NTIA opens applications for $1 billion tribal broadband fund

Applications are now open for nearly $1 billion in funding to expand access to high-speed internet on tribal lands, the National Telecommunications and Information Administration announced Thursday.

The $980 million in funding represents the last of the nearly $3 billion allocated by the Biden Administration to the Tribal Broadband Connectivity Program as part of the administration’s Internet for All initiative. The NTIA has awarded $1.78 billion to 191 tribal entities since the program launched in 2021.

Entities eligible to apply for funding from the TBCP include tribal governments, tribal organizations, tribal colleges and universities, the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands and the Alaska Native Corporation, according to a Notice of Funding Opportunity published by the NTIA on Thursday.

The application deadline for the latest round of funding is January 23, 2024.

The NTIA anticipates awarding between $1 million and $50 million to high-speed internet deployment projects and $100,000 to $2.5 million to high-speed internet adoption projects.

“The digital divide has disproportionately impacted people in Tribal communities for years,” Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Communications and Information Alan Davidson said in a press release. “But thanks to our Tribal Broadband Connectivity Program, that’s finally starting to change. This latest round of funding will provide Indian Country with affordable, reliable, high-speed Internet service.”