Agenda 06-16-2026; 6-d - Amendment to the Network Development Agreement for Broadband Deployment with Lumos to Extend Broadband Service to Additional Unserved Households

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1 ORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS ACTION AGENDA ITEM ABSTRACT Meeting Date: June 16, 2026 Action Agenda Item No. 6-d SUBJECT: Amendment to the Network Development Agreement for Broadband Deployment with Lumos to Extend Broadband Service to Additional Unserved Households DEPARTMENT: Information Technologies ATTACHMENT(S): INFORMATION CONTACT: June 2026 Amendment Robert Reynolds, Chief Information Presentation Officer, (919) 245-2276 PURPOSE: To approve an amendment to the County's 2022 contract with Lumos to extend broadband service to an additional 105 households with adjustments to the project scope, timeline, and payment schedule. BACKGROUND: In April 2022, the Orange County Board of Commissioners approved a $10 million American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA)-funded agreement with North State Communications Advanced Services, LLC (operating as Lumos/T-Fiber) to deploy fiber-optic broadband service to 6,370 unserved locations in Orange County. Construction delays and cost increases during 2024 required an amendment to the original agreement that reduced the required number of passings from 6,370 to 5,852. The amendment also reduced the total payment to Lumos from $10 million in ARPA funds to $9.2 million, leaving a balance of $800,000 in ARPA funds that could be used to support additional broadband deployments. As of December 31, 2025, Lumos has installed 740 route miles of fiber in Orange County, making the network currently available to 15,000 homes and businesses, including 5,859 previously unserved and underserved locations identified in the 2022 agreement. In Fall 2025, the Board of Commissioners reconvened the Broadband Task Force to review project progress and identify opportunities to maximize the impact of the remaining ARPA funds. In addition to the 5,859 passings that Lumos completed, the Task Force reviewed the awards made under two (2)other programs funded by the State of North Carolina—the Stop Gap Program and the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program. The Stop Gap award will fund broadband extensions to 402 unserved locations (including 242 locations not included in the original contract scope of 6,370), and the BEAD program will serve an additional 18 unserved locations in the ARPA grant areas. Following the implementation of these State and Federally funded programs, approximately 198 households in Orange County will still lack access to broadband connections.