(The Center Square) – Nevada’s broadband plan to bring more reliable internet to an estimated 28,000 Nevadans in rural areas has been approved by the federal government.
As part of the approval, the state will get $170 million in federal funding.
The breakthrough comes after a late Trump administration reversal and change of priorities toward “technological neutrality” in the national Broadband, Equity, Access and Deployment program after the Biden administration approved Nevada’s plan.
“This historic funding will be transformative for communities statewide,” said Britta Appel, director of the Governor’s Office of Science, Innovation and Technology.
“With NTIA approval of Nevada’s BEAD proposal, we are now one step closer to deployment and realizing our goals,” Appel added.
But Nevada’s BEAD goals, while still focused on universal high-speed broadband internet access, have changed approaches in the past year. This comes after the Trump administration rescinded approval of the state’s fiber optic-based internet expansion plan in a June 2025 move, along with two other states. According to the Trump administration, Nevada’s original $416 million plan was a bad deal.
“Today we proudly announce a new direction for the BEAD program that will deliver high-speed internet access efficiently on a technology-neutral basis, and at the right price,” said U.S. Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick in a June press release. Lutnick added later, “The American people will get the benefit of the bargain, with connectivity delivered around the country at a fraction of the cost of the original program.”
Brent Legg, executive vice president of government affairs for longtime broadband advocate Connected Nation, said his organization disagreed with Lutnick’s technology neutrality emphasis.
“It’s hard to put all technology types on a level playing field when they’re very different in their capabilities, and they’re very different in terms of their upgradeability in the future,” Legg told The Center Square.
Legg added that the shift in focus to satellites meant the minimum requirement for broadband would still be met, “at a very low cost.” But he said internet speed, latency and jitter would likely grow in importance in the future. The expansion of AI, for example, could test current satellite capabilities and require upgrades in the not-so-distant future.
“By and large, fiber is more upgradeable than other forms of service delivery,” said Legg. “Obviously it’s very expensive to put a new satellite into space to upgrade capacity.”
The state’s original plan, approved under the Biden administration, would have covered roughly 50,000 rural homes, businesses and other locations, while the new version covers an estimated 28,000 in rural areas.
Nevada has some of the most sparsely populated rural areas in the country. More than 98% of residents in three Nevada counties (Lander, Esmeralda and White Plane) have access to reliable broadband internet speeds, as per 2021 University of Nevada, Las Vegas data.
The previous version of Nevada’s BEAD plan prioritized fiber optic internet to Nevada’s rural areas, widely considered the gold standard for internet connectivity. Much like gold, fiber optic is expensive.
Technological neutrality has instead put a focus on cheaper and lower quality internet. While Nevada’s first program was around 80% fiber optic extensions, the latest is 64%, with the difference largely made up by satellite providers at 29%.
“It’s either spend money now, or deploy the minimum viable product now – and then potentially have to spend more later,” said Legg. In doing so, the federal government has saved – at least for now – over $20 billion on the $42.5 billion BEAD program. In Nevada, only $170 million have been approved of an initial $416 million. Legg said that figure is likely to go down as the National Telecommunications and Information Administration scrutinizes individual projects for potential savings.
Amazon’s low Earth orbit satellite internet provider Kuiper and SpaceX’s Starlink are two companies that gained from the satellite expansion under technological neutrality. They net $3.3 million and $2.4 million in Nevada, respectively. The largest Nevada contract was given to SkyFiber, a Reno-based internet company that provides fiber optics, at $57.5 million.
But now Congress is trying to free up the more than half of BEAD funds that will go unspent. The SUCCESS for BEAD Act, or HR 6920, has proposed a variety of other ways states could spend these funds.
Congress’ proposals include anything related to broadband expansion – from roadways to workforce development programs. “ Basically other forms of internet infrastructure that’s not last mile, that’s not to individual homes and businesses, but other elements of the telecom ecosystem that need to be enhanced,” said Legg.
Despite the $170 million allocated for internet expansion, only 6% of Nevada’s residents live in rural areas. But Legg argued that as AI and the internet become more crucial to the economy and daily life, having broadband should be treated as a right.
“You definitely want people who live in rural areas to have the same access to health care, the same access to emergency communications, the same access to education,” said Legg, “because people who live in rural areas deserve that kind of experience too.”
