New Policy Brief: Dollars and Sense In Debate Over BEAD Fiber Rules

Pulse Fiber Construction Crew Gets Busy

The $42.5 billion federal Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) grant program is facing what appears to be a significant overhaul as the new administration aims to alter, among other things, one of program’s key tenets: a preference for building fiber networks.

Meanwhile, a new ILSR policy brief – “BEAD Should Continue to Prioritize Fiber Internet Network Investments” – makes the case for why “these changes would repeat past policy mistakes and waste billions of dollars while delivering subpar Internet access to rural families at much higher prices.”

The brief goes on to succinctly describe why fiber networks should continue to be prioritized:

“In designing BEAD, Congress recognized that it was foolish to spend thousands of dollars per home every 5-10 years to deliver obsolete connections and chose instead to build fiber optic networks that will last generations – ultimately both saving taxpayer dollars and delivering an equitable Internet access option to millions of rural homes.”

And while the policy brief points to important long-term consequences that should be considered to ensure rule changes don’t squander a “generational investment” by building “something more temporary and inferior to the services found on every street in urban and suburban areas,” the brief does not argue that other technologies should not be a part of the mix.

“To be clear, BEAD’s priority for fiber does not bar the use of other technologies when appropriate. In cases where the cost of fiber is simply too great, other technologies are on the table – likely wireless options of both terrestrial and low-earth orbit,” the brief says.

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BEAD Fiber policy brief screensho

From ‘Future Proof’ Fiber To ‘Technology Neutral’ Now

The brief is a siren call amid swirling political winds that are poised to blow away BEAD rules initially crafted by the NTIA, the agency administering the program.

“Congress deliberately chose to prioritize fiber optic technology because of past failures in which the federal government made repeated investments into obsolete technologies,” the brief notes.

It’s a view that underscores why many expert observers refer to fiber optic technology as “future proof” – largely because fiber is the only Internet access technology that meets the demands of the moment and will continue to do so for generations to come.

Nevertheless, Trump Administration officials and key GOP leaders are moving toward what they call a “technology neutral” framework that would ultimately shift federal investments away from the construction of fiber networks and more towards building broadband infrastructure that appears to cost less to deploy (in the short term) – such as fixed wireless and LEO satellite, which just so happens to benefit Elon Musk’s Starlink company.

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New NTIA chief Arielle Roth sits in front of microphone during nomination hearing wearing a pink jacket over a striped shirt

The most recent signal that the “technology neutral” view is ascendent is the President’s pick to be the new head of NTIA, Arielle Roth.

Roth, the former telecom policy director for Sen. Ted Cruz, shares her former boss’ vociferous criticism of the program. In speaking to the Federalist Society in June of 2024 Roth said the NTIA had erred with its “extreme tech bias in favor of fiber in the BEAD program.”

Still, some Governors and broadband offices in states that had a preference for Trump in the election have made it clear they also prefer fiber builds to be prioritized. Whether that will hold any weight with the new NTIA chief is anybody’s guess.

Read the policy brief here.

Header image of fiber installation crew courtesy of Pulse Fiber

Inline image of NTIA chief Arielle Roth screenshot from nomination hearing