Digital Opportunity Grant Program (FY25)

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Missouri’s Digital Opportunity Grant Program (FY25) will fund digitally inclusive projects across the state. The statewide component of the program will fund service areas encompassing 20 or more counties and will be complemented by the local component, which will fund digitally inclusive projects in service areas encompassing fewer than 20 counties.

The following types of entities are eligible to receive funds from the program, providing the proposed project meets other requirements in the Guidelines:

a. Community anchor institutions;
b. County and municipal governments;
c. Local educational agencies;
d. Nonprofit organizations;
e. Organizations that represent:

i. Individuals with disabilities, including children with disabilities;
ii. Aging Individuals;
iii. Individuals with language barriers, including individuals who are English learners and/or have low levels of literacy;
iv. Veterans; and
v. Individuals who are incarcerated in the State (excluding Federal correctional facilities).

f. Civil rights organizations;
g. Entities that carry out workforce development programs;
h. State agencies responsible for administering or supervising adult education and literacy activities;
i. Public housing authorities in the State; and
j. A consortium of any of the entities listed in a through i.

Additional requirements:

a. If the Applicant is a type of entity required to register with the Missouri Secretary of State (SOS) to conduct business in Missouri, the Applicant must be registered and in good standing with the SOS.
b. Applicant has a Missouri Tax ID Number (EIN).
c. Applicant has a Federal Employer Identification Number (FEIN).
d. Applicant has a Unique Entity Identifier from SAM.gov

or is in the process of obtaining one. 
e. Applicant is registered with MissouriBUYS and/or MOVERS (for the State’s accounting system) or is in the process of registering (no payments can be made without being in the system) [3].
f. Applicant is not delinquent in taxes owed to the State of Missouri.
g. Applicant is enrolled in E-Verify and provides a copy of its signed Memorandum of Understanding with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, as required by § 285.530 RSMo. [4]
h. Applicant is not suspended or debarred from participating in Federal grant programs.

The following are ineligible to apply for the program:

a. Entities that are not listed as eligible in the DEA, as set forth in Section 3.1 of the Guidelines. See 47 U.S.C. § 1723(b)(1)(C); and
b. Applicants that are debarred, suspended, or otherwise ineligible to participate in a Federal award.

Applicants may submit their application via Submittable

during the open cycle.

DED intends to award all funds in one funding round but may hold additional funding rounds to ensure all available funds have been obligated prior to the conclusion of the SDECGP period of performance.

Round 1 of the BEAD Program to Open November 15

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DED’s Office of Broadband Development (OBD) has announced that the first application round for the Missouri Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment (BEAD) program is scheduled to open on November 15, 2024.

Round 1 applications will close at 5 p.m. on January 31, 2025. In response to feedback from potential BEAD applicants, OBD requested and received a variance from the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) to allow a longer window for Round 1 applications than proposed in Missouri’s approved Initial Proposal Volume II.

Round 1 BEAD pre-qualification applications are currently open and will close at 5 p.m. on January 16, 2025. Pre-qualification applications will be available for submission during each scoring round and sub-round until 15 days before the round or sub-round closes.

NTIA must approve OBD’s final list of BEAD-eligible locations before OBD can release a final Application Area Map and open Round 1 of the BEAD program. If approval is not received by November 15, the opening of the round will be delayed.

Notifications of further guidance about Round 1 of the BEAD application process and the publication of Missouri’s BEAD Application Area Map will be posted on OBD’s Connecting All Missourians webpage and sent via email to broadband stakeholders. LEARN MORE…

Digital Equity Competitive Grant Program: Notice of Funding Opportunity Released on July 24, 2024 

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This announcement was worth the wait!  Today, NTIA is proud to announce a nearly $1 billion Notice of Funding Opportunity for the Digital Equity Competitive Grant Program. This is the first funding opportunity from the $1.25 billion Digital Equity Competitive Grant Program, the third of the three Digital Equity Act programs.    Now, non-profits, local educational agencies, workforce development organizations, political subdivisions, agencies, state instrumentalities, Tribes, Alaska Native entities, Native Hawaiian organizations, and other community anchor institutions will be able to apply for Competitive Grant Program funds. Territories are also eligible for funds under this funding opportunity.  These competitive grants will resource initiatives that support populations most impacted by digital divides. Low-income households, older adults, justice-impacted people, people living with disabilities, rural communities, and racial and ethnic minority groups are among the populations served by this program. Additionally, competitive grant investments are an essential complement to broadband deployment strategies.    We need you. NTIA is calling on organizations, large and small, to scale efforts to expand digital opportunities. Your organization’s work to ensure telehealth access, promote skills training, optimize small business connectivity, and various other initiatives enables households nationwide to participate in the digital economy.   Interested applicants are encouraged to act now!  Review the Digital Equity Competitive Grant NOFO and Application Resources. The application deadline is September 23, 2024. Learn about how your state or territory plans to expand digital opportunities at internetforall.gov.  Subscribe to the BroadbandUSA Newsletter to receive NTIA e-mail updates.  Follow NTIA on social media or on our website at www.ntia.gov for information.  Check out the Digital Equity Technical Assistance Hub for application help.  Develop a timeline for completing your application.  Begin gathering partnership letters and authorizations, both written and signed. These letters provide credibility and expertise, and will further your project’s reach. 
  For more information on creating data-driven applications and other Internet for All initiatives, view the following resources:  NTIA Internet for All Digital Equity Page Digital Equity Act Population Viewer
  Register for the informational webinar on July 25, 2024, at 2:00 PM ET. For all other concerns, questions, and resources, please reach out to NTIA at digitalequity@ntia.gov
Let’s make “Internet for All” a reality.  

States are About to Dole Out Federal Funding. Not All Are Ready

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This story was originally published by The Conversation.

When the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act was signed in late 2021, it included $42.5 billion for broadband internet access as part of the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment Program. The program aims to ensure that broadband access is available throughout the country. This effort differs from previous federal broadband programs because it promised to allocate the funding to individual states and allow them to figure out the best way to distribute it. Read more…