05. Midco BEAD Email1
Kyle Morell
From:Elly Burroughs <Elly.Burroughs@midco.com>
Sent:Monday, June 16, 2025 1:09 PM
To:Kyle Morell
Subject:Re: [EXTERNAL] - Scandia Internet Action Committee
Hi Kyle-
Apologies for my delay on this... I was out of the office unexpectedly for most of last week.
Not a ton of updates on the construction side of things. Construction continues to move forward and
stay on track for May Township. Internally the teams are working on the design portion of the Scandia
Border to Border grant and we look forward to continuing to progress on that project.
There have been some significant updates in regard to BEAD. Below is a link to the document as well as a
few highlights pulled out. We are awaiting updated guidance from the Office of Broadband but we are
anticipating that they may ask for first round applications to be resubmitted. I will keep you posted when
we know more about MN specifically!
BEAD Restructuring Policy Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO): https://www.ntia.gov/press-release/2025/trump-
administration-announces-benefit-bargain-bead-program-removes-regulatory-burdens-lowers-costs
Key Highlights:
Requires states (“eligible entities”) to rescind any previous preliminary awards and rebid areas under a “Benefit
of the Bargain” round. Previous prequalification submissions will suffice for this new round, although providers
that did not prequalify previously must be allowed to reconsider
States have 90 days to complete these rounds and submit a final proposal to NTIA and NTIA commits to review
these proposals within 90 days
o NOTE: All indications are that NTIA expects to give states waivers to this 90-day deadline if they request
one
Elimination of Regulatory Burdens:
Labor/Workforce: The new NOFO eliminates the labor practices, workforce development, and DEI initiative
requirements from BEAD. Applicants will now only need to certify compliance with state and federal labor and
employment laws (a standard practice for previous grants)
Climate Resiliency: All climate resiliency and climate assessment requirements are eliminated. Applicants will
now have basic risk management plans required
Open Access: Mandates for open access and wholesale availability are removed.
Local Coordination: The strenuous requirements for engagement with local stakeholders and detailing the
outcomes of those engagements are eliminated
Non-Traditional Provider Preference: The previous preference points given to “non-traditional” (municipal,
government-owned, or cooperative) providers are now eliminated
Middle Class Affordability Plan: Eliminates the requirement for states to develop middle-class affordability
plans
Low-Cost Service Option Changes:
2
The original NOFO was proscriptive in what a low-cost service offering had to look like, leading to accusations of
rate regulation.
Under the new NOFO, applicants will be able to define their own low-cost service offering and the “eligible
subscriber” will match the FCC’s Lifeline program
o
Technology Neutrality:
The new NOFO lifts the heavy preference for fiber-only projects and changes the definition of “Priority
Broadband Project” from fiber-only to any technology that can meet performance requirements (100/20 Mbps
speeds, latency ≤100ms) and can scale to future needs.
There is no longer an extremely high cost per location threshold and states will be required to reject a project if
the costs are excessive (but what constitutes “excessive” is undefined)
Eligible technologies are expanded to include HFC, LEO, and FW, subject to the above performance
requirements, and allowed to compete on the same playing field as fiber
New BEAD Eligible Locations:
A new challenge process is not required; however, states must review locations and remove locations that have
been removed from the FCC Fabric, already have an enforceable commitment, or are now served (essentially
reflecting any recent changes to the maps or serviceability of a location)
Locations that have defaulted should now be added back to the eligible location lists
Unlicensed fixed wireless locations that meet the performance standards (100/20 Mbps speeds, latency
≤100ms) should no longer be considered eligible.
Elly Burroughs
Government Relations Manager
Office: 7638439427
Elly.Burroughs@midco.com
Midco.com
Let's go beyond.
From: Kyle Morell <k.morell@ci.scandia.mn.us>
Sent: Monday, June 9, 2025 9:52 AM
To: Elly Burroughs <Elly.Burroughs@midco.com>
Subject: [EXTERNAL] - Scandia Internet Action Committee
CAUTION: This email originated from outside of MIDCO.
Do not click links or open attachments unless you recognize the sender and know the content
is safe.
Elly,
The Scandia Internet Action Committee is meeting on Monday, June 16. Do you have any updates I can share with the
Committee?
Kyle H. Morell
City Administrator
City of Scandia
14727 209th Street North
Scandia, MN 55073
3
Phone: 651.433.2274 Fax: 651-433-5112
Cell: 651.245.2654
Web: www.cityofscandia.com
Email: k.morell@ci.scandia.mn.us