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  "description": "Broadband Breakfast Live Online every Wednesday at 12 Noon ET",
  "path": "/texas-asks-feds-for-more-time-on-bead-maine-broadband-at-noon-et/",
  "publishedAt": "2025-06-25T15:18:52.000Z",
  "site": "https://broadbandbreakfast.com",
  "tags": [
    "Broadband Breakfast on June 25, 2025 – Driving Towards Better Broadband",
    "Sign up for BroadbandLive on Zoom",
    "Texas Asks Feds for More Time to Meet BEAD Deadline",
    "States Could Still Use Statute to Favor Fiber for BEAD: Experts",
    "FCC Threatens China Mobile With Fines",
    "Trusty Sworn In As FCC Commissioner",
    "British PM Wants Rural Broadband Program to Count Toward NATO Quota",
    "Telegraph reported",
    "Ministery of Defense], the Treasury even tried to include spending on asylum seekers against my budget. Nearly all these tricks are actually against the rules set out by NATO and none of these funding streams fool the Americans, nor deter an enemy,” he [said.",
    "EchoStar Fulfilled Last Commitment in Deadline Extension Deal, Company Says",
    "Spotify Mistreating Subscribers, Senators Say",
    "Stephanie Weiner, Former NTIA Chief Counsel, Joins Georgetown Law Tech Institute",
    "Joint Resolution Reversing FCC’s Wi-Fi Hotspots Rule Faces Uncertain Future",
    "Guthrie Promotes National AI Standard, Supports Moratorium",
    "_10-year AI moratorium_",
    "Garland McCoy: Make BEAD Deliver Where It Matters Most–Rural America",
    "Advocates: Fine Print in New BEAD Notice Favors Satellite Providers",
    "Videos from Speeding BEAD Summit Available to Breakfast Club Members, Broadband Community",
    "Non-Deployment BEAD Funds In Jeopardy, State Officials Say",
    "Feenstra Introduces House Companion to Senate Bill that Would Assess ISPs, Big Tech",
    "Jeffrey Lopez Appointed as New Mexico Broadband Director",
    "House Passes Legislation Examining Undersea Cable Connecting U.S. to Africa",
    "Premium Charts and Data"
  ],
  "textContent": "|\n\n#### BROADBAND LIVE\n\n# Broadband Breakfast on June 25, 2025 – Driving Towards Better Broadband\n\n\n\n## Sign up for BroadbandLive on Zoom\n\nThe Maine Connectivity Authority is driving connections all across the state during a five-day-long program to connect with community partners and gather important insights for the next phase of their work. This Broadband Breakfast Live session will examine MCA President **Andrew Butcher's** journey around the state, along with past successes and future desires for MCA. How are community voices being incorporated into the MCA’s broadband expansion efforts? What lessons have been learned from earlier phases of the MCA’s work? How will insights from this statewide journey influence MCA’s future broadband access planning?\n\n### _Panelists_\n\n  * **Maggie Drummond-Bahl** , Director of Strategic Partnerships, Maine Connectivity Authority\n  * **Mia Purcell** , Manager of Economic Development, Community Concepts Finance Corporation\n  * **David Bresnahan** , Infrastructure Grant Manager, Maine Connectivity Authority\n  *  _Other panelists have been invited_\n  * **Drew Clark**(moderator), CEO and Publisher, Broadband Breakfast\n\n**Maggie Drummond-Bahl** is the Director of Strategic Partnerships for the Maine Connectivity Authority, a position she has held since May 2022. Maggie led the digital equity planning process for the State of Maine and authored the Maine Digital Equity Plan, which was accepted by NTIA in February. In her role at MCA, she leads execution of the digital equity strategy and supports a team charged with building and strengthening partnerships with communities, organizations, agencies, policy makers, funders and others. Breakfast Media LLC CEO **Drew Clark** has led the Broadband Breakfast community since 2008. An early proponent of better broadband, better lives, he initially founded the Broadband Census crowdsourcing tool to collect and verify broadband data left unpublished by the Federal Communications Commission. As CEO and Publisher, Clark presides over the leading media community advocating for higher-capacity internet everywhere through topical, timely and intelligent coverage. Clark also served as head of the Partnership for a Connected Illinois, a state broadband initiative.\n---\n\n---\n|\n\n#### BEAD\n\n# Texas Asks Feds for More Time to Meet BEAD Deadline\n\nHOUSTON, June 24, 2025 – A surprise 90-day deadline from the federal government has broadband officials working around the clock, but Texas broadband director **Greg Conte** , citing legal constraints and scale, said Tuesday his office has already asked Washington for more time.\n\n“We have engaged with NTIA. We've actually submitted an extension waiver to them requesting that the shot clock in Texas be moved back,” Conte said during a keynote kicking off main day events of the Broadband Communities Summit in Houston.