Unpacking Approved BEAD Volume 2s: Indiana

NTIA recently approved Indiana’s BEAD Initial Proposal Volume 2 (V2). The ACLP has compared the final version with the version that the state released for public comment last fall (it did not publicly release any subsequent versions). A redlined version is available here. The following identifies changes made to the state’s V2 ahead of NTIA’s approval:

Subgrantee Selection Process

Project Areas

The state has shifted from allowing applicants to proposed PAs based on Census Block Groups to using Census Blocks.

Scoring – Minimal Bead Outlay

The state lowered the number of points available in this category (from 50 to 45) and adjusted how it will award them. In particular, instead of awarding max points to the most cost-efficient proposal (based on a calculation of BEAD funding per BSL), the state will award up to 40pts based on cost efficiency (with a new method for calculating efficiency, using only eligible un/underserved BSLs rather than all BSL in a PA). The remaining 5pts will be awarded on a sliding scale relative to the amount of provider match, with max points going to proposals with a 60%+ match. Applicants proposing the minimum 25% match will receive only 1pt.

Scoring – Affordability

The state has retained its $100/month threshold for awarding points, but it clarified that it will allow subgrantees to adjust its pricing to account for “inflation, costs, and the general economy.”

Scoring – Fair Labor Practices

The state has increased the number of points in this category from 5 to 15. Points will be awarded in three sub-categories (5pts each): past compliance with labor standards (new entrants can make forward-looking commitments); evidence or plans to use a qualified workforce; and details regarding past OSHA violations (max pts for evidence of no violations in past 3 years).

Scoring – Secondary Criteria

The state made several changes to these criteria, notably:

• Speed to Deployment – reduction in points (from 5 to 3), with max points going to projects completed in 2 years or less.
• Service Levels in PAs – the state removed two categories (Percent Match, incorporated into the Minimal BEAD Outlay, and Percent Unserved Areas) and included a new category, Service Levels in PAs. There are 12pts available in this new category, with more points being awarded to proposals for PAs that include higher percentages of unserved BSLs and lower percentages of served BSLs.

Low-Cost Option

The state retained its approach to setting the low-cost option price. In particular, the state will set a cost threshold at 2% or less of the maximum eligible annual income for the ACP for a household of one divided by twelve. In its final V2, the state notes that, post-ACP, it will “require all subgrantees to provide the same low-cost plan detailed above to all households that otherwise would have been eligible for the ACP.”