May 19, 2025 – Arkansas stands to lose over $1 billion in infrastructure funding to bring high-speed internet to rural areas across the state if the Trump administration has its way.

According to the National Association of Counties, the U.S. Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) sent termination of funding letters on May 9 to recipients of grants authorized under the Digital Equity Act, which was passed in 2021 as part of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL).

The termination letters were sent after President Trump announced that he was killing the national broadband grant program approved by Congress during the pandemic, calling it racist and unconstitutional.

“I have spoken with my wonderful Secretary of Commerce, Howard Lutnick, and we agree that the Biden/Harris so-called ‘Digital Equity Act’ is totally UNCONSTITUTIONAL. No more woke handouts based on race! The Digital Equity Program is a RACIST and ILLEGAL $2.5 BILLION DOLLAR giveaway. I am ending this IMMEDIATELY, and saving Taxpayers BILLIONS OF DOLLARS!” Trump wrote in a Truth Social post on May 8.

The Digital Equity Act totals $2.75 billion in federal funding. It includes the State Digital Equity Capacity Grant Program ($1.44 billion), the State Digital Equity Planning Grant Program ($60 million), and the Digital Equity Competitive Grant Program ($1.25 billion).

In late June 2024, the Arkansas Department of Commerce, along with Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders, announced that Arkansas would receive $1 billion from
the NTIA, which administers the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program.

“This announcement will be transformational for Arkansas,” said Gov. Sanders. “With more than $1 billion now at our state’s disposal to fund broadband access, we can finally close the digital divide between rural and urban Arkansans. This puts every part of our state on an equal playing field and unlocks a world of potential for businesses, schools, and everyday Arkansans.

As part of the Federal funding package, the Arkansas State Broadband Office (ASBO) launched its Digital Skills and Opportunity Survey as part of the state’s planning process to better understand the complexities of the digital divide. The state Broadband Office, led by Director Glenn Howie, also received more than $840,000 to study the state’s digital divide, create a plan to address its digital skills gap and learn more about the unique challenges that stand in the way of various segments of the state’s population concerning affordability and access to high-speed internet.

In addition to the $1 billion in infrastructure funding to build out the state’s broadband network, federal funding under NTIA’s Digital Equity Competitive Grant program is also on hold, according to several agencies across the U.S. that were previously approved for grant awards.

UAMS’ telehealth program gets hit by Trump’s DEI mandate

Ahead of President Trump’s Jan. 20 inauguration, the NTIA recommended on Jan. 17 that the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) and two other U.S.-based nonprofits receive millions in new federal funding to support digital skills and inclusion projects in Arkansas and nationwide.

Gov. Sarah Sanders and ARConnect Director Glen Howie publicly acknowledged in February that NTIA had recommended those federal dollars would flow to UAMS from the Biden-era program.

Among several proposed project activities, the UAMS funding would support expanding HIPAA-compliant telehealth access at rural anchor institutions, such as senior-focused community centers and libraries across Arkansas. It would also improve the availability and affordability of fixed and wireless broadband technology access in those rural communities.

The funding would also allow UAMS to offer comprehensive digital literacy training focused on healthcare-related skills, including using mobile health devices, understanding telehealth platforms, and basic digital literacy skills such as Wi-Fi connectivity, cybersecurity, and online privacy. UAMS said it would offer those services through in-person and virtual access points and facilitate enrollment in broadband, device assistance programs, and hot spot lending to increase broadband adoption in underserved communities.

“Building out broadband infrastructure is only one piece of the puzzle in bridging the digital divide,” said Howie. “To truly empower all Arkansans with the ability to self-determine their success in the 21st-century digital economy, we must expand our efforts to everyday uses of broadband, including remote healthcare options and cybersecurity training and protections.”

“This funding represents a transformative opportunity to enhance telehealth services, expand digital literacy, and promote greater broadband adoption in underserved communities,” added Roy Kitchen, executive director for UAMS e-Link and the principal investigator on the grant. “With this funding, the UAMS Institute for Digital Health & Innovation and its partners aim to create a more connected and equitable Arkansas, ensuring that all residents, especially older adults, have the tools and resources needed to thrive in today’s digital world.”

