The Internet Society Releases “Guide to Federal Broadband Funding Opportunities in the U.S”

From an Internet Society Blog Post by Katie Jordan, Director, Public Policy and Technology & Mark Buell Regional Vice President – North America:

Today, I am pleased to announce the launch of the Guide to Federal Broadband Opportunities in the U.S. By creating this consolidated resource, especially as large amounts of funding become available as a part of COVID-19 relief and Tribes begin utilizing their Educational Broadband Service spectrum, the Internet Society hopes to assist our community to access these vital funds.

Over the past three months, we have worked with our partners to create a comprehensive database of federal funding opportunities in the United States. These opportunities vary dramatically in size and include a variety of deployment and end-user scenarios. For example, the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) E-Rate Program provides subsidies for both Internet service and infrastructure to eligible schools and libraries. Conversely, the Department of Agriculture’s Rural Broadband Program provides loans to corporations, companies, cooperatives, Indian tribes, and local governments for the cost of construction, improvement, or acquisition of facilities and equipment for broadband service in rural communities. Other funds, like the Distance Learning and Telemedicine program, provide grants to private or public entities for equipment for broadband, but not broadband service itself.

To make this abundance of information more easily accessible, our new guide includes information regarding the nature of awards, eligibility guidelines, application requirements, and information about past awardees where applicable. It is currently available as a PDF (which requires lower levels of bandwidth to access) and will soon be published as an interactive webpage where communities can search and filter grants or loans that best meet their needs.

Learn More, Direct to the Complete Blog Post

Direct to Full Text (Read Online)

Direct to Full Text (Download; 52 pages; PDF)

Filed under: Awards, Funding, Libraries, News