Alaska Broadband Office The Alaska Broadband Office (ABO) was created on August 9, 2022, when Governor Dunleavy signed Alaska House Bill 363 into law. The State of Alaska had been engaged in broadband work for several years, most recently highlighted through efforts of the Governor’s Task Force on Broadband in their Final Report issued in November of 2021. Formal broadband efforts were then transferred to the Commissioner’s Office in the Department of Commerce, Community and Economic Development. The Alaska Broadband Office oversees the State of Alaska's efforts to ensure all Alaskans have high quality, affordable internet. This will be done through two federal programs: the Digital Equity Act (DE) and the Broadband Equity Access and Deployment (BEAD) Program. These programs, established under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) passed by Congress in November 2021, allocate funds to expand broadband access for underserved and unserved communities in Alaska. Alaska Broadband Grant Program Draft NOFO for Public Comment Please see the Alaska Broadband Grant Program webpage for further details. The Public Comment Period runs from October 16, 2024 to November 15, 2024The State of Alaska was allocated $1,017,139,672.42 to bring broadband to all the unserved and underserved locations in Alaska. NEW Alaska Digital Equity Capacity Grant Program Draft NOFO for Public Comment The Alaska Broadband Office will be distributing a portion of the State's federal Digital Equity Capacity Grant through a competitive grant program for entities to implement aspects of the Alaska Digital Equity Plan. Please see the Alaska Digital Equity webpage for further details. The Public Comment Period runs from October 30, 2024 to December 2, 2024. The In-State Mapping Challenge Preliminary Results Below are the preliminary results of the In-state Mapping Challenge in two formats. The first is a dashboard that allows the user to look at the disposition of all 30,623 Challenges. The second is a graphical map of the results. In State Mapping Challenge -- Preliminary ResultsClicking this link will take you to an external website. In State Mapping Challenge Map -- Preliminary Results and Community IdentificationClicking this link will take you to an external website. NTIA Webinar: Digital Equity Native Entity Capacity Application The Digital Equity Capacity Grant program includes an initial funding tranche of $43.5 million, nationwide, reserved for Native Entities available for Digital Equity Planning and Capacity grants. The application window will open September 25, 2024, and close February 7, 2025. Please see the link below to view slide deck. View NTIA Webinar HereClicking this link will take you to an external website. Public Engagement The Alaska Broadband Office remains committed to keeping stakeholders informed by participating in speaking engagements and conferences as well as facilitating monthly industry and local government roundtables throughout the planning and implementation process. Attend a Listening session Here