CHARLESTON, W.Va. (WVDN) — The West Virginia Department of Economic Development, Office of Broadband (WVDED), has secured a federal grant to help bridge the digital divide in West Virginia. Through the Digital Equity Capacity Grant Program, the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) has awarded over $9 million to West Virginia for expanding high-speed internet affordability, digital skills training and affordable internet-enabled devices.
WVDED submitted its application to NTIA for the $1.44 billion federal grant program in May 2024. West Virginia’s allocation of over $9 million was determined based on the state’s total population, number of residents falling into one of eight covered population categories, and lack of broadband access relative to the rest of the country. WVDED will apply for two additional rounds of funding under the DE Capacity Grant Program in 2025 and 2026. The amounts of the next two rounds of funding are currently unknown but estimated to be over $3 million each.
The Digital Equity Capacity Grant is one of three grant programs within the Digital Equity Act (DEA). Complementary to the DEA is the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) Program, through which West Virginia has received $1.2 billion for broadband infrastructure expansion. WVDED previously used DEA funds to complete a State Digital Equity Plan, which was formally approved by NTIA on February 29, 2024.
WVDED will primarily use DE Capacity Grant funds for digital inclusion projects across the state through three subgrant programs: a digital skills and digital navigators program, an affordable device program, and a digital equity planning program for local governments to draft their own digital equity plans. WVDED plans to open the applications for these grant programs in Spring 2025.
In the wake of the Affordable Connectivity Program sunsetting, WVDED will also use grant funds to promote awareness of new and existing low-cost internet plans and other relevant consumer information, including the new FCC Broadband Consumer Labels. Broadband infrastructure expansion under the BEAD Program will also promote affordability by mandating that applicants provide a Low-Cost Service Plan. Internet service providers will also be incentivized to offer a Middle-Class Affordability Plan. The application period for West Virginia’s BEAD program recently closed on October 24, 2024.
Additional research and data collection on affordability, among other digital equity topics, will also be a core activity. WVDED will use the collected data for project evaluation and annual Digital Equity Plan updates.
For more information, please visit broadband.wv.gov and internetforallwv.wv.gov.
