Ohio is relaunching its statewide effort to connect all residents and businesses in the state to reliable, high-speed internet service.
After a successful mapping challenge in May 2024 approved in October, Ohio is set to kick off its Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program, a state version of the $42.45 billion federal BEAD program. As part of the federal government’s commitment to states, Ohio was awarded $793 million in funds from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act of 2021 to deliver affordable high-speed internet service to its citizens.
Now in the final mapping and planning stages, BroadbandOhio, the state’s office responsible for broadband rollouts, will submit a formal funding proposal by September 4, with opportunities to partner with the state for local developers.
BroadbandOhio was created in 2020 to address the lack of available internet service in Ohio households. At that time, it was estimated that 300,000 residents did not have access.
Since then, the state has actively pursued statewide broadband expansion through the Ohio Residential Broadband Expansion Grant (ORBEG). Utilizing $326.5 million awarded to 13 providers, the number has dwindled to 60,000, according to state officials. ORBEG’s first round included 33 expansion projects across 31 counties, while the second round comprised six projects in 23 counties. Another dozen providers have pledged to build out an additional 51 projects to reach 10,000 households in 25 counties.
State leaders anticipate that the additional BEAD funding should bridge the gap to help them reach their goal of universal high-speed access to every Ohioan.
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