Billions for Broadband

The Biden administration announced the release of $42.5B in funding for nationwide broadband internet access yesterday, part of the $1T bipartisan infrastructure law passed in November 2021. The administration plans to extend high-speed broadband access to every American by 2030.

Broadband internet—the nation's default internet infrastructure—is faster than dial-up service and is always on. Average household monthly broadband usage has skyrocketed from 9 gigabytes per month in 2010 to nearly 600 gigabytes in 2023. Plans to deploy these funds have been delayed as regulators sought more accurate coverage maps (see here) for the roughly 114 million homes and businesses in the country, approximately 7% of which reportedly lack adequate internet speeds. Projects could begin construction as early as mid-2024.

The package will see every US state receive at least $107M, with more allotted to those states assessed to have greater need; Texas will receive the largest portion at $3.8B. See what every state will receive here.