West Virginia’s BEAD proposal has been approved, 73,000 to acquire access to high-speed internet

West Virginia’s Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment (BEAD) proposal has been approved by the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), and funding will soon be awarded to help all state residents have access to high-speed internet.

The BEAD funding approval, first announced by U.S. Senator Shelley Moore Capito, R-WV, on November 20, and later by Governor Patrick Morrisey, will reportedly help 73,000 unserved and underserved state residents access high speed internet.

“I am thrilled that West Virginia’s BEAD plan has been approved by the Department of Commerce,” Senator Capito was quoted as saying in a press release. “This means West Virginia is another step closer to better-connecting our homes, businesses, and classrooms across the state. I have had dozens of conversations with the Administration and our state officials, and while there is still a long road ahead to getting more West Virginians connected, we are well on our way with today’s announcement. I look forward to continuing to help our state in any way that I can as the plan moves its way through the approval process at NIST.”

BEAD was first established through the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) of 2021. This act was signed into law by former President Joe Biden and $42.45 billion in federal funding, including $1.2 billion for West Virginia, was allocated by Congress to build broadband infrastructure, intending for all Americans to have access to high-speed internet.

However, following a restructuring of the BEAD program by the Trump administration in early 2025, states had to submit a new funding proposal to NTIA that followed updated BEAD guidelines and eliminated “woke” mandates.

According to Morrisey, the initial amount of funding awarded from this new proposal is $546 million, and will help the state update its technology and “facilitate the jobs and the opportunities we need.”

“The remaining dollars are to be determined, because that’s for the non-deployable assets,” Morrisey said. “The administration has announced that will be subject to a future rule, and so we will learn about that. But, it’s my intent to pursue those opportunities as well, which are gonna lead to wonderful things for West Virginia.”

Morrisey added that updated broadband access maps and internet deployment details will be provided at a later date.

“The plan in place is over a four-year period for the build-out,” Morrisey continued. “And, so, by the end of 2029, we’re hopeful this project will be completed.”