CHARLESTON — The leader of West Virginia’s efforts to expand high-speed fiber broadband to underserved and unserved residents and businesses said the state was prepared to be nimble as the federal government considers changes to how broadband dollars should be spent, but guidance is needed quickly.

The West Virginia Broadband Enhancement Council received a briefing Thursday morning from Kelly Workman, director of the Office of Broadband, regarding a pause in the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program, as well as the 90-day extension to submit the state’s final proposal for the BEAD program administered by the Department of Commerce’s Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA).

The BEAD final proposals were due on April 18. NTIA sent out notifications to states at the end of April granting the 90-day BEAD final proposal submissions.

“We can make changes. We’re pretty nimble. We can pivot as needed. The administrative changes are not a concern for us,” Workman said. “West Virginia has proven the ability to navigate complex program regulations. That is not our concern.”

The NTIA approved West Virginia’s Volume II Initial Proposal for the BEAD program in April 2024, becoming one of the first three states to have their initial proposals approved. West Virginia was awarded $1.2 billion through the BEAD program in June 2023, funding made possible through the passage of the federal Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act which was signed into law in 2021 by former President Joe Biden.

Since then, West Virginia has been ahead of the curve, becoming one of the first states to complete the BEAD challenge process and secure NTIA approval of its challenge results. West Virginia was one of the first three states to open its BEAD subgrantee selection process last August. Workman said that all along, the state has successfully completed all program requirements.

But the BEAD program was placed on a pause at the beginning of March by Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick while the program was being reviewed. In a previous statement, Lutnick accused the BEAD program of favoring some technologies over others, being bogged down by cumbersome regulations and red tape, and being high in cost.

Workman said it was unclear when program revisions could come from the Department of Commerce, which could be sometime near the end of the 90-day extension in June or July. The Office of Broadband would review any program revisions and make needed changes. The office is also developing contingency plans.

The biggest issues with the BEAD pause and 90-day extension revolve around competition with other states for investments, labor, contracting, materials, and supplies; increased costs in construction and materials caused in part by tariffs; limited bid holds; business uncertainty; and time and resources.

On Tuesday, U.S. Sen. Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va., wrote to Lutnick asking him to expedite the department’s review of the BEAD program. Speaking Thursday afternoon during her weekly briefing from Capitol Hill, Capito said the funding should have already been out the door.

“We were six weeks away from having our application approved so we could begin the work to get these broadband connections to everybody. I’m very frustrated,” Capito said. “West Virginia is ready to go. We’ve been ready to go. We’ve been a leader here. I want to see the money coming to our state.”

At the end of the meeting, the Broadband Enhancement Council adopted a resolution reaffirming its commitment to the deployment of high-speed fiber broadband once the BEAD program pause is lifted.