Some State BEAD Plans Seen Leaving MDUs Still in Digital Divide

The broadband equity, access and deployment program risks leaving multi-dwelling units across the U.S. unserved or underserved, broadband access advocates tell us. States are taking a variety of approaches to address MDU connectivity in their BEAD plans submitted to NTIA. These range from requiring connectivity for individual units to, in some cases, not addressing MDUs at all, our reading of BEAD volume 2 plans found.

While BEAD's focuses mainly on rural and remote locations, MDUs -- largely but not always found in suburban or urban locations -- need addressing too, said Angela Siefer, National Digital Inclusion Alliance executive director. “It's a really difficult issue because it’s scattered" geographically, she said. There are unserved or underserved MDUs, as well as notable limits on infrastructure entering buildings remain despite the FCC's 2022 MDU order that cracks down on exclusive access agreements with providers (see 2202150047), she said. If a state doesn't work to identify unserved and underserved MDUs, then many won't get addressed through BEAD, she said.

Connectivity advocates say every MDU should have connectivity to the individual unit, whether by fiber or some alternative, including building-wide Wi-Fi. EducationSuperHighway filed comments for almost every state's draft volumes 1 and 2 BEAD proposals, urging to-the-unit connectivity, Senior Program Director Sean Gerner told us. Absent that, residents could lack connectivity because either they can't authorize the broadband internet access service provider to bring fiber to the apartment or they face a sizable expense for such access, Gerner said. EducationSuperHighway's most-recent analysis of FCC broadband map data indicated that nearly 3,600 MDUs of 50 or more units were unserved or underserved. Several thousand more MDUs with fewer than 50 units were classified similarly. He said state challenge processes to map data will result in more MDUs being classified as unserved and underserved.

Gerner said Wisconsin's volume 2 BEAD draft contains particularly strong MDU language, requiring to-the-unit connectivity. In its November volume 2 draft, the state said MDU locations deemed eligible for funding "will be set as separate project units to allow for the additional deployment option of building-wide Wi-Fi in lieu of individual construction of broadband to each unit. MDUs will still be eligible for BEAD funding to deploy a wireline or fixed wireless connection to each unit, but prospective applicants may also apply to build a building-wide Wi-Fi deployment.”

In addition, Wisconsin plans to include MDU language in application requirements, its draft said. For projects that propose connecting an MDU, "an applicant will specify if the project will provide: (a) a wireline fiber connection to each unit; (b) connection with a non-fiber technology to each unit; or (c) a building-wide Wi-Fi installation available to all units,” it said. When sorting through applications, Wisconsin will label as nonpriority projects “deployments of building-wide Wi-Fi networks within eligible MDUs shown through the state challenge process to have two or more units lacking broadband service or” be in “a location in which the percentage of individuals with a household income” at or below 150% of the poverty line ... is higher than the national percentage of such individuals.”

Michigan also included to-the-unit connectivity in its draft volume 2. "Every unit of an MDU needs to have the proposed service available to it," and doing so might require partnering with a managed service provider, the state said in the plan. It didn't provide a copy of the volume 2 document it submitted to NTIA.

On the other hand, volume 2 submissions from some states, such as California and Mississippi, lack references to MDUs. Those two states didn't comment. Numerous others, including Alabama, Colorado, Connecticut and Indiana, declined to provide their finalized BEAD applications, telling us the plans would be made public after NTIA approval.

Delaware's plan indicates that once it has connectivity to all unserved, underserved and community anchor locations addressed, the state will use any remaining BEAD funds for things like upgrading internal wiring in MDUs that were not already declared unserved or underserved. Delaware's aim is ensuring the availability of reliable broadband access in low-income and affordable housing, it said in its volume 2 proposal. A state official told us there were no significant changes to the version submitted to NTIA last month.

Kansas' Office of Broadband Development will work with groups including public housing commissions, neighborhood associations and EducationSuperHighway "to promote middle-class and low-cost affordability options" for MDU tenants and owners. It said MDU communal areas should have free Wi-Fi access, according to its volume 2 initial draft submitted last month to NTIA.

New Jersey added a line about MDUs after receiving feedback from EducationSuperHighway, the state said in the initial plan it submitted to NTIA. It says, “The required deployment obligations for unserved and underserved multiple dwelling units (MDUs) include service to all units within the MDU.”

Washington state included multi-tenant buildings in a list of eligible uses of funding for deployment projects. As submitted to the NTIA, the plan states that funding may be used for: “Construction, improvement, and/or acquisition of facilities and telecommunications equipment required to provide qualifying broadband service, including infrastructure for backhaul, middle- and last-mile networks, and multi-tenant buildings."

In some cases, MDUs are not covered in BEAD plans because other money is tackling MDU connectivity needs, EducationSuperHighway's Gerner said, pointing to New York using Treasury capital project funds. New York’s broadband office held two focus groups with affordable housing property owners "to understand the unique needs of low-income residents and the challenges of deploying broadband in multi-dwelling unit environments,” said New York's November draft of volume 2 that it posted for comment. The draft also asks that "if an applicant proposes a project that will serve significant numbers of multi-dwelling-unit buildings or utilize a unique construction technique, applicants should highlight the experience of the entity or its management personnel in those areas."