STATE News:

SANTA FE –The New Mexico Office of Broadband Access and Expansion (OBAE) submitted its application for initial planning funds through the federal Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program.

Last month, Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham issued a letter of intent to the National Telecommunication and Information Administration (NTIA) confirming New Mexico’s interest in the $42.5 billion BEAD program – starting with $5 million in planning funds to support the State’s year-long work toward a Five-Year Action Plan, required to unlock hundreds of millions of dollars in future program funding for broadband expansion.

“Standardizing our approach to data collection, engagement, and community survey work to align with the federal Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment program will be a key step to ensuring that New Mexico makes the most of this historic opportunity for cross-sector collaboration and government alignment – state, federal and local,” said Office of Broadband Access and Expansion Director Kelly Schlegel. “We look forward to launching a collaborative state-led effort that will empower our local governments, tribes, schools, and community organizations to eliminate the digital divide together – forever.”

This latest milestone was reached on August 15, 2022, when OBAE outlined its general approach for increasing equitable access to broadband service statewide. The proposed “Connect New Mexico Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment Project” includes the creation of a comprehensive Five-Year Action Plan that will identify New Mexico’s broadband access, affordability, equity, and adoption needs and serve as a benchmark for adopting strategies, goals, and initial measures for connecting all residents of New Mexico with reliable broadband service.

To ensure all New Mexicans have access to reliable, affordable, and high-speed internet, the Connect New Mexico BEAD Project intends to utilize initial planning funds to execute the following seven eligible activities:

• Research and Data Collection, including broadband access mapping and analysis, digital equity metric identification, collection, and analysis, and evaluation of best practices within and opportunities for aligning digital equity and broadband infrastructure investment and activity.
• Outreach and Engagement, including establishment of a bi-weekly newsletter, support of the Connect New Mexico Council and its working groups, and new collaboration with statewide associations representing New Mexico municipalities and counties, respectively.
• Technical Assistance, including establishment of the statewide Digital Navigator Network and Broadband Help Desk programs, as well as creation of community planning and capacity building programs for infrastructure-specific and comprehensive local engagement.
• Increased Capacity, including additional staff and consultant support to assist the New Mexico Office of Broadband Access and Expansion.
• Asset Mapping, including identification of broadband and digital equity strengths and resources within each of the state’s 32 counties.
• Comprehensive Surveys, including – but is not limited to – incorporating into all community engagement activity the use a survey instrument designed to collect, at the address level, broadband speed test data, broadband service satisfaction, and any relevant requests of broadband service providers for improved service.
• Local Coordination, including intentional and integrated engagement with local governments and related stakeholders throughout compilation of the Five-Year Action Plan, Initial and Final proposals, and Digital Equity Plan.

The BEAD program will distribute available funding on a formula basis to all 56 states and territories to expand high-speed internet access by funding planning, infrastructure deployment and adoption programs throughout the country. States have an opportunity to impact the formula inputs and thus eventual funding through integrated data collection, engagement, and survey work – which makes the initial planning funds and activity that follows critically important to realizing the Connect New Mexico vision.

Meeting this summer’s milestones will be fundamental to achieving the overall New Mexico state plan of collaboration, innovative approaches, comprehensive middle mile development, support for alternative technologies for hard-to-reach regions, and 100 percent connectivity.