The quest to bring faster internet to your home and business will need some debugging after funding cuts were made official last month. The National Telecommunications and Information Administration ordered agencies like the Wisconsin Public Commission to rescind all preliminary awards and stop the subgranting process for projects relying on the $1 billion Broadband, Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) Program. BEAD funding was an important puzzle piece for many Door County communities working with Internet Service Providers (ISPs). There were efforts by Governor Tony Evers to replace about $400 million in BEAD funding with state dollars, but the Republican-led Joint Finance Committee rejected the plan. Door County Broadband Coordinator Jessica Hatch says the funding cuts mean different things to different communities. Still, it interrupts the larger plan of bringing fiber internet to most of the homes and businesses on the peninsula.
There is a glimmer of hope that at least some of the funding could return to Door County for internet-related projects. The state broadband office is reviewing the new federal guidance and must provide feedback by early September. That could allow some of the funding to be awarded by the end of 2025. Hatch says it is tricky because everyone is learning about what the future may look like as they go along.