Orange County NC Website
Browse       Search
ORANGE COUNTY <br /> NORTH CAROLINA <br /> TO: Board of County Commissioners <br /> FROM: Todd McGee, Community Relations Director <br /> DATE: May 7, 2024 <br /> SUBJECT: Update on BEAD funding for remaining unserved Broadband addresses <br /> Orange County and Lumos Fiber formed a public-private partnership in April 2022 to bring ultra-high- <br /> speed fiber internet service to approximately 6,400 locations that previously had little or no internet <br /> service.The county appropriated $10 million in funding from the American Rescue Plan Act to subsidize <br /> the project. <br /> Prior to issuing the RFP,the county undertook a strenuous effort to identify all areas that were <br /> considered unserved, utilizing existing data from the FCC and other means. We have since discovered <br /> many addresses and neighborhoods were incorrectly identified as being served in old FCC maps. Newer <br /> maps detail broadband availability at an address level and revealed these errors. <br /> The county and Lumos have been discussing the best options for reaching the remaining pockets of <br /> unserved homes and businesses in the county,which Lumos estimates to be fewer than 600, including <br /> utilizing funding from the North Carolina Broadband Infrastructure Office (NCBIO). NCBIO will distribute <br /> the state's share of federal Broadband Equity,Access, and Deployment(BEAD) program. North Carolina <br /> received $1.53 billion from the program. <br /> To receive its share of BEAD funding, NCBIO must develop a detailed plan to connect every unserved <br /> location in the state and contract with different internet providers to build to those locations. NCBIO's <br /> BEAD plan is expected to be approved by the end of 2024. When the plan is approved, Lumos will apply <br /> for a grant to bring fiber internet to the remaining unserved areas of Orange County. Other providers <br /> may also apply to receive grants. <br /> Funding is expected to be awarded to providers in early 2025 with the expectation that the areas will <br /> receive service by the end of 2026. <br /> Lumos continues to make progress on the current project.The company recently received the second <br /> payment installment of$3 million for enabling connections to more than 3,000 of the 6,370 contracted <br /> addresses.The county has so far paid $4 million of the$10 million,with the final payment due upon <br /> completion. <br /> Lumos has experienced a few delays due to unexpected issues but is on target to finish construction on <br /> the network to bring service to the remaining contracted addresses prior to the end of 2024. <br /> 300 W.Tryon Street, Hillsborough, NC 27278 1 www.orangecountync.gov 1 919.732.8181 <br />