The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) is an agency of the United States Department of Commerce responsible for overseeing the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) Program, which provides $42.45 billion to expand high-speed internet access across the country. The Program requires Indiana to submit a Five-Year Plan detailing the current state of broadband in Indiana, the State’s vision of broadband, and how the State plans to execute this vision.
The team writing the Five-Year Plan is conducting 18 in-person visioning sessions across the State. Indiana is diverse in many ways, and every community has distinct needs. The purpose of these sessions is to adequately understand and address the barriers to broadband deployment and unique community challenges.
The visioning sessions are being hosted by the Indiana Broadband Office (IBO). The IBO, led by Deputy Director Earnie Holtrey and State Infrastructure & Broadband Administrator Steve Cox, assists Hoosiers in need of affordable and reliable broadband connectivity. The IBO has done extensive work to provide broadband to Hoosiers wherever they need it – at home, work, and school – and strives to continue their work until every last Hoosier is connected. The IBO is currently engaged with Guidehouse, a private consulting firm, to complete this Five-Year Plan.