The City of Champaign has an opportunity to access grant funding from the Federal Government through the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) Program through the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA). The grant funds are intended to assist with the development of fiber infrastructure to bring fast Internet to all and address issues of digital equity. The City of Champaign is encouraging residents, businesses, and other organizations to join in the “BEAD Map Challenge”.
“While we believe most of the residents in our city have access to high-speed Internet, we can “challenge” that assumption through the BEAD map Challenge”, says Mark Toalson, Information Technology Director. “This challenge allows citizens to test their home internet speeds and submit the results for consideration in the grant process”, he added. The mapping process will help correct inaccuracies in the state’s broadband map, and potentially enhance the chances of grant funding being awarded to the City of Champaign.
Participating in the challenge is easy, but participants must register by March 13, 2024, at https://dceo.illinois.gov/connectillinois/bead.html
The program is being administered in Illinois by the State of Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO) and the Illinois Broadband Lab. The State of Illinois DCEO and the Illinois Broadband Lab announced an award of $1.04 billion in BEAD funds to continue efforts to connect all homes and businesses within our state to modern high-speed internet.