The next steps for New York's “Internet for All” state grant program have been outlined.
The Biden administration has approved New York’s initial “Internet for All” proposal, enabling the Empire State to request access to funding and begin implementation of the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment or "BEAD" program.
It’s a more than $42 billion state grant program authorized by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. New York was allocated over $664 million to deploy or upgrade high-speed Internet networks to ensure that everyone has access to reliable, affordable, high-speed Internet service.
Deputy Assistant to the President for Infrastructure Implementation Samantha Silverberg says now New York can move its efforts from planning to action.
"It means we are this much closer to getting shovels in the ground, creating good jobs and getting New York communities connected from Western New York and the Finger Lakes to the North Country. This historic investment in high speed internet is just one example of how President Biden is investing in New York and the entire country, to date, more than $26 billion has been announced for New York from the Biden Harris administration," Silverberg said.
Assistant Secretary of Commerce Alan Davidson says this is a major milestone in connecting everyone in New York state.
"We're here today because the internet is now the essential tool for communications in our modern world. It's essential for access to jobs, access to education, access to healthcare, and yet, here we are today in America, in 2024 and there are still tens of thousands of families in New York and millions of people across the country who lack access to that basic, high speed internet connection that is about to change,” Davidson said.
New York's Affordable Connectivity Program, which provided broadband to 23 million families, expired in May. Joshua Breitbart, Senior Vice President of ConnectALL at Empire State Development, says time has come to deploy “Internet for All.”
"The critical thing is that it allows for everybody to participate in the broadband market, which is absolutely vital," said Breitbart. "So we are particularly focused in in this program and making sure that there's a natural connection to everybody in the state. And it's a, you know, particularly challenging, you know, because we are focused on the hardest of the hard to reach last 2% so that is really the focus of this program, but then also making sure that you know, in a situation where you know the taxpayers are supporting the cost of deployment, that nobody is being excluded from that market, and we've got a plan in place that allows for that to happen. We think it's a, it's an effective approach for both consumers and the Internet service providers to reach those hard to reach areas."
New York must now submit a Final Proposal detailing, among other things, how the state will ensure delivery of high-speed Internet access to all unserved and underserved locations.
