WISPA Paper: NTIA’s Fiber Bias Could Raise BEAD Costs by Billions

By Leslie Stimson, Inside Towers Washington Bureau Chief

The Wireless Internet Service Providers Association (WISPA) renewed its call Thursday for NTIA to change its qualifications for what companies receive BEAD grant funds. In a new research paper commissioned by WISPA released Thursday, Dr. William Lehr, a telecommunications and internet industry economist and consultant, says NTIA's technological bias toward fiber could raise BEAD costs by tens of billions of dollars and drag out deployment. “Prioritizing fiber projects over other broadband technologies represents a significant departure from the sound regulatory principle of technological neutrality,” states Lehr. This bias “could increase costs by upwards of $30 to $60 billion depending on the distribution of fiber deployment costs for the unserved locations.” Continue Reading