Analysis: What BEAD frontrunner states tell us about the federal award approval process

"NTIA made relatively small changes to the award recommendations that the two states submitted in the Benefit of the Bargain round. Almost all 50 states have now received NTIA approval on their final BEAD proposals."

"An NTIA spokesperson told Telecompetitor that NIST is not making any changes to awardee lists that have been approved by NTIA. In other words, once NTIA has approved a state's award recommendations, the federal approval process for those awards is complete."

"Getting hold of award lists, as approved by NTIA, is no small feat, however. Some states declined to share those lists with Telecompetitor until the states have signed contracts with all awardees."

The NTIA has approved final proposals for almost all 50 states in the BEAD program, with minimal changes to award recommendations. Louisiana and Maine provided their NTIA-approved awards lists earlier, showing slight adjustments. NIST is not altering awardee lists post-NTIA approval, indicating the federal approval process is complete once NTIA approves a state's recommendations. However, obtaining these award lists has proven challenging, as some states are withholding them until contracts with awardees are finalized.

Read at Telecompetitor