Wyoming's Broadband, Equity, Access, and Deployment Plan Volume 1 Now Available for Public Comment thru Sept. 21.

The Wyoming Broadband Office, part of the Wyoming Business Council (WBC), has been allocated $348 million in federal funding through the Broadband, Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program and the first part of the BEAD plan is now ready for your feedback.

The Broadband Office is accepting public comment in advance of submitting the plan, referred to as Volume 1, which focuses on the Challenge Process. This Challenge Process will take place before the Broadband Office opens the grant program and will allow entities to “challenge” the status of a preliminary list of unserved and underserved locations, including Community Anchor Institutions (CAIs).

Challenges will inform the state if there are locations entities believe do or do not have the designated speed of broadband available. Under the National Telecommunications and Information Administration's (NTIA) rules, only four types of entities will be allowed to challenge the status of a location:

• Local governments
• Tribal governments (i.e., the Eastern Shoshone and Northern Arapahoe tribal governments)
• Nonprofit organizations
• Broadband providers

Public comment for the Challenge Process is open through Sept. 21, 2023, on the WBC's website at wbc.pub/BEAD.

We are especially interested in feedback on the following topics: 

• Input from CAIs, such as community centers, senior centers, and affordable housing without access to gigabit connections and not already included in the list (Section 1.3.2).
• Your thoughts on the draft Challenge Process Wyoming plans to adopt: The Broadband Office plans to adopt NTIA’s Model Challenge Process and is seeking your input. 

We will also be sending another request for public comment once we have completed the second part of the initial proposal (referred to as Volume 2) this fall.

Thank you for taking the time to review the BEAD plan and provide your input. We greatly appreciate your continued partnership.

Learn More about Wyoming's BEAD Plan & Provide Feedback

Join Our Virtual Information Session

Please join us for a virtual meeting next Thursday, August 31, from 2 to 3:30 p.m. We will provide an update on the BEAD program and discuss the Initial Proposal Volume 1 which is now open for public comment. We will also provide time for Q&A and public comments. We look forward to seeing you then!

Register for the Aug. 31 Info Session

BEAD Background Information

The Wyoming Broadband Office leads programs to expand broadband across the state of Wyoming, supporting every citizen to access affordable, reliable, and future-proof broadband.

The office is currently in the planning phase for $348 million in federal grant funds from the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program at the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA). These dollars will be used to support broadband infrastructure grants to Wyoming’s broadband providers.

To access the BEAD funds, Wyoming must first develop a detailed plan, referred to as an Initial Proposal, that demonstrates how (at a minimum) all unserved locations in the state will be connected to broadband by the end of the program. NTIA will review this plan, and once approved, the Broadband Office may begin implementation. We are developing the Initial Proposal in two phases.