Paul Breakman moderates discussion on BEAD’s future at the Rural Wireless Infrastructure Summit 2025
Session will discuss how changes to funding rules for federal broadband grants could impact efforts to bridge America’s rural digital divide
- Speakers: Paul Breakman, VP of Americas partners and business development at Adtran (moderator); Emily Hale, broadband grants manager at the Tennessee Broadband Office; Dave Ryan, COO at Strata Networks; Eric Cramer, CEO of RiverStreet; Carl Guardino, VP of government affairs at Tarana Wireless
- Topics: State of the states – BEAD
- When: Wednesday, June 25, 9 a.m. MDT
- Where: Rural Wireless Infrastructure Summit, Grand Summit Hotel, Park City, Utah, USA https://rinawireless.com/summit/
As Arielle Roth awaits Senate confirmation to lead the NTIA, the agency has already shaken up the broadband world with its June 6, 2025, Restructuring Policy Notice. The new guidance eliminates the long-standing fiber-first preference, rescinds all previously approved Final Proposals, and mandates a rapid 90-day “Benefit-of-the-Bargain” re-bid. Any network delivering at least 100Mbit/s download and 20Mbit/s upload speeds with a maximum latency of 100 milliseconds, whether fixed wireless, LEO satellite or fiber, will now compete on equal footing. Additionally, non-statutory workforce, climate and affordability mandates have been stripped back, signaling a decisive shift toward a cost-first, tech-neutral approach for the $42 billion BEAD program.
Against this backdrop, moderator Paul Breakman will lead a panel of industry strategists through the fallout: how states can rewrite roadmaps on a 30-day clock, whether the new scoring accelerates rural buildouts or sparks fresh litigation, and how fiber, spectrum-sharing fixed wireless and LEO constellations will jockey for advantage in closing the digital divide. Expect candid debate on investor appetite, supply-chain timing and the tactical moves providers must make now to stay eligible – and competitive – as BEAD 2.0 takes shape.