A Reduction in BEAD Awards for Satellite? A Look at the Latest Data
Reports of Reduction in Satellite BEAD Awards
Broadband Breakfast recently reported that, according to NTIA officials, “states are being asked to remove as many as half the locations they awarded to satellite ISPs under the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment program.”
Per the article:
NTIA told states the locations were no longer eligible for funding because the Federal Communications Commission’s latest broadband coverage map, published earlier this month, showed one of two things: the locations were not the kind of structure that needed broadband, like a shed or barn, or that the locations were already in fact served by a terrestrial ISP.
To attempt to investigate this, we analyzed the latest Serviceable Location Fabric (v9) and the latest BDC data release (2025-12-31, which uses Fabric v8) to see how many locations awarded BEAD funds for satellite service are either (1) no longer included in the Fabric as broadband-serviceable locations or (2) are already “served.” The following table breaks that down at the national level, showing how many satellite BEAD locations drop off from these updates.
| Filter | Locations removed | Locations remaining | Share Remaining | $ Remaining |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Satellite BEAD locations (total) | — | 900,939 | 100.0% | $1,025M |
| Dropped from Fabric v9 (no longer a BSL) | 50,578 | 850,361 | 94.4% | $970M |
| Already served: terrestrial 100/20 low-latency | 262,053 | 588,308 | 65.3% | $671M |
| Additionally served if unlicensed FW counted | 61,512 | 526,796 | 58.5% | $601M |
As shown above, based on the data available to us, about 35% of locations awarded BEAD funds for satellite service are likely no longer in need (42% if unlicensed fixed wireless is included), which aligns with the statements quoted above. In terms of funding, this eliminates roughly $354M in expenditures ($423M if unlicensed fixed wireless is included).
The NTIA officials’ statements may be based on 2026-06-30 BDC data, which was recently reported by ISPs and has not yet been released to the public. This newer data is likely to include additional served locations, likely further reducing the number of locations in need of satellite service.
Takeaways & Open Questions
This latest development highlights several important takeaways and open questions about BEAD and the state of broadband availability in the U.S.
First, this development underscores that the BEAD map and the digital divide BEAD was created to close remain moving targets. Prior ACLP analyses have shown that the number of unserved and underserved locations in the U.S. have dropped precipitously since BEAD launched in December 2022.
Second, these gains continue to be driven by relentless investment by ISPs, who continue to push their terrestrial networks to more parts of the country. These investments, some of which are leveraging other federal grant dollars (e.g., CPF), have shown little sign of abating, reflecting the competitive intensity of a marketplace being shaped by insatiable consumer demand for faster speeds and seamless connectivity.
Third, the continued refinement of the BEAD map with the latest data indicates that, notwithstanding the complaints of some, the FCC’s BDC process continues to improve with each iteration, yielding ever more accurate maps. With each iteration, we have clearer insights into where the remaining – and shrinking – coverage gaps exist, helping to ensure that available funding is used as efficiently and effectively as possible.
Fourth, this latest directive from NTIA comes at a time when BEAD projects in many states are still getting off the ground. Even though NTIA has approved almost every state Final Proposal, most BEAD projects remain in their infancy as subgrantees move to deployment mode. With BEAD dollars in hand, many ISPs must now navigate the thicket of overlapping, confusing, and costly permitting, ROW, pole attachment, and related processes. All told, BEAD’s runway continues to be very long, which means that there will likely be further refinements to the BEAD map down the line. In short, the longer it takes for BEAD projects to launch, the higher the chances that BEAD-eligible locations might be taken off the board.
Finally, when BEAD locations come off the map, the question then becomes, what happens to those funds? Do they go into the non-deployment bucket? NTIA has yet to provide guidance to states regarding what they can do with non-deployment funds, which total more than $20 billion. Adding to this bucket via removal of BEAD locations could put additional pressure on NTIA to finally release its non-deployment guidance.
We take every BEAD-funded location awarded a satellite technology (FCC technology codes 60 and 61) from our aggregated BEAD Final Proposal data, and apply two filters. First, we check each location against Fabric v9 by location ID; locations absent from v9 are no longer serviceable locations in the FCC’s map. Second, of the locations still in v9, we mark as “already served” any location that has a record in the 2025-12-31 BDC from a terrestrial reliable-broadband technology (copper/DSL, cable, fiber, or licensed fixed wireless) advertising at least 100 Mbps download and 20 Mbps upload with low latency to a residential market. The final table row additionally counts unlicensed fixed wireless. Counts are distinct locations nationwide. Funding for each location is a simple proportional share of total funding for the project it is included in.