On the latest episode of the Community Broadband Bits podcast:
Former BEAD Director Evan Feinman joins ILSR’s Christopher Mitchell and Sean Gonsalves to talk about the turmoil swirling around the $42.5 billion BEAD program, the signature broadband deployment effort enshrined in the bipartisan infrastructure law.
They discuss what’s really behind the push for more satellite connectivity, the threat of sidelining state-led fiber projects, and the political forces at play.
With billions on the line and rural communities waiting, this episode cuts through the noise and asks: are we about to squander a once-in-a-generation opportunity?
Former BEAD Director, Evan Feinman“They’re going back and they’re reworking it, and they’re going to take fiber away from West Virginia homes and businesses and substitute it with LEO somehow. I think that’s a horrible outcome. It also… doesn’t make a lot of sense.”
This show is 46 minutes long and can be found here.
The federal BEAD program should not repeat past policy mistakes and waste billions of dollars delivering subpar Internet access to households at higher prices.
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