Definitions and References

Broadband

The Nevada County Broadband Committee follows the guidelines of the Arkansas Broadband Office and defines "broadband" as a internet access speed of at least "100/20".

• The "100" means 100 megabits per second (100 Mbps) download from the internet.
• The "20" means 20 megabits per second (20 Mbps) upload to the internet.
• These benchmarks have been preferences of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) for quite a while, were formally proposed with Increase Minimum Broadband Speed Benchmark

  (PDF Document)

  on November 1, 2023 and adopted with FCC Increases Broadband Speed Benchmark

  (PDF Document)

  on March 14, 2024.

• The FCC plans a future benchmark of "1000/500".
• Technical Information: Megabits vs Megabytes [ ⮟ More ]
  • "Bit" is the unit of measurement for stating the speed (or bandwidth) of a connection, and is abbreviated with a lower-case "b".
  • "Byte" is the unit of measurement for file sizes, and is abbreviated with an upper-case "B".
  • There are eight "bits" in a "byte". So 100 Mbps is about 12 MBps. When error-checking is used, there is an extra bit. So divide by 9, and the number is 11 Mbps
  • Therefore, a 100 megabit per second (100 Mbps) internet bandwidth means you can download a file of about 12 megabytes in one second. Yes, it actually takes longer. You computer must send the request to the server which then has to find the file and begin sending it to you. Once the file is on the way, this is how long it takes to receive it. Then, your computer has to save the file and close the connection to the server.
  • Greek language prefixes are used in electronics. No prefix means times one. "Kilo" means times one thousand (remember this from dial-up modems and the first floppy diskettes?). "Mega" means times one million (this is the current standard for internet speeds). "Giga" means times one billion (a gigabit is simply 1000 megabits). "Tera" means times one trillion (you'll see this in hard drive capacity measurements). "Peta" means times one quadrillion (1Pb=1000Tb).

The FCC has published a Broadband Speed Guide to assist in determining the speed you may need.

Served, Underserved and Unserved

100/20 is the current broadband standard for use with BEAD. This means a download (internet to your location) speed of 100 megabits per second and an upload (your location to internet) speedo of 20 megabits per second.

• "Served" means the location has an interet service provider (ISP) that can provide at least 100/20 speeds.
• "Underserved" means the location has an internet service provider, but the speeds are less than 100/20.
• "Unserved" means there is no internet service provider at the location.

Nevada County Broadband Committee

The Nevada County Broadband Committee was formed on July 21, 2023 and works with ARConnect, The Arkansas State Broadband Office to assure that all of Nevada County has or will have:

• Internet Infrastructure and Access,
• Affordable Internet, and
• Internet and Digital Skills Education.

The committee consists of public officials, community leaders, technology specialists, and others.

Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD)

The Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program is the internet portion of the bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (Public Law 118-58)

(PDF Document)

of November 2021 working toward President Joe Biden's High-Speed Internet for All final proposal. It provides over a $billion to the State of Arkansas to fund projects to assure each location in the state has broadband internet.

Beginning in November 2003, The Arkansas Broadband Office used FCC maps and information provided by Internet Service Providers (ISPs) to find locations where broadband was already present.

• Over 84,000 locations across the state were determined to be "unserved" or "underserved".
• After working with broadband committees across the state, between March 12 and April 18, 2024, the Arkansas Broadband Office BEAD Map Challenge Phase worked to assure the map was correct in order to provide funding to qualified Internet Service Providers (ISPs). Work of the Nevada County Committee.
• A bidding process was completed in late January 2025, but had to be redone because of the "Benefit of the Bargain" order on June 6, 2025, thus delaying the proposal's comment period to August 11-25, 2025.
• By August 29, 2025, the proposal was submitted to the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) and was approved on November 18, 2025.
• Now, NIST must approve.
• The Arkansas General Assembly must approve the bids before they can be awarded, which won't happen until 2026.
• Finally, contacts can be signed and ISPs can begin construction. Once construction begins, a period ranging from a few months to a few years is required to complete the build.
• Thus, it may be 2030 before the broadband from these grants is working in homes.

ARConnect, Arkansas Broadband Office

The Arkansas Broadband Office is administering the $1 billion allocated to Arkansas in the BEAD program.

There were some meetings in Nevada County:

• County Roadshow, Nevada County Courthouse, April 4, 2024. discussions about how broadband access is transforming lives and driving progress right here in our backyard, and wtat's next.
• County Roadshow, Nevada County Courthouse, July 21, 2023, formation of the Nevada County Broadband Committee.

Federal Communications Commission (FCC)

Although the Federal Communications Commission does not regulate the internet, it does collect data. On November 18, 2022, the FCC released National Broadband Maps to determine internet speed available at a given address and sources of funding for each address.. These maps are the basis for BEAD funding.
More information on the maps and the Nevada County Broadband Committee's Role

FCC Lifeline Program

Wikipedia Article
Lifeline Support for Affordable Communications
Lifeline Program for Low-Income Consumers
The Affordable Connectivity Program is no longer funded.

Rural Digital Opportunity Fund (RDOF)

Auction 904: Rural Digital Opportunity Fund
Arkansas Findings and Recommendations
Rural Digital Opportunity Fund (RDOF) . Map, Auction and Analysis
Arkansas Electric Cooperative Rolls Out RDOF-Funded Fiber Telecompetitor

American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA)

Implemented as Arkansas Rural Connect (ARC)
Arkansas ARC
Arkansas Rural Connect Program Application
Map
ARC Awards Round 1 included $193,000 to Hope Community TV (Cablelynx) for Emmet. Walnut Hill Telephone was awarded $1,419,735 for their Falcon fiber project in Round 2C.

Benefit of the Bargain

• The BEAD program was originally intended to build fiber optics as the delivery method for broadband and Congress appropriated the money to accomplish that goal.
• Arkansas' initial proposal agreed with almost all IT professionals in giving a preference to building internet access on a fiber optic backbone.
• The Arkanas Broadband Office thought the bidding process was completed in late January 2025, with 98% of the locations receiving bids and 96% having multiple bids.
• Elon Musk, the owner of Space Explorations Technology and it's Starlink service, was being cut out of the money because the inferior satellite delivery systems were excluded.
• President Donald Trump, who at the time considered Musk a friend, on June 6, 2025, issued an executive order effecting nullifying all the bids and proposals that had been received and causing another round of proposals, this time emphasizing the "Benefit of the Bargain".
• The comments made by the President during the time of the order seem to indicate a preference toward Elon Musk's Starlink system.
• The "Benefit of the Bargain" executive order essentially has no concerns for labor, climate, affordability, open network access, and eliminates the preference for superior fiber builds.
• Thus, another round of bidding and scoring was required.
• After NTIA approval to continue after Trump's changes, the Arkansas Broadband Office conducts another round of "bids" July 7-14, 2025.
• Thousands of locations across Arkansas, including 66 in Nevada County, were changed from fiber optic delivery to low earth orbit (LEO) satellite delivery.
• After notice of the plans and before the preliminary selectees were chosen, the Nevada County Broadband Committee filed comments objecting to award of satellite internet instead of fiber optic internet. However, the Arkansas Broadband Office said it was merely following the federal guidelines required by the "Benefit of the Bargain" program.
• All but a few locations are "near" planned construction of fiber internet. Hopefully, those ISPs will extend the fiber construction into the areas awarded to the low earth orbit (LEO) satellite providers.

References:
Trump's Public Relations Notice
BEAD Restructuring Policy Notice