The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) awarded the first three grants as part of the Tribal Broadband Connectivity Program. Vice President Kamala Harris made the announcement at the end of the end of the White House 2021 Tribal Nations Summit last week.
The initial awards, totaling nearly $1.4 million, are being made to the Taos Pueblo in New Mexico, the Upper Mattaponi Tribe in Virginia, and the Sokaogon Chippewa Community Wisconsin. In June, Vice President Harris, Secretary Raimondo, and Secretary Haaland announced the availability of nearly $1 billion in tribal broadband funding.
Two of the grants will support the provision of broadband services, computers, and digital skills training to tribal members and one will fund a tribal broadband planning project. Read more about the grants here.
NTIA continues to review the more than 280 remaining applications received during the application window, which closed on September 1. The Tribal Broadband Connectivity Program will announce additional awards on a rolling basis as they go through NTIA’s review process.
“Indian country has been left out of critical investments in broadband infrastructure for far too long,” said U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo. “The Biden Administration is committed to reversing that trend. [The] awards will provide a range of benefits to tribes, including providing tribal members with internet connectivity, devices, resources to fund broadband capacity and needs planning, as well as digital skills needed to thrive in the 21st century.”
The Tribal Broadband Connectivity Program was funded by the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021. It makes $980 million available for grants to eligible Native American, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian entities for broadband deployment, digital inclusion, workforce development, telehealth, and distance learning. The recently enacted Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act provides an additional $2 billion in funding for this program. NTIA anticipates issuing a new Notice of Funding Opportunity for the additional funds.
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