BEAD | Scope Reduced, 50% Agreements Signed

BEAD | Scope Reduced, 50% Agreements Signed

Numerous ARPA projects under budget and ahead of schedule

COLUMBIA, S.C. — The South Carolina Broadband Office (SCBBO) is pleased to announce that eight of the original sixteen projects approved last fall in its Broadband, Equity, Access and Deployment (BEAD) Final Proposal were able to be funded with existing, non-BEAD resources. In addition, four of eight remaining BEAD agreements have been signed, and construction should soon be underway. This accomplishment comes on the heels of completing investments of $400 million American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds.

In total, prior to the BEAD program, the SCBBO has funded 277 projects since inception (July 1, 2021), and 231 (83%) are complete. Due to the financially conservative, successful execution of South Carolina’s Internet Service Providers (ISPs) on ARPA projects, nearly 70% have finished under budget and/or ahead of the federal December 31, 2026 deadline. The remainder of ARPA projects are also on track for 2026 completion. As a result, the SCBBO was able to reduce the scope of BEAD investments by utilizing existing, non-BEAD resources. Only 19,022 Broadband Serviceable Locations (BSLs) – less than 1% statewide – remain in the BEAD program.

After scope reduction, the eight remaining ISPs will utilize only $35,801,620 of BEAD funds to resolve South Carolina’s digital divide. The remaining BEAD-eligible BSLs represent 15,132 residential, 3,659 business, and 231 community anchor locations. Broadband deployment for these remaining locations is expected to begin in late 2026 after environmental permits are issued. BEAD construction is scheduled to conclude by 2030. Please view the SC BEAD Interactive Map for visual reference to the remaining BEAD-eligible locations.

At present, the South Carolina BEAD Program includes eight ISPs, and the green highlighted rows indicate subrecipient agreements that have been signed:

“Today marks our five-year anniversary as well as a significant milestone for broadband deployment in South Carolina,” said Jim Stritzinger, Director of the SCBBO. “With an extraordinary team and a wonderful partnership with our ISPs, we’ve collaborated to achieve incredible results across all 46 counties in the last five years. With careful stewardship of our existing state and federal funds, we’ve been able to minimize the need for BEAD funds while simultaneously accelerating construction for our citizens. The end of our digital divide is now clearly in sight!”

To date, including the recently signed BEAD agreements, the SCBBO has funded exclusively high-speed wireline technology to over 172,000 BSLs. When combined with other federal investments from the Federal Communications Commission (RDOF) and US Department of Agriculture (ReConnect), nearly all broadband investment has been directed toward high-speed wireline technologies. This distinction is the reason Ookla Research determined “South Carolina is the only state where rural residents’ access to broadband outperforms those of urban residents.”

More information about the broadband grant programs administered by the SCBBO can be found at ors.sc.gov/broadband.

###

The SCBBO is housed within the state’s Office of Regulatory Staff. The SCBBO serves as the central broadband planning body to coordinate with federal, state, regional, local, and private entities, to the extent practicable, to engage in the continued deployment of broadband in the state.