Feds slash broadband funding by $35M, hitting vulnerable populations

A person helps another person with a cellphone.

Photo / Courtesy Maine Connectivity Authority Amy Stone, Bridgton Public Library’s director, provides technical support to an older adult as part of a Maine Connectivity Authority’s broadband education project.

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By Laurie Schreiber

Digital skills and online safety for rural residents, small businesses, veterans and low-income residents are on the chopping block with the federal government’s termination of $35 million in broadband funds.

The termination of three grants to the Maine Connectivity Authority affects 130,000 people, according to a news release.

“This announcement is deeply disappointing, and MCA is exploring Maine’s options to respond to the legality of the grant termination,” said Andrew Butcher, the authority's president. “Our team is evaluating how to best proceed with critical programming and investments currently underway through our statewide digital equity strategy,” Butcher added.

The Maine Connectivity Authority, a quasi-public independent agency, was established to address infrastructure and affordability and to leverage public-private partnerships to fill in high-spend internet coverage gaps across Maine.

It received notification from the National Telecommunications and Information Administration that, as of May 9, the administration ended grants funding programs to improve digital skills, provide internet safety education and ensure people have affordable devices.

The notification was part of a nationwide termination of grants across all states and territories and 65 other organizations, according to the release.

The elimination will disproportionately impact older, rural residents, small businesses, veterans, low-income households and students, the authority said.

Programs funded through the awards help people have skills and technology to safely participate in a digital society.

Affected programs

$10 million was awarded to MCA to fund the Digital Opportunity Networks grant program, a statewide device donation and refurbishment campaign and an educational platform for technical assistance. The awards were planned for announcement next month.
$13.8 million was awarded to the National Digital Equity Center to provide digital skills training, technical support, telehealth access and affordable device programs. The center was partnering with 19 organizations, including the Maine State Library, Maine Community College System, Maine Adult Education Association and Medical Care Development.
$11 million was awarded to the Greater Portland Council of Governments to provide STEM education, digital services for municipal governments, device programs, digital skills education and business support programs. The council was partnering with 13 regional and Wabanaki broadband partners, including economic and community organizations and councils, in all 16 Maine counties.

Digital worries

MCA and its statewide partners had been preparing for the use of the funds since 2022 through the development of Maine’s digital equity plan — the first such plan approved in the nation. Digital Equity Act programs are separate from Maine’s state and federally funded broadband infrastructure grant programs, and were designed to amplify the impact of critical infrastructure investments.

“The loss of these federal funds will have a ripple effect across Maine, impacting the economy as well as access to education, work and health care,” said Maggie Drummond-Bahl, Maine Connective Authority's senior director of partnerships. “Maine’s ability to secure awards of $25 million of funding with over two dozen partners reflects both the need for funding like this and the breadth of community involvement.”

A 2023 statewide survey conducted by MCA revealed that 93% of Maine people said they are worried about staying safe online and do not feel they have the tools to effectively protect themselves and their families.

A recently published study by the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston said that more than 2,000 people in Maine fell victim to internet crime, costing over $31 million in 2023, according to the release.

More than 50% of Maine veterans surveyed said that, due to the transition to online platforms, they are less confident in accessing telehealth and fully accessing benefits and health care.

The National Digital Equity Center has provided digital skills training to over 40,000 participants since 2018, said Susan Corbett, the center’s founder and executive director.

"With the loss of this funding, NDEC and our partners: libraries, adult education programs, older adult organizations, health care facilities and community organizations will be limited in providing digital learning support to our most vulnerable community members," Corbett said.

The programs provide digital access to thousands of residents for education, health care, employment and basic communication, said Kristina Egan, executive director of the Greater Portland Council of Governments.

“Maine cannot afford to take steps backward,” Egan said.

$272M is intact

Last month, MCA said it would begin distribution of $272 million in federal funding to connect Maine’s remaining unserved 26,000 locations.

The $35 million and the $272 million are two different tranches of funding, Jenna Ingram, MCA’s communications manager, told Mainebiz.

The $35 million represents all of the funding coming to Maine through the Digital Equity Act’s state capacity and competitive grant programs administered by the National Telecommunications and Information Administration.

The $272 million is Maine's allocation through the Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment, or BEAD, program, which is also administered by the National Telecommunications and Information Administration.

“The Digital Equity Act and BEAD funding sources are separate, but were designed to complement each other,” said Ingram.

The $272 million remains intact.