Governor Announces Federal Approval Of Nebraska’s Broadband Final Proposal

By Gordon HopkinsDespite opposition by county officials throughout Nebraska due to changes made to strategy, Governor Jim Pillen recently announced he National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) has formally approved the state’s Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) final proposal. This authorizes Nebraska to transition from planning to implementation of its statewide broadband expansion strategy. “This is a tremendous victory for Nebraska,” said Governor Pillen. “Reliable broadband is essential for daily life, from schoolwork and healthcare to running a business or managing a farm. With this approval, rural Nebraskans who have been left waiting will finally have access to the same online opportunities and services as everyone else. Our plan is practical, responsible, and built to serve Nebraska’s needs today and for many years to come.” BEAD funding was limited to the state’s remaining unserved locations and relies on a balanced mix of technologies designed to provide connectivity across Nebraska’s varied landscape. The approach being pursued is intended to support long-term reliability, responsible spending, and practical solutions for the hardest-to-reach areas, positioning Nebraska to be among the first states to push projects into the market.Nebraska Broadband Office (NBO) Director Patrick Haggerty said the federal approval marks the start of the transformational work ahead.“I am proud of our team’s relentless efforts in an ever-changing environment, and equally proud of the results,” he added. “This approval allows Nebraska to move quickly into deployment and begin connecting the remaining unserved locations.”Jefferson County Commissioners discussed the matter recently with Nebraska Department of Economic Development consultant Kelly Gewecke. Commissioner Chair Mark Schoenrock explained his issue with the changes, “And you know, the definitions have changed, and so now satellite and wireless is considered commensurate with fiber.”“Which isn’t true,” said Gewecke. Schoenrock said, “So, Senator (Deb) Fisher, we met with her staff, it’s been about a month ago. Now she’s leading the charge for Nebraska to try to get that changed, because right now we stand to lose from $405 million down to $148 million in spending for broadband and, so, I don’t know if she’s going to be able to make any difference with that.”“We’ve got all these broadband internet service providers lined up to utilize that $405 million,” said Schoenrock. “We were going to hit almost 90 percent of our unserved and underserved locations here in Jefferson County with that funding. But now it’s evaporated.”Schoenrock expressed frustration as he noted his discussions with constituents while he was campaigning in 2024, “Constituents that looked him in the eye last year, I said, we are going to get you fiber. It’s coming because we had the $405 million, everything was lined up, the defined project areas through the Nebraska broadband office, everything was ready to go. And then the administration in Washington, through the Department of Commerce, they changed those definitions, which, I’m sorry, satellite and wireless are not commensurate with fiber.” In a recent editorial, Gage County Superintendent Emily Haxby expressed the same opinion.“Fiber is permanent infrastructure. It is reliable, weatherproof, and built to last for decades. It is the backbone of education, healthcare, precision agriculture, Artificial Intelligence, manufacturing, and remote work,” wrote Haxby. “Fixed wireless and satellite, they have their place, and they aren’t inherently bad solutions for rural connectivity. But their performance, reliability, and future scalability pale in comparison to fiber. Relegating over 10,000 rural homes and businesses to second-class broadband is a disservice to every Nebraskan. This is a patch job, not progress.”Haxby also noted, “Out of $405 million, the plan spends barely $43 million and connects fewer than 1,300 locations to fiber broadband. More than $350 million is left untouched, destined to go back to D.C. without benefiting our state. That’s not planning, it is malpractice.”However, Governor Pillen is hoping that money will not go back to D.C. but will remain in Nebraska for use in other areas. The governor’s office issued a statement, “A sizeable amount of federal funding remains undeployed under BEAD. Gov. Pillen has advocated that the state be allowed to retain those funds and allocate them to other projects that would benefit from investment – endeavors that would enhance precision agriculture, biotechnology and artificial intelligence. The status of the remaining undeployed federal funding is expected to be announced early next year.”

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