Arkansas will also be a project area for two other programs recommended for funding through the NTIA program. Columbus, Ohio-based National Digital Inclusion Alliance and the National Lead for America Inc. in Dodge City, Kan., have been recommended for $25.7 million and $12 million in “digital equity” funding planned to impact Arkansas. The Texas-based Communication Service for the Deaf Inc. has also been recommended for $1-.7 to provide digital access and workforce training services to deaf, hard-of-hearing, and deafblind individuals in Arkansas and 32 other states.

However, President Trump in his Jan. 20 executive order titled “Ending Radical and Wasteful Government DEI Programs and Preferencing,” ordered all federal agencies to detail the ways they have furthered DE&I’s infiltration of the federal government.”

“The Biden Administration forced illegal and immoral discrimination programs, going by the name “diversity, equity, and inclusion” (DEI), into virtually all aspects of the Federal Government, in areas ranging from airline safety to the military,” said Trump. “This was a concerted effort stemming from President Biden’s first day in office when he issued Executive Order 13985, ‘Advancing Racial Equity and Support for Underserved Communities Through the Federal Government.”

Nationally, the NTIA recently handed out $619 million to 65 organizations, including UAMS, to empower individuals and communities nationwide with the essential skills they need to thrive in today’s connected world. In September, the NTIA reported receiving more than 700 applications requesting over $6.5 billion in funding to support digital equity projects nationwide.

That is more than six times the amount available from the highly contested program, which is part of the $1.1 trillion Bipartisan Infrastructure Act approved by Congress and signed into law in November 2021 during the peak of the pandemic-related recession. Under that law, the three-part Digital Equity Act provides $2.75 billion to establish three grant programs that promote digital equity and inclusion.

In 2022, NTIA began awarding $60 million to states, D.C., and territories from the State Digital Equity Planning Grant Program. Since then, all 50 states and the U.S. have submitted their Digital Equity Plans, and NTIA has accepted all plans.  On Dec. 19, the Arkansas State Broadband Office received nearly $10.2 billion through that pool of funding to implement programs under the state’s Digital Skills and Opportunity Plan, the state’s blueprint for addressing the digital skills gap first pushed by former Gov. Asa Hutchinson.

The NTIA has been allocated $1.44 under the Digital Equity Act for the State Digital Equity Capacity Grant Program. This funding enables states and territories to initiate the implementation of their digital equity plans, as well as other digital equity projects. 

To complement that program, the Competitive Grant Program appropriates an additional $1.25 billion to ensure communities have access to the devices and skills needed to participate fully in the digital ecosystem, including $619 million of the $1 billion available in the first round of the highly competitive 50-state competition.

The Digital Equity Act programs complement Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment. The BEAD Program was allocated $42.45 billion by the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act to expand high-speed internet access across the country by funding broadband planning, deployment, mapping, equity, and adoption projects and activities.

Meanwhile, Gov. Sanders and State Commerce Department officials have remained silent about the possibility of losing over $1 billion to fund the expected buildout of the state’s broadband network across rural Arkansas.

Economic game changer

“These funds are an economic game changer,” stated Arkansas Secretary of Commerce Hugh McDonald. “As a small rural state, we have too many households and businesses that are not connected to broadband. This affects our bottom line – from education and skills development to entrepreneurship and opportunity. Broadband is no longer a luxury; it is an absolute necessity for individual upward mobility as well as to develop strong and vibrant communities that will attract business and industry to the state.”

On Jan. 7, ARConnect opened the first round of applications for the state’s BEAD infrastructure buildout, calling it “the single largest investment in broadband infrastructure in the state’s history.” By the end of January, state officials reported that they had received over 814 bids for the first round of BEAD’s funding to build the broadband backbone for 84,000 homes, businesses, and community anchor institutions across the state.

In total, 48 internet service providers (ISPs) and partnerships pre-registered to participate in the state BEAD program. Of those, 29 ISPs and partnerships were based in Arkansas, while 19 ISPs pre-registered nationwide.

ARConnect must submit a “Final Proposal” to the NTIA by October, outlining all grant awards through the program.