TIA Surveys State Broadband Offices, Identifying Most Critical Factors to BEAD Funding Success

Arlington, VA (February 14, 2023) – The Telecommunications Industry Association—the trusted industry association for the connected world—has assembled an Advisory Council of eight State Broadband Offices to collaborate on and help refine the agenda for the upcoming 2023 BEAD Success Summit to be held in Arlington, VA on April 19-20, 2023.

The BEAD Success Summit will bring together, at one comprehensive event, the key stakeholders of the $42 Billion BEAD Program being administered by NTIA. Key stakeholders include State and Federal Government, ISPs, Solution Providers, Consultants, and Investors who will join discussions in a workshop forum the specific requirements that are critical for the success of the program.

While TIA invites any State or Territory broadband office to participate, the following state offices have volunteered to be part of the State Advisory Council – Arkansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Ohio, Indiana, Rhode Island, Utah and Virginia, with several additional states that have expressed interest in joining in the near future.

The initial survey of the State Advisory Council was to identify the list of topics that need to be discussed in the workshop sessions at the event. The results of that survey identified several items in the BEAD Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) including Cybersecurity and Supply Chain Risk Management; Climate Resilience; Extremely High Cost Per Location Threshold; On Going Monitoring, Reporting, and Performance Management; and Cost Sharing or Matching.

“This event will be impactful for the success of the BEAD Program’s goal of closing the digital divide,” said Earnie Holtrey, Deputy Director of the Indiana State Broadband Office. “Collaborating on this council with other broadband offices from around the country to help the States and Territories prepare for this program is extremely beneficial to the planning process.”

A virtual State Advisory Council meeting, to be hosted by TIA on February 16, will review the survey results, discuss each of the topics, consider other areas of interest, and begin to build the workshop session details for the event.

“We are very thankful for all the work NTIA has done and is doing to bring broadband to all Americans and we are excited to gather all the constituents to help make BEAD a national success,” said David Stehlin, CEO of TIA. “We have reached out to all the states and territories about the BEAD Success Summit and are thankful for the Advisory Council to help ensure we discuss the key issues to the program’s success.”

“We are appreciative for the opportunity to work with TIA and peer broadband offices on the BEAD Success Summit.” said Glen Howie, Arkansas State Broadband Director. “Bringing together all parties to prepare for this once in a lifetime initiative is vital, and we look forward to assisting in that effort.”

Several industry leaders have agreed to support the BEAD Success Summit as sponsors, including AT&T, Comcast, CommScope, Corning, DZS, Ericsson, Fujitsu, Irby, Nokia and Qualcomm.

Any State or Territory Broadband Offices looking to join TIA’s State Advisory Council can send an email to BEADSuccessSummit@TIAonline.org for more information.

To learn more about TIA’s BEAD Success Summit and to register to attend, or inquire about sponsoring or exhibiting, please visit: www.BEADSuccessSummit.com.