Maryland’s High-Speed Broadband Plan Gets $268 Million from Feds

Release – Governor Wes Moore has announced that the United States Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration has approved proposals for Maryland’s Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) plan. The approval enables access to $267.7 million in federal funding to support the Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development’s Connect Maryland initiative to provide all Marylanders with affordable and equitable access to high-speed internet.

“The Biden-Harris Administration has been an extraordinary partner in our work to close the digital divide across Maryland—from Western Maryland to the Eastern Shore and everywhere in between,” said Gov. Moore. “Thanks to robust federal support, we’re taking a big step forward in our work to connect every Marylander with affordable, high-speed internet. In order to leave no one behind, we need to get everyone online.”

The BEAD program is a cornerstone of the Biden-Harris Administration’s “Internet for All” initiative, providing $42.45 billion in grants authorized by President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to states, territories, and the District of Columbia. Funding may be used to deploy or upgrade high-speed Internet networks to ensure access to reliable, affordable, high-speed internet service. When infrastructure goals are met, any remaining BEAD funding can support high-speed internet adoption, internet literacy training, and workforce development efforts.

“Today, Maryland can move their Internet for All efforts from planning to action,” said Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Communications and Information and National Telecommunications and Information Administration Administrator Alan Davidson. “I congratulate the Maryland broadband office for developing a strong proposal for how they will connect all of their residents to high-speed Internet service.”

Maryland’s Volume 1 BEAD proposal outlines the Broadband Availability Challenge Process, which aims to ensure accurate broadband mapping and target investments to areas most in need of high-speed internet access by tracking existing broadband funding, unserved and underserved locations and availability of community anchor institutions.

Maryland’s Volume 2 BEAD proposal outlines how the Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development will transparently and efficiently deploy federal funds to bolster the Connect Maryland initiative’s infrastructure, affordability, and outreach goals by:

• Bridging the digital divide with specific strategies to address accessibility gaps in rural and underserved areas;
• Encouraging economic development, innovation, and resilience by enhancing connectivity for businesses, particularly small and medium-sized enterprises;
• Enhancing education and workforce development to help students and workers succeed in a digital environment where remote learning and online job training are increasingly prevalent;
• Supporting public health and safety by improving connectivity for emergency response systems and communications, as well as expanding access to telehealth services; and
• Empowering communities by engaging local residents and stakeholders in the planning and implementation process to build trust and ensure sustainable progress that meets the unique challenges of different regions and communities.

“Connect Maryland’s goal of providing affordable, equitable broadband access for all requires cooperation from the federal, state, and local levels of government, as well as support from local Internet service providers, community institutions, and residents,” said Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development Secretary Jake Day. “This proposal strengthens the Office of Statewide Broadband’s productive partnership with the National Telecommunications and Information Administration and creates a comprehensive, achievable plan to bring reliable connectivity and digital literacy to currently unserved or underserved Marylanders.”

The Office of Statewide Broadband works to ensure that all Maryland households have access to broadband through its programs to expand infrastructure and increase digital equity. Since the office was created in 2017, it has invested more than $270 million into broadband infrastructure and programs. Those efforts have provided high-speed internet access to an estimated 52,000 previously unserved homes and businesses statewide.