\n\n# States Could Still Use Statute to Favor Fiber for BEAD: Experts\n\nWASHINGTON, June 24, 2025 – Updated rules for the $42.45 billion Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment program make it easier for non-fiber applicants to compete for funding. But because of the way the law standing up the program was written, experts say state broadband offices’ final spending plans might end up being similar to what they would have been under the old rules.\n\n# FCC Threatens China Mobile With Fines\n\nTelecom company accused of showing ‘a disregard for the Commission’s authority’\n\n# Trusty Sworn In As FCC Commissioner\n\nThe Republican will debut at an FCC meeting Thursday.\n---\n\n---\n|\n\n#### POLICYBAND\n\n# British PM Wants Rural Broadband Program to Count Toward NATO Quota\n\n# \n\n**NATO:** If he were a part of the British government, would he be known as **Gen. Adam Cassady?** At this week’s **NATO summit** in **The Hague** , British Prime Minister Sir **Keir Starmer** (Labour) was to arrive with a new plan for how the **United Kingdom** intended to reach the goal of spending **5% of GDP** on defense. (**President Trump** has asked the NATO allies to increase defense spending from **2% to 5%** of GDP annually.) Starmer wants Downing Street support for **rural broadband** deployment projects to count as defense spending. “It could allow the UK to hit NATO’s new defense spending target of five per cent of GDP without committing any further public money,” the Telegraph reported on June 17.\n\nEvidently, the Starmer government would consider **Project Gigabit’s $6.8 billion** program budget as the fiscal equivalent of a **Royal Air Force** squadron of **F-38B Lightning** fighter jets. Project Gigabit is the UK’s version of the U.S. **BEAD program** run by acting NTIA administrator **Adam Cassady**. The UK’s goal is to reach **99% of premises** with gigabit speeds by 2032. **Downing Street** has other ideas for reaching the 5% defense threshold: Local policing (**$23.6 billion**), offshore wind grants (**$408 million**), and bridge strengthening and the **Lower Thames Crossing** (**$1.36 billion**). Former UK Defense Secretary **Ben Wallace** , who served under PM **Boris Johnson** (Con.), didn’t think much of Starmer’s plan. “When I was at the Ministery of Defense], the Treasury even tried to include spending on asylum seekers against my budget. Nearly all these tricks are actually against the rules set out by NATO and none of these funding streams fool the Americans, nor deter an enemy,” he [said.  _**(More after paywall)**_\n---\n\n---\n|\n\n#### SPECTRUM\n\n# EchoStar Fulfilled Last Commitment in Deadline Extension Deal, Company Says\n\nWASHINGTON, June 24, 2025 – EchoStar has already met a deadline to begin getting 75 percent of new subscribers in certain markets on its own mobile network, the company said.\n\nThe company had committed to onload new customers in certain areas onto its network, as opposed to connecting them via deals with AT&T and T-Mobile, in exchange for the Federal Communications Commission extending buildout deadlines elsewhere last year.\n\n# Spotify Mistreating Subscribers, Senators Say\n\nThe music platform's audiobook feature allegedly exploits a loophole in federal regulations.\n\n# Stephanie Weiner, Former NTIA Chief Counsel, Joins Georgetown Law Tech Institute\n\nResearch focus will be on closing the digital divide.\n\n# Joint Resolution Reversing FCC’s Wi-Fi Hotspots Rule Faces Uncertain Future\n\nHouse version appears to have stalled out.\n---\n\n---\n|\n\n#### AI\n\n# Guthrie Promotes National AI Standard, Supports Moratorium\n\nWASHINGTON, June 24, 2025 – House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Rep. **Brett Guthrie** , R-Ky., said Tuesday he hopes the AI moratorium will pass in the Senate, emphasizing the need for a federal standard to regulate AI development and ensure U.S. leadership in the AI race.\n\nSpeaking at a Media Institute luncheon here, Guthrie responded to a question from Broadband Breakfast about the inclusion of the  _10-year AI moratorium_ in the final reconciliation bill, and whether Congress would pass the legislation before the alleged July 4 deadline.\n\n# Garland McCoy: Make BEAD Deliver Where It Matters Most–Rural America\n\nA rural-first approach would address the core equity and produce tangible, far-reaching benefits for all Americans.\n\n# Advocates: Fine Print in New BEAD Notice Favors Satellite Providers\n\nOfficials say LEO providers could skirt performance benchmarks others must meet in half the time.