“This is the most investment in broadband that we’ve seen in the country, ever,” said Angie Bailey, director of the state’s Broadband Infrastructure Office. Congress created the $42 billion Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) grant program in 2021, but it’s taken years to get the funds moving. “The new administration fundamentally changed the BEAD program right before states reached the finish line,” Garner said. “It’s a challenge for broadband providers to design projects in that timeframe,” said Bailey. With the new directives, the BEAD program will still have plenty left over.