Connected Nation's BEAD Tracker provides details for the nearly 4M locations to get broadband using $20B in federal funds

Innovative tracking tool breaks down tech, provider, and cost-per-location for all broadband proposals submitted by states and U.S. territories to date

BOWLING GREEN, Ky., Dec. 10, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- In conjunction with this week's milestone in the Broadband, Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program, Connected Nation's (CN) BEAD Tracker has expanded its reach to include key data from 96% of states and U.S. Territories participating in the $42.5 billion federal program.

Of the 56 states and U.S. territories eligible for BEAD funding, the expected 54 respondents have submitted their Final Proposals to the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) — representing $20.02 billion in federal funds. To date, the NTIA has approved 32 proposals, including Alabama, Texas, and Guam. The final round of NTIA curing reduced the total locations to be served by fiber by about 30,000 locations, translating to a reduction in outlay of $497.4 million.

"The 'Benefit of the Bargain' forced every state and U.S. territory to reassess how they were spending their federal broadband funds. We are now seeing the results of that," said Colin Reilly, VP, Data Strategy & Technical Services, CN. "I encourage everyone to try our easy-to-use BEAD Tracker to see how those changes impacted the expansion of high-speed internet both in your area and nationally. That includes tracking the technology type, providers awarded funds, and much more." 

CN's BEAD Tracker (available here) now shows details of all NTIA-approved initial and final submissions to date, which encompasses nearly 4 million locations to be served by broadband across the country. The tracker compiles and aggregates state BEAD Final Proposals, highlighting how each state and U.S. territory intends to use their allocated federal BEAD dollars.  

"The great thing about the BEAD Tracker dashboard is you can look at the data nationally or by a specific state or territory," said Chris McGovern, Director of Research Development, CN. "The ability to see the data like this lets you easily monitor and compare how states and territories are approaching their BEAD plans. It lets you see how our tax dollars are being spent to help homes, community anchor institutions, and businesses get connected."

To learn more about Connected Nation's BEAD Tracker, visit the dashboard here connectednation.org/beadtracker.

About Connected Nation: Founded in 2001, the national nonprofit's mission is to improve lives by providing innovative solutions that expand access to and increase the adoption and use of broadband (high-speed internet) and its related technologies for all people. Everyone belongs in a Connected Nation. Learn more at connectednation.org.

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SOURCE Connected Nation