Writer: Joshua Andino
2 min read June 2023 — Massachusetts is receiving $147 million in federal funding to expand its high-speed internet network.
On Monday, President Biden announced $42 billion in federal funding would be provided across the country to expand broadband access. The funds are already allotted thanks to the 2021 passage of the massive Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, which provides trillions of dollars in funding across the country for various infrastructure projects.
The funds are a part of the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program overseen by the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), with the goal of providing high-speed, affordable broadband to all Americans by 2030.
According to the FCC, 8.3 million Americans live without access to high-speed internet.
Throughout his address, Biden emphasized both the need for access to high-speed internet as well as the need to keep it affordable. “These investments will help all Americans,” he said adding, “We’re not going to leave anyone behind.”
The president was joined by Vice President Kamala Harris and Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimundo, as well as Jeff Say, a medical researcher at the University of Virginia at Arlington and broadband advocate.
For Massachusetts, the state’s allocation of the funds will be deployed through a five-year plan being developed by the Massachusetts Broadband Institute alongside its Massachusetts Broadband and Digital Equity Working Group, which include members representing Boston, Lowell, the Franklin Regional Council of Governments, the Metropolitan Area Planning Council, the New England Cable & Telecommunications Association (NECTA) and nearly a dozen others.
“This new funding from the BEAD program will be a gamechanger for Massachusetts and the grant programs that will flow out of our statewide digital equity planning effort,” said Quentin Palfrey, the Massachusetts Director of Federal Funds and Infrastructure. “This funding will continue Massachusetts’s legacy of leveraging federal investment to build an economy around innovation and learning by ensuring residents statewide can adopt the 21st century digital tools that many of us take for granted.”
Currently, Massachusetts ranks 5th in the nation for broadband access, with 98% of residents having internet access. Closing the remaining gaps in coverage in both rural and urban areas will be the state’s ongoing focus.
The funds continue the state’s and Massachusetts legacy of leveraging federal funds for resident’s benefit, said Michael Baldino, Director of the Massachusetts Broadband Institute at MassTech. “Prior federal investments from NTIA led to the buildout of core infrastructure that provided the foundation for our projects that connected thousands of Massachusetts residents and small businesses who were previously cut off from broadband access. Through BEAD, we see the opportunity to launch new broadband programs that will positively impact the lives of residents across the state for years to come.”
In her own statement, Governor Maura Healey said, “With these funds, Massachusetts will build on ongoing work to ensure that our residents can access the affordable and reliable broadband service they need to work, learn, access healthcare resources, and connect with loved ones.”
For more information, please visit:
https://broadband.masstech.org/
Cover photo via UMass Lowell
