![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/glen-howie-state-broadband-director-677-920x615.jpg\")
\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tGlen Howie, the state’s broadband director (Phillip Davis)\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
The Arkansas State Broadband Office has submitted its final proposal for the federal Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment (BEAD) Program after closing the seven-day public comment window Aug. 29.<\/p>\n
The state preliminarily selected 23 providers to cover 79,240 location across the state, which the final proposal draft<\/a> states achieves \u201ccoverage for every single location in the state.\u201d<\/p>\n Arkansas\u2019 total BEAD Grant Outlay stands at $308.3 million, $275 million lower than the prior version of the program, which was overhauled in June<\/a> by the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA). The amount also falls well under the $1.024 billion the state was awarded.<\/p>\n The average grant award per location is $3,889, one of the lowest in the country.<\/p>\n Twenty-two of the 23 selected recipients are below:<\/p>\n Company Name Hometown Internet LLC Aristotle Unified Communications Brightspeed Comcast Cable Communications, LLC Premier Holdings LLC Texhoma Fiber LLC CG Computer Works LLC Northern Arkansas Telephone Company Space Exploration Technologies Corp. Resound Networks Windstream Arkansas LLC WEHCO Video, Inc Connect2First Internet AT&T OzarksGo Amazon Kuiper Commercial Services LLC Decatur Telephone Company C & L Broadband Connect, LLC SWATCO Clay County Connect Inc. AREON Conway Corp Total The broadband office\u2019s website only lists 22 selected award recipients, though the office has repeatedly stated it selected 23 internet service providers to receive funds.<\/p>\n Of the selected recipients, 60,386 locations, or 76%, will be served by fiber, 5,480 by licensed fixed wireless, 544 by a mix of fiber and coaxial cable, and six will be served by coaxial cable only. 12,824 locations will be served by low-Earth-orbit (LEO) satellite technology, which can often be unreliable<\/a>.<\/p>\n If the plan is approved by NTIA, construction on the BEAD projects is expected to begin in the first half of 2026. NTIA is expected to approve plans by Dec. 4.<\/p>\n \u201cArkansas is on pace to deliver universal connectivity,\u201d a Monday email from the broadband office stated.<\/p>\n Kinetic Award<\/p>\n In addition to the $5 million Kinetic of Little Rock (listed as Windstream Arkansas LLC) received from Arkansas, the fiber internet provider also received funds from three other states, totaling $156.5 million.<\/p>\n Now a business unit of Uniti of Little Rock, Kinetic received $147.3 million for 49,346 locations from Georgia; $2 million for 280 locations in New Mexico; and $2.3 million for 943 locations in North Carolina.<\/p>\n
\nAmount
\nLocations
\nSub-Projects<\/p>\n
\n$88,455,722.48
\n16,053
\n10<\/p>\n
\n$68,997,759.13
\n9,418
\n18<\/p>\n
\n$26,279,777.32
\n13,785
\n13<\/p>\n
\n$21,894,431.39
\n3,239
\n3<\/p>\n
\n$20,834,686.52
\n1,779
\n5<\/p>\n
\n$20,015,906.86
\n1,687
\n1<\/p>\n
\n$14,678,523.95
\n9,782
\n15<\/p>\n
\n$12,762,544.57
\n1,436
\n4<\/p>\n
\n$8,506,344.88
\n11,178
\n65<\/p>\n
\n$5,241,420.51
\n5,480
\n34<\/p>\n
\n$5,009,457.26
\n1,393
\n10<\/p>\n
\n$3,592,290.76
\n832
\n7<\/p>\n
\n$2,905,597.50
\n436
\n2<\/p>\n
\n$2,195,790.80
\n213
\n5<\/p>\n
\n$2,125,562.50
\n322
\n1<\/p>\n
\n$1,718,244.10
\n1,646
\n25<\/p>\n
\n$1,342,472.75
\n275
\n1<\/p>\n
\n$965,963.76
\n85
\n1<\/p>\n
\n$436,705.90
\n58
\n3<\/p>\n
\n$368,885.76
\n140
\n3<\/p>\n
\n$0.00
\n1
\n1<\/p>\n
\n$0.00
\n2
\n2<\/p>\n
\n$308,328,088.69
\n79,240
\n229<\/p>\n