Community Spotlight

Los Angeles County Initiative Provides Laptops & Digital Resources to Wildfire-Impacted Families

Broadband for All Update

Join us for the next California Broadband Council Meeting

The next California Broadband Council meeting will take place on Friday, April 25 at 9:30AM at CoveredCA (Tahoe Board Room) and on Zoom. Presenters will provide updates on the Broadband for All Action Plan implementation, Middle-Mile and Last Mile programs, Statewide Broadband Adoption efforts, and the State Digital Equity Plan (SDEP) and Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) programs.

Middle-Mile Broadband Initiative Update

City of Fort Bragg Council Approves Joint Build Agreement with the California Department of Technology

In December 2024, the City of Fort Bragg was awarded a Federal Funding Account (FFA) grant by the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) for a last mile project that will also support the construction of a portion of the Middle Mile Broadband Network (MMBN) in the Fort Bragg City area. On March 13, the Fort Bragg City Council approved a joint-build partnership proposal with CDT for constructing approximately 4 miles of network infrastructure.

Running north to south along State Route 1, this partnership is expected to help close the region’s digital divide, allowing residents and local businesses in Fort Bragg to access significantly faster, more reliable internet services to be able to participate in the modern economy.

CDT Releases FFA Pricing Caps for MMBN Services

In March, CDT released its pricing plans for MMBN services for FFA grantees. FFA grantees will be able to provide services with speeds ranging from 1 Gbps (1000 Mbps) to 100 Gbps as Internet access, wavelength, and ethernet transport services. Developed based on market sounding and extensive customer interviews, these services reflect the network needs of FFA grantees. Dark fiber services will also be available and are expected to be marketed by CDT’s Third-Party Administrator. The pricing caps for these services were decided through strategic, competitive pricing analysis. They reflect market pricing in well-served markets by ​using the average of market pricing for services in or between major markets in California (Los Angeles, Sacramento, San Diego, San Jose). These caps are based on third-party research and pricing data. The caps for each applicable service and speed were calculated based on the weighted average of the corresponding median prices for major metro areas in California. For FFA grantees seeking more details on services and pricing, email mmbipmo@state.ca.gov.

Installation Updates 

The installation of the MMBI network continues across the State. More than 3,580 miles of MMBI network have gone to installation through CDT’s joint build, IRU/lease, purchase partnerships, and Caltrans. Here is the breakdown of updates for March 2025:

Joint Build & Lease Highlights 

Lumen Technologies Joint Build & IRU projects: Installation from one of our network partners, Lumen Technologies, covers over 1,800 miles across 20 different segments in California. Installation started in March for the following two segments of approximately:

• 131 miles from Arvin City in Kern County, to Hesperia City in San Bernardino County.
• 48 miles from Riverside City to Temecula City, in Riverside County.

Last Mile Program Update

Federal Funding Account Updates

California Advanced Services Fund Updates

The CPUC has postponed the CASF Broadband Infrastructure Grant Account (Infrastructure Account) 2025 application deadline from April 1 to October 31, 2025, to allow time for prospective applicants to leverage federal funding allocated to the State of California in the $1.86 billion BEAD program. To see the complete revised schedule for the Infrastructure Account, see Postponement of the 2025 California Advanced Services Fund Broadband Infrastructure Grant Account Application Deadline to October 31, 2025.

The CPUC is reviewing Broadband Adoption Account, Broadband Public Housing Account, and two Tribal Technical Assistance Grant Program applications from the January 2025 cycle. Find out more about the CASF program here.

Broadband Adoption Update

Low-Cost Offer Finder Tool

Home internet service and computing devices are critical for all individuals to reap the social and economic benefits of the digital world. The cost of both remains a barrier for many people.

To find affordable broadband service and computing devices, CDT has partnered with EveryoneOn to help California residents find affordable service programs in their area by zip code.

The low-cost offer finder tool provides access to low-cost internet services, computer equipment, and digital skills training. 

Digital Equity and Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment Updates

California Digital Equity Program Request for Applications Period Now Open!

On March 26, CDT launched the Request for Applications (RFA) for the California Digital Equity Program (CalDEP), a $50 million subgrant initiative funded through the State’s Digital Equity Capacity Grant. CalDEP will provide planning and capacity grants to eligible entities to implement strategies and activities that support the goals and measurable objectives outlined in California’s State Digital Equity Plan. The program aims to assist statewide, regional, and local entities and partnerships in carrying out digital equity initiatives such as developing local digital equity plans, providing digital navigation and literacy training, running community tech programs, distributing devices to targeted groups, and supporting workforce development programs for Covered Populations across the state.

For more information, click here.

CDT hosted the California Digital Equity Program Request for Applications Launch Webinar on March 28th

CDT hosted the California Digital Equity Program (CalDEP) Request for Application Launch Webinar on March 28. Over 200 interested parties attended to learn about the program. In case you missed it, CDT’s digital equity team provided program details, application components and timeline, the technical assistance program, and conducted live demonstrations of where interested applicants can find resources and how to access and navigate the program application portal.

To view past Stakeholder Briefings, find the meeting recordings and materials here.

CalDEP Partnership Coordination Resource

CDT has created the Partner Coordination Resource to enable potential lead grant applicants and interested partner entities to find and connect with each other and form potential partnerships. The Partnership Coordination Resource should not be used as a LISTSERV sign up for grant seeking. Find out more about this resource and complete the form to have your organization’s information listed in the Partnership Coordination Resource.  

Digital Equity Resource Finder

The Digital Equity (DE) Resource Finder tool has been developed with digital equity practitioner network as the initial primary user. The finder has been populated with data collected during the development of the SDEP including Digital Equity Ecosystem Mapping (DEEM) data, regional public meetings and engagement with digital equity partners. Future iterations of this tool will be developed in partnership via ongoing work efforts of SDEP implementation. Please use the DE Resource Finder, to add your organization, update your organization’s information or remove your organization. 

For any questions, please contact the team at DEEM@state.ca.gov.

Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment Program Updates 

The CPUC is pleased to announce that the BEAD Prequalification Application is now open and available in the BEAD Application Portal. Prequalification materials will be accepted through April 24, 2025, at 11:59 pm PDT. Each organization is required to submit a complete Prequalification Application before starting their Project Applications. Please review the Prequalification Application Guide for more information (available for download on the BEAD Resources webpage under Subgrantee Selection Process). 

A provisional schedule for the BEAD subgrantee selection process has been updated and applicants are encouraged to start preparing for the project application window that will be open from April 2 through May 2, 2025. The schedule, BEAD Application Portal registration information, and more can be found on the CPUC BEAD Program webpage.

The CPUC is conducting office hours to assist potential applicants with the subgrantee selection and application process. Register here to join future sessions and review past events. Please make sure to subscribe here to receive BEAD email announcements including upcoming webinar dates.

Funding Opportunities

 Broadband for All Portal Funding Finder

The Office of Broadband and Digital Literacy tracks funding opportunities as they become available and strive to keep the Broadband for All portal up to date with information for broadband deployment, adoption and digital literacy planning and implementation. Find these opportunities here.

Upcoming Events

**Find materials from past events [here]

Job Opportunities

Keep an eye on CDT Broadband job postings and CPUC job postings. Visit CalCareers  for more information and to apply for open positions.