Virginia’s $1.4 Billion Broadband Plan: Paving the Way for Universal Internet Access Across the State by 2028

Virginia Secures Federal Approval for $1.4 Billion Broadband Plan.

Paving the Way for Widespread Internet Access Across the State

Virginia is getting closer to improving internet access across the state with the federal government’s approval of its detailed broadband plan. This plan called the Virginia Initial Proposal Volume 2 outlines how the state will use $1.4 billion from the Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment (BEAD) program. Governor Glenn Youngkin praised the approval, noting that it will help Virginia stay business-friendly and ensure everyone has access to high-speed internet.

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(photo: Wireless Infrastructure Association)

Virginia Aims to Provide Universal Internet Access by 2024

The proposal has big goals aiming to give good internet access to all areas that currently lack it by the end of 2024 and to finish all BEAD projects by 2028. The state’s plan shows that over 162,000 locations in Virginia don’t meet the new federal internet speed standards. This includes more than 134,000 places without any broadband access and nearly 28,000 areas with slow speeds. The recent update to these speed standards makes it clear that fixing these issues is urgent.

Even with this approval and the Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD) has said that the BEAD application process hasn’t started yet. DHCD is still working with the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) to confirm the results of the BEAD challenge and decide which locations are eligible. Once this is done, DHCD will announce when the application process will begin. This work builds on Virginia’s efforts since 2017 which have already invested almost $2 billion to extend broadband to over 388,000 locations, according to the report of Washington Examiner.

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