Office of Broadband Development News
The following updates are available from the Office of Broadband Development:
- Border-to-Border and Lower Population Density Broadband Grant Application
- Public Comment Period for BEAD Initial Proposals
- Informational Webinars for BEAD Initial Proposals
- Governor's Task Force on Broadband Meeting
- NTIA Tier D or E Fabric Licenses
Border-to-Border and Lower Population Density Broadband Grant Application
We have updated the Frequently Asked Questions for those providers who have completed their pre-application outreach and are working on submitting a Round 9 grant application.
Reminder: If you are a provider who completed the pre-application outreach and intends to submit a Round 9 Grant Application, it is strongly suggested that you register and complete set-up of your Minnesota Grant Management System account and familiarize yourself with the grants management portal prior to the 1:30 p.m. December 7, 2023 application deadline.
If you have any questions, please email both gms.deed@state.mn.us AND deed.broadband@state.mn.us and we will get back to you.
Public Comment Period for the BEAD Initial Proposals
We have opened the public comment period for the State's Draft Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment (BEAD) program, Initial Proposal (Volumes I and II) for the Minnesota plan on how to distribute the federal funding for broadband infrastructure allocated to the state by the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act.
The Initial Proposal will be submitted to the federal agency overseeing the funding, the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, no later than December 27, 2023. Here is the link to read the initial draft proposals in Volume 1 and 2 and provide public comments by December 12 at 4 p.m.
Informational Webinars for the BEAD Initial Proposals
Join us for informational webinars on the State’s Draft BEAD Initial Proposal (Volumes I and II) with time for Q&A on either December 4 from 3:30 to 5 p.m. or December 5 from 8:30 to 10 a.m.
Individuals with disabilities requiring accommodations to attend the virtual event should contact deed.broadband@state.mn.us at least 3 business days prior to the webinar. The webinars will be recorded and posted on the DEED website.
Governor’s Task Force on Broadband Meeting
The Task Force will be meeting on Thursday, November 30 from 10 a.m. to 12:35 p.m. in-person at the Minnesota Association of Townships, 805 Central Avenue East, St. Michael, MN 55376 or virtually via Microsoft Teams.
DEED Commissioner Matt Varilek will join virtually, and Kathryn de Wit and Jake Varn from The Pew Charitable Trust will be attending in-person. The agenda and meeting details can be found here.
NTIA Tier D or E Fabric Licenses
To support federal broadband funding program requirements, organizations may be eligible to receive an NTIA Tier D or E Fabric license. There is no cost associated with these licenses and they are distinct from the CostQuest licenses issued in support of the FCC’s Broadband Data Collection program. The NTIA Tier D & E licenses support a broader range of purposes, including administration of the BEAD program, participation in the BEAD eligible entity challenge processes, and reporting requirements associated with the Broadband Funding Map and the BEAD program. These uses are not covered under the FCC Tier 2 or Tier 4 licenses. Specifically, the Tier D and E licenses are intended for qualified or presumptively qualified, prospective direct recipients or indirect subrecipients, awarded direct recipients or indirect subrecipients, and challengers to participate in Federal Broadband Granting Agency's (FBGA) broadband grant programs through either a challenge process, by applying for an award of available funds, or by reporting on an awarded grant/loan (including reporting related to the Broadband Funding Map authorized by IIJA § 60105).
The Tier D license is available upon request. Although the Tier E license is available, CostQuest will coordinate the approval of Tier E licenses with individual State Broadband Offices and NTIA. The intent of this coordination is to ensure that the delivery of the Licensed Materials coincides with the state challenge process.
For more information on which license you may need please visit: https://costquest.info/3sZyhXB.
You can make a license request using these websites:
Tier D: https://apps.costquest.com/NTIArequest/
Tier E: https://apps.costquest.com/ntiatiererequest/
Information regarding how to complete the license application process can be found here:
Tier D: https://costquest.info/3NFWE3e
Tier E: https://costquest.info/3EWlGXJ
If you have any questions, CostQuest can be reached directly by emailing IFAsupport@costquest.com
|
