Delaware Broadband Strategy
Goal
All Delaware Homes & Businesses Connected to High-Speed Broadband
By the end of 2024, the Delaware Broadband Office will connect nearly 7,000 addresses to high-speed broadband using funds from the American Rescue Plan Act. In conjunction, we will leverage other federal funding to reach our goal of connecting every Delaware home and business over the next few years.
Delawareans can see where our funding is being deployed to connect homes across the state to high-speed internet.
High-Speed Internet Deployment Programs
American Rescue Plan Act
(ARPA)
$33M
The flexibility of these federal relief funds allows Delaware to begin broadband expansion work in summer 2022 that can later be continued by BEAD and other sources. (ARPA funds are also being used for housing, health, mental health, community organization and pandemic recovery purposes.)
Bipartisan Infrastructure Law: Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD)
$107M
BEAD is funding from the federal infrastructure law that is dedicated for broadband expansion. The BEAD planning process and other requirements will put the work in the 2024-2028 timeframe. This funding can be used to connect unserved homes, to upgrade connections to homes with a lower-speed connection.
Digital Equity
$12M
Digital Equity funding from the infrastructure law is for activities that promote digital inclusion and advance equity for all. After a planning process including community engagement, fund uses in traditionally underserved areas include connecting community centers, cyber security training, access to devices and more.
FCC: Rural Digital Opportunity Fund (RDOF)
$13M
Under RDOF, private companies bid in 2020 for federal funding to connect homes to broadband in designated geographic rural areas. RDOF funds were awarded directly to the provider and cannot be combined with BEAD for RDOF awarded areas. Talkie, Inc. is the company chosen by the Federal Communication Commission (FCC) to deliver broadband to certain areas in Delaware and has until 2028 to make the connections. NOTE: This program is administered directly by the FCC, and not by the Delaware Broadband Office.
