BEAD Funding Delays
How Slow Allocation is Impacting Broadband Expansion and IPv4 Demand
Across the United States, many households—especially those in rural and underserved areas—cannot access reliable high-speed internet. As the world becomes increasingly digital, with many transactions occurring over the internet, lacking access to a basic broadband connection puts these households at a disadvantage.
That’s precisely why the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program was created at the end of 2021, and tens of billions of dollars were set aside to expand broadband access to unreached regions. However, the excitement around the BEAD program is dampened by growing concerns surrounding the slow allocation of BEAD funds, which could potentially delay broadband expansion efforts.
Understanding the BEAD Program
Towards the end of 2021, the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) was enacted, driving the development of initiatives like BEAD. $42.45 billion of federal grant funds were allocated to BEAD to support broadband expansion to unreached regions in the United States.
In mid-2023, President Biden announced that individual states were allocated funds to implement their broadband infrastructure under the BEAD program. Each state was required to submit its proposal to the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), which administers the BEAD program and oversees the distribution of allocated funds.
For states to be eligible for BEAD funding, they needed to meet two sets of requirements.
First, they had to demonstrate their compliance with cybersecurity risk management requirements, including:
- NIST Framework for Improving Critical Cybersecurity
- The standards and controls listed in the U.S. Executive Order 14028
States also needed to demonstrate they could manage supply chain risks via compliance with:
- NIST publication NISTR 8276, Key Practices in Supply Chain Risk Management (SCRM) Observations from Industry and related NIST SCRM guidelines
- NIST 800-161, Cybersecurity Supply Chain Risk Management Practices for Systems and Organizations
Each state applying for BEAD funding was also required to prove the implementation of supply chain risk management controls.
The Slow Allocation of BEAD Funding
Despite the excitement around the BEAD announcements and state proposal submissions, the approval process for state proposals has been delayed. In addition to these processing delays, complex compliance regulations have increased bureaucratic roadblocks, forcing states to experience further delays in receiving their allocated funds. It’s likely that differences in state-by-state approvals will result in varied timelines for broadband expansion. Although states like Louisiana have already progressed through BEAD approval, they are still experiencing delays with approving broadband mapping and selecting suitable carriers to handle infrastructure deployment.
From a logistical standpoint, it’s challenging to map out areas eligible for broadband. Typically, estimations about broadband access in unreached or underreached regions are based on data provided by broadband companies, which isn’t always accurate. For instance, census changes may not be accounted for as the demographics in these regions evolve. Complexities like terrain or thick vegetation may also impact the actual number of households listed with broadband access.
Recent Federal Funding Freeze and Its Implications
As of January 2025, a White House memo was released ordering a widespread funding freeze on federal grants and loans. Although additional guidance was issued stating that “any program that provides direct benefits to Americans is explicitly excluded from the pause,” the memo’s wording was vague, making it hard to determine which funding is at risk of being halted.
The funding freeze exacerbates concerns about further delays in broadband infrastructure deployment, creating uncertainty for Internet Service Providers (ISPs), local governments, and investors. Unforeseen legal and regulatory hurdles may also increase the delays in issuing funds to states.
However, some states, such as Louisiana, Nevada, and Delaware, have already received upfront portions of their allocated BEAD funds. With most states at some stage within the BEAD funding approval process, it remains unclear how the entire process will play out.
The Impact of BEAD Delays on Broadband Expansion
Ultimately, delayed funding affects broadband deployment in unserved and underserved communities. That’s because a program like BEAD funds partnerships between states, communities, and stakeholder organizations to develop the appropriate infrastructure to extend high-speed internet to these communities.
For ISPs and network providers who depend on BEAD funding to run their infrastructure projects, funding cuts limit any progress these organizations can make toward expanding broadband access to unserved or underserved regions.
For instance, these companies cannot procure the equipment needed to complete a multi-year project because these delays contribute to rising materials, labor, and permitting costs. When dealing with uncertain funding, it’s challenging for any organization to draft budgets with key items like worker salaries, especially for long-term projects like broadband deployment and maintenance of the deployed infrastructure.
Unfortunately, these delays contribute to the risk of rural and low-income communities being left behind in the digital economy. As transactions become increasingly digital, economic and technological disparities might arise between populations with immediate broadband access and those without such access.
The Connection Between BEAD Delays and IPv4 Demand
As broadband networks expand, the need for IPv4 addresses also increases. These addresses are already scarce globally, creating competition for the limited pools available. When large broadband expansion projects, such as those funded by BEAD, are delayed, the demand and pricing for IPv4 addresses fluctuate.
Technologies like carrier-grade network address translation (NAT) (CGNAT) can help manage IPv4 scarcity during broadband expansion by enabling organizations to temporarily share public IPv4 addresses, conserving the limited pools of these addresses. When ISPs use CGNAT, they can assign the same public IPv4 address to several customers, allowing multiple private IP addresses to connect to a single public one.
Whereas traditional NAT technology is used at a smaller scale for public IP address sharing in home or office networks, ISPs typically use CGNAT for larger-scale applications that involve hundreds of thousands to millions of customers. CGNAT applications are handy for ISPs and other network providers looking to shift toward IPv6 as a long-term option, especially for new broadband deployments.
Policy and Industry Responses to BEAD Delays
While some states have already received some of their allocated BEAD funding, the next steps for the remaining states remain uncertain. Many of these states were on track to receive funds in 2025 and 2026. However, in anticipation of additional delays, states may need to adjust aspects of their programs if funding is reduced.
Another strategy for states to consider is sourcing alternative technologies that are less expensive for broadband deployment than fiber, such as low earth orbit satellite broadband service. States like Louisiana have already allocated some of their BEAD funds to procuring services from these providers.
In light of these changes, industry leaders are highlighting the need for streamlined processes to accelerate fund distribution and a push for greater transparency and accountability in BEAD implementation. That’s crucial because many communities across the U.S. risk a lack of internet access without federal funding to support broadband deployment.
It’s also important for lawmakers and other government stakeholders to implement policy changes that improve efficiency in future broadband initiatives. Based on the history of the BEAD program and the recent funding freeze, it’s important to find ways to support states in meeting their broadband goals amidst continuous uncertainty.
The Future of Broadband Expansion vs. IPv4 Demand
Although many states anticipated BEAD funding would help support broadband expansion to meet the needs of unserved or underserved regions, delays in issuing these funds have impacted the progress of those expansion efforts. However, IPv4 demand continues to soar globally, with high competition for the already limited pools of IPv4 addresses available.
It’s critical to address bureaucratic and regulatory hurdles that contribute to these funding delays because of the risk of communities being left behind in an increasingly digital world. Unfortunately, there’s still uncertainty about the future of BEAD funding since federal funding for many programs that depend on government aid was frozen in early 2025.
Legislators and industry stakeholders can support the goal of providing universal broadband access across the U.S. by pushing for timely fund allocation to programs like BEAD. Beyond advocating for favorable policies, these stakeholders can identify relevant solutions to enable ISPs and other providers to deploy broadband quickly to rural areas where communities need reliable internet access.
As IPv4 marketplace experts, the team at IPv4.Global understands the importance of expanding internet access to areas where it’s most needed. IPv4 scarcity still affects many organizations and communities worldwide, requiring them to rely on various strategies to acquire the IP addresses they need to stay connected to the internet.