,000 locations while saving taxpayers more than $930 million and leveraging nearly $430 million in matching funds. “BEAD’s core mission is to ensure universal broadband availability across our country,” said Roth, who is also Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Communications and Information. (More after paywall)