When the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program was signed into law promising to deliver “Internet for All,” we believed it wouldn’t be enough to connect each and every community.

As broadband offices across the country rose to the challenge, we were ready to be proved wrong. But in June, the federal government changed the rules — giving states 90 days to cut costs and redo their plans. What was already an ambitious target became near impossible.

With most states now announcing awards, the picture of BEAD 2.0 is becoming clear. Just $17.2B of the original $42B has been tentatively awarded. This figure may shrink further as the NTIA pushes for more cuts — cuts that come with real trade-offs.

Yes, BEAD will likely remain one of the biggest broadband investments in US history. But alone, it will not close the digital divide. We should see BEAD as the new floor to work from, not the finish line. Here’s why:

1. Places that need broadband investment, aren’t getting it

For a host of reasons, many thousands of homes in need have slipped through the cracks. For some, it’s because flawed FCC broadband maps wrongly marked them as served. The maps used to direct funding are thought to have undercounted the need by as much as 30% in some areas. Other communities weren’t BEAD-eligible because they were covered by other federal awards to projects that defaulted. Adding to that, hundreds of thousands of homes and businesses were removed from BEAD by an update ruling out eligibility if covered by unlicensed fixed wireless. All of these places will need long-term investment in the years to come.

2. Satellite is not a real replacement for fiber

One of 2025’s biggest BEAD stories was the shift away from fiber. The winners? Low-earth orbit (LEO) satellite providers. Between them, Starlink and Amazon’s Project Kuiper have been awarded funds to serve over 636,000 locations — more than 20% of the BEAD footprint. Industry experts predict this number will climb as the NTIA enforces tight cost-per-location thresholds. LEO service is more expensive and less reliable than wireline service. Former NTIA leader Sarah Morris has compared it to using a generator for electricity — better than nothing, but not comparable to a grid connection. You can’t run hospitals, factories, or retail parks with just satellite internet. Communities funded for LEO are not getting the digital foundations for business development and industrial investment. This disservice to rural America simply kicks the costs down the road.

3. “Good enough” today is obsolete tomorrow

Broadband is a moving target. Past federal programs set speed targets that were outdated before networks were built. BEAD’s 100/20 Mbps standard risks the same fate. With digitalization and AI accelerating demand for data and speeds, only scalable fiber can deliver the multi-gigabit speeds communities will need. In contrast, Starlink’s LEO service is barely fast enough for today’s needs, delivering 100/20 broadband speeds to only around 18% of its current US customers.

4. BEAD doesn’t address affordability

One in three Americans without broadband say cost is the reason they’re not online. Yet BEAD does not meaningfully address pricing, affordability, or competition — some of the biggest barriers to adoption. Networks people can’t afford don’t close the divide. To break the affordability barrier, sustainable solutions are needed to drive down the costs of service. 

5. Digital adoption funding has been decimated

Connectivity isn’t just about cables. Families need affordable service, devices, and digital skills. But the Affordable Connectivity Program has expired, Digital Equity Act funding has been cancelled, and BEAD’s non-deployment funds are increasingly in doubt. BEAD was designed to work with these complementary programs. Without funding for adoption initiatives, many new networks will sit underused and less economically viable.

6. Maintenance matters

BEAD is a one-time capital investment. But networks require ongoing maintenance, upgrades, and expansion. In the most rural and remote areas especially, sustained affordable capital will be needed to keep networks running and improving.

7. Some projects will default

The Rural Digital Opportunity Fund saw over a third of projects default, leaving 2 million homes stranded. While BEAD was better designed than RDOF — putting states in the driving seat to award funds — rushed rule changes and pressure to cut grant sizes further will strain many projects. Add to that increases in material costs and tight labor demand as projects ramp up all at once, some experts are already calling BEAD “RDOF 2.0”. Where projects default, communities will need a new path forward.

8. Private equity isn’t incentivized to close the gaps

Private equity investors have been piling into subsidized broadband builds with short investment horizons and plans to sell within five to ten years. With an investment model demanding high returns, this will come with a wave of consolidation, higher prices, and poorer service in the long run.

At the same time, with reduced BEAD investment, many of the hardest-to-reach areas will no longer be attractive to these private investors. That means communities on the fringe being left out altogether unless they can access alternative forms of patient, affordable capital to build their own solutions.

BEAD sets a new baseline — but it’s only the beginning.

Everyone with a stake in universal connectivity — which is all of us — needs to face the reality that BEAD alone will not get the job done. What it does give us is a new foundation to build on to make sure every home, business, school, and library has the connectivity needed to thrive in the digital economy.

At Connect Humanity, we’re raising and deploying affordable capital to help fund community-rooted broadband networks in rural and low-income areas left behind by traditional markets. We’re developing new financing partnerships to support digital skills and adoption programs — because infrastructure only changes lives when people can afford and use it. By creating financing solutions to these twin challenges of connectivity and adoption, we aim to catalyze and sustain a new market for broadband that can close the digital divide — and keep it closed.

Internet for all grows the economy and provides opportunities for everyone. BEAD has laid the foundation. Now we must work together to cross the finish line.