Illustration: Shoshana Gordon/Axios
The former director of a bipartisan internet connectivity program is sounding the alarm over the Trump administration's planned changes.
Why it matters: The Broadband Equity Access and Deployment Program is a $42.45 billion pot of money designed to help bridge the digital divide and expand service to rural and underserved areas.
Behind the scenes: Evan Feinman, who was the program's director until March 14, said in an interview with Axios that NTIA had been working to get rid of climate resiliency and labor provisions that Hill Republicans and the new administration considered "woke."
- Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick in a meeting with staff was "very clear and explicit" that he wanted to increase the use of satellite and decrease the use of fiber, per Feinman.
- Feinman was not in the meeting, but said he heard about it from colleagues who were there immediately afterwards.
- Feinman's three-year term expired and the administration chose not to reappoint him.
Between the lines: Increasing satellite would benefit Elon Musk's Starlink.
- An NTIA spokesman said the BEAD program is being revamped "to take a tech-neutral approach and remove the prior Administration's burdensome mandates and regulations."
State of play: Feinman said changes to the program would "dramatically slow things down" because under the infrastructure law, states would have to rewrite and resubmit their plans.
- Louisiana, Delaware, Nevada, West Virginia, and Connecticut all have finalized and funded projects that are on time and are on or under budget, and are waiting to see whether Commerce lets them move forward, Feinman said.
- At least another 30 states are in the application process. Grants have not gone out.
Unlike large companies, the small- and medium-sized providers that have received the majority of the awards may not have the capital to make the changes and have their applications reflect that, Feinman warned.
- Consumers will have higher monthly bills and slower internet service, he added.
- AT&T in a blog post said they embrace a tech-neutral approach and satellite must be part of the solution to be cost-effective.
- Under the BEAD program, states already have the discretion to use the technology that makes the most economic sense.
- For example, Nevada used 80% fiber, 10% wireless and 10% low Earth orbit satellite, and they came in right on budget.
The other side: There are various reasons why BEAD has taken a while to connect homes to the internet. For example, the FCC had to first release a map showing where internet service already existed in the country.
- But Republicans are quick to note not a single American has been connected under the BEAD program because of red tape.
What we're watching: ISPs and states have invested a ton of time and money into qualifying for the BEAD money, and they may push back on any changes from the Trump administration.
- "I have a feeling, depending on the the nature and severity of these changes, that a set of state attorneys general may decide to sue the Commerce Department," Feinman said.
