关于btop的第五次季度状态报告大会

Submitted to the Committee on AppropriationsUnited States Senate the Committee on AppropriationsUnited States House of Representatives the Committee on Commerce, Science and TransportationUnited States Senate and the Committee on Energy and CommerceUnited States House of Representatives May 17, 2010 National Telecommunications and Information AdministrationU.S. Department of Commerce I.Introduction and Background Pursuant to Section 6001(d)(4) of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009(Recovery Act or Act) (Public Law No. 111-5), the National Telecommunications andInformation Administration (NTIA) provides this quarterly report on the status of the BroadbandTechnology Opportunities Program. The Recovery Act provides NTIA and the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Rural UtilitiesService (RUS) with $7.2 billion to expand access to broadband services in the United States.The Act provides $4.7 billion to NTIA to establish the Broadband Technology OpportunitiesProgram (BTOP or Program) to increase broadband penetration and adoption in unserved andunderserved areas of the United States; provide broadband training and support to schools,libraries, healthcare providers, and other organizations; improve broadband access to publicsafety agencies; and stimulate demand for broadband. In addition, the $4.7 billion in fundingprovided under the Act is intended to create jobs and stimulate economic growth. The Act alsoprovided RUS with $2.5 billion to expand access to broadband services in rural America.1 The Act establishes eligibility requirements for grantees and grant projects; allocates certainamounts of funding for specific broadband initiatives; imposes substantive and proceduralrequirements on the Assistant Secretary for Communications and Information (AssistantSecretary) for the administration of the program as well as on grantees in their use of BTOPfunding; and requires that all awards be made before the end of fiscal year 2010. The Act furtherrequires NTIA to develop and maintain a comprehensive nationwide inventory map ofbroadband service capability and availability, and to make the map publicly available via theInternet. Among other things, the Assistant Secretary is required to provide a status report to Congressevery 90 days. NTIA will supplement these reports with informal briefings for Members ofCongress as well as appearances at Congressional hearings when requested. This quarterly statusreport reviews developments since NTIA submitted its fourth report in February 2010.2 II.Summary Since the passage of the Recovery Act, NTIA has worked expeditiously to ensure that BTOPfunds are distributed quickly, efficiently, and fairly. In this past quarter, NTIA completed itsfirst funding round. It has now awarded 134 Recovery Act grants totaling approximately $1.3billion. NTIA has made awards in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and several territories. In the previous four reports submitted to Congress, NTIA outlined the steps taken to launch andexecute BTOP in accordance with the Recovery Act’s requirements, including: •Program kickoff in cooperation with other Federal agencies;•Public outreach to develop Program rules and policies; •Efforts to enhance transparency and accountability;•Release of the first Notice of Funds Availability (NOFA);•Public workshops to enhance participation by eligible entities;•Steps to improve NTIA’s organizational readiness, including staffing and contractingresources;•Acceptance and processing of applications;•Application review, including independent expert review, state and tribal consultation,and the public notice filing comment period;•Due diligence review and the award selection process;•Round One BTOP awards;•Issuance of a second Request for Information;•Release of the Second NOFA, including changes from the First NOFA; and•Steps to implement comprehensive post-award oversight and compliance. This report focuses on: •Completion of Round One awards;•Round Two application intake;•Round Two application review, including state and tribal consultation and theannouncement of Proposed Funded Service Areas Comment Period;•Oversight and compliance, including the Office of Inspector General’s BTOP report,recipient reporting, post-award monitoring and audits, and environmental and historicpreservation; and•Staffing and resources. This report also provides an update on the State Broadband Data and Development Program(Broadband Mapping Program), including an update on awards made and other steps taken todevelop a national broadband map. III.Round One BTOP Awards As of the last quarterly report in February 2010, NTIA had awarded approximately $228 millionfor investments in 19 broadband projects. By the end of April, NTIA completed Round Oneawards. In Round One, NTIA awarded 82 grants totaling $1.2 billion in Federal funds, with$359 million in applicant-provided matching contributions for projects benefiting the vastmajority of states and territories.3T