The Trump administration's recent change to the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program is aimed at benefiting Elon Musk's Starlink. The new policy eliminates previous preferences for fiber-optic infrastructure in favor of a more generic and cost-effective approach to internet provision. This move has been framed as a necessary shift away from what the Secretary of Commerce described as the Biden administration's unnecessary requirements. This policy change raises concerns about the increased profitability for Musk amidst ongoing scrutiny over past subsidy rejections for Starlink's services.
Another day, another move from the Trump administration that will benefit Elon Musk - shocking. The US Department of Commerce has announced an overhaul of 2021's Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program and its $42.5 billion that will funnel work to Musk's Starlink.
The Department is ripping out the Biden Administration's pointless requirements. It is revamping the BEAD program to take a tech-neutral approach that is rigorously driven by outcomes, so states can provide internet access for the lowest cost.
Musk, the richest person in the world, leader of a department to reduce government waste (read: cut many critical jobs and programs) and an unelected right hand to what can best be described as an authoritarian government, is about to make even more money.
Under the Biden administration in 2023, Starlink received a rejection from the Federal Communications Commission for nearly $900 million in subsidies. The FCC stated that Starlink's application, which was part of the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund program, failed to meet the program's requirements.
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