Texas broadband office pauses funding amid uncertainty in Washington
The Texas Broadband Development Office on Tuesday announced it is pausing all grants and contracts tied to the federal State Digital Equity Capacity Grant Program following uncertainty regarding the program’s future.
The uncertainty, the Texas office said, emanates from the Trump administration’s “realignment” of federal priorities and the unpredictable future of the program from the National Telecommunications and Information Administration.
“Given this uncertainty, the BDO wants potential applicants to avoid investing significant time and resources into preparing applications until the office receives more clarity on the future of the program from the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA),” a statement from the Texas Broadband Development Office said.
The program and its $1.44 billion total funds, made available through the Digital Equity Act in the 2021 infrastructure bill, were intended help states close the digital divide by providing rural and low-income communities with access to reliable, high-speed internet service. The NTIA unveiled last March how the states, territories and tribal nations would split the first installment of digital equity funds, totaling $811 million, with Texas receiving more than $55 million.
The announcement makes Texas among the first to publicly announce a pause of federal funds earmarked by the Biden administration for infrastructure projects such as broadband. The future of other Biden broadband programs, such as the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment, or BEAD, program remain in limbo as the NTIA awaits a new administrator.
“We understand the importance of these opportunities and the resources needed to pursue them. For that reason, we want to ensure all efforts adhere to and are consistent with program guidelines before funds are made available,” the statement continued.