\n---\n\n---\n|\n\n#### VIDEOS FROM SPEEDING BEAD SUMMIT\n\n# Videos from Speeding BEAD Summit Available to Breakfast Club Members, Broadband Community\n\n##  _Keynote Addresses_\n\n  * **Bob Latta** , Congressman, Ohio’s Fifth Congressional District\n\n\n  * **Erin Houchin** , Congresswoman, Indiana's Ninth Congressional District\n\n\n  * **Jacky Rosen** , Senator, Nevada\n\n\n\n\n### \n\n\n\n\n###  _\n\nPanel 1: How Are States Thinking About Reasonable Costs Now?_\n\n The BEAD program originally allowed states to set their own high-cost thresholds when deciding whether to fund deployment through fiber, wireless, or satellite. Reports that Commerce Secretary **Howard Lutnick** might seek to deploy a federally-required high-cost cap might redirect funds towards “lower cost” solutions, particularly low-Earth orbit satellites, have raised questions. What are the pros and cons of a federal cap?\n\n### _Panel 2: Finding the State Versus Federal Balance in BEAD_\n\n The design of the BEAD program under the bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act gave states considerable leeway to design and implement broadband builds. Will the Trump administration change this state-led approach? Many federal and state lawmakers are warning against changes to BEAD. But many broadband providers say they would welcome relief from some onerous rules surrounding BEAD deployment.\n\n### _Panel 3: Reacting to the New BEAD NOFO_\n\n Commerce Secretary **Howard Lutnick** has promised to release a new Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) for BEAD on June 6, with applications from state entities due within 90 days and funding awards to be approved by the end of 2025. Lutnick has previously emphasized the need for \"technologically agnostic\" solutions and finding \"the cheapest way” to get broadband to Americans. How are these promises reflected in the new NOFO? How does it differ from the 2022 NOFO? This panel will address the implications for BEAD.\n\n### _Panel 4: Building, Maintaining and Adopting Digital Workforce Skills_\n\n By whatever name, successful broadband deployment efforts require digital adoption and digital training. For one, artificial intelligence has created a new need for AI Skills Training. This session will explore how workforce training initiatives - creating, maintaining and adopting digital skills - encompass the full spectrum of competencies needed for the digital infrastructure economy. How should training programs integrate AI literacy? How do networking, infrastructure deployment, customer service, and cybersecurity skills play a part? How can workforce programs funded through BEAD ensure that communities thrive in the digital future?\n\n## _Lightning Talk: \"Building on the Backbone: How States Can Leverage Past Work to Accelerate BEAD Success\"_\n\n## \n\nAs states restructure their broadband programs to meet BEAD requirements, they don't need to start from scratch. This lightning talk by Ready.net will highlight how states can make the most of the groundwork they've already laid - whether through mapping, stakeholder engagement, or local coordination. By identifying and activating existing assets, states can move faster, reduce duplication, and build smarter.\n\n  * **Presented by Ready.net**\n\n\n---\n|\n\n#### BEAD\n\n# Non-Deployment BEAD Funds In Jeopardy, State Officials Say\n\nBEAD’s recent policy notice narrowed qualifications for funding opportunities.\n\n# Feenstra Introduces House Companion to Senate Bill that Would Assess ISPs, Big Tech\n\nThe Supreme Court is expected to rule soon on whether the $9 billion-per-year Universal Service Fund is Constitutional.\n\n# Jeffrey Lopez Appointed as New Mexico Broadband Director\n\nFormer senior policy advisor to Sen. Ben Ray Luján steps into state role at critical time.\n\n# House Passes Legislation Examining Undersea Cable Connecting U.S. to Africa\n\nSeeks to establish hub in U.S. Virgin Islands.\n---\n\n---\n|\n\n#### PREMIUM CHARTS AND DATA\n\n# Premium Charts and Data\n\n\nBroadband Breakfast is tracking, on a daily basis, the states accepting grant applications under the Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment program.\n\nWe're also tracking fixed wireless access subscriptions, and wireline subscriptions, on a quarterly basis. See the charts below:\n\n\n# Wireline Broadband Subscribers by Technology\n\n\n\n# Wireline Subscribers - Net Ads by Quarter\n\n\n\n# Fixed Wireless Access Subscribers - Net Ads by Quarter\n\n\n\n## States Accepting BEAD Grant Applications\n\n\n\n---\n\n---\n| | _**About Broadband Breakfast:**\n\nBroadband Breakfast is the leading media company advocating for higher-capacity internet everywhere through topical, timely and intelligent coverage. The company’s annual Digital Infrastructure Investment conference champions a robust 21st century information economy._\n---\n| \n---\n| | |\n---",
  "title": "Texas Asks Feds for More Time on BEAD, Maine 🦞 Broadband at Noon ET",
  "updatedAt": "2026-03-11T03:36:05.932Z"
}