By Ron Thaniel
February 15, 2010

The Commerce Department’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) announced on January 15 the availability of $2.6 billion in Broadband Technology Opportunities Program (BTOP) ARRA grants to expand broadband access and adoption. This is the last round of funding.

Of the $2.6 billion in BTOP, approximately $2.35 billion will be made available for infrastructure projects. NTIA is adopting a “comprehensive communities” approach as its top priority in awarding infrastructure grants, focusing on middle mile broadband projects that connect key community anchor institutions – such as libraries, hospitals, community colleges, universities, and public safety institutions. Furthermore, a victory for the Conference of Mayors, NTIA will no longer require an infrastructure project serve an unserved or underserved area, which was a key concern for the Conference of Mayors in the first round.

In an August 17 letter to U.S. Commerce Secretary Gary Locke, and again in Comments submitted to NTIA in late November, the Conference of Mayors “…urged the Administration to give careful attention to reconsidering the restrictive criteria that requires public safety and anchor institutions meet an underserved or unserved test before being eligible for broadband funding in the first round of the Broadband Technology and Opportunities Program (BTOP) in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA).” The letter said, “Unless amended, these critical institutions, which in many cases serve our most vulnerable populations, will not meet ARRA requirements for funding under the BTOP.” However, NTIA will give priority to projects that are located in such areas and does intend to evaluate the extent to which proposed projects overbuild existing broadband infrastructure.

In addition, NTIA plans to award at least $150 million of the funding for Public Computer Center projects, which will expand access to broadband service and enhance broadband capacity at public libraries, community colleges, and other institutions that service the general public. NTIA also plans to award at least $100 million for Sustainable Broadband Adoption projects, which include projects to provide broadband education, training, and equipment, particularly to vulnerable population groups where broadband technology has traditionally been underutilized.

Other improvements include modifying the service area delineations from Census blocks to Census tracts and block groups, which was another concern for the Conference of Mayors in the first round. The August Conference of Mayors letter stated, “The underserved test to determine the availability of broadband by census block depends on data that the U.S. Census does not gather.”

Other key points to remember – applicants are required to provide matching funds of at least 20 percent or request a waiver. Additional consideration will be given to projects that propose to contribute a non-federal cost share/match that equals or exceeds 30 percent of the total eligible costs of the project. Also, applicants must demonstrate that the project could not have been implemented during the grant period without federal assistance. Applicants are encouraged to complete their projects within two years and must complete them within three years.

Application packages for electronic submission will be available at www.broadbandusa.gov/. The electronic portal for submitting round two applications will be on February 16, and close on March 15. Awards will be announced on a rolling basis beginning in June and all awards must be made by September 30.