GAO Finds $1.2 Billion in Duplicate Broadband Grants, FCC to Halt Four Programs by January 3

The GAO Finding

A forthcoming Government Accountability Office report has identified approximately $1.2 billion in overlapping broadband infrastructure grants across four federal programs, according to a GAO investigator with direct knowledge of the draft findings. The report, scheduled for public release on December 30, concludes that the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, the Department of Agriculture, and the Federal Communications Commission awarded funds to the same census blocks and project areas without coordinating award decisions, the investigator said.

Two congressional appropriators who were briefed on the report last week said the duplication affected projects in at least seventeen states, with the largest concentrations in Montana, Mississippi, West Virginia, and New Mexico. The Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment program, which received $42.5 billion under the 2021 infrastructure law, accounted for roughly $680 million of the duplicated awards, the appropriators said.

The Rural Utilities Service's ReConnect Loan and Grant Program contributed approximately $310 million in overlapping commitments, while the FCC's Rural Digital Opportunity Fund accounted for $150 million, according to the GAO investigator. A smaller USDA broadband loan program added $60 million in duplicate obligations, the investigator said.

The report found that agencies failed to share granular project location data before making award decisions, despite a 2022 Office of Management and Budget directive instructing federal broadband programs to coordinate through the Interagency Broadband Coordination Group, the investigator said. GAO auditors compared award databases from each agency and identified 2,400 census blocks that received funding from more than one program for functionally identical work.

One example cited in the draft report involves a 34-mile fiber build in Carbon County, Montana, that received $4.2 million from BEAD and $2.8 million from ReConnect for overlapping route segments, the investigator said. In another case, a fixed wireless project in Humphreys County, Mississippi, accepted $1.9 million from the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund while also securing $3.1 million in BEAD support for the same service area, the investigator said.

The FCC Response

The Federal Communications Commission is preparing to halt four broadband grant programs by January 3 while it implements a centralized mapping and verification system, a budget analyst at the Office of Management and Budget told The Alamo Post. The pause will affect new awards under the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund, the Enhanced Alternative Connect America Cost Model, and two smaller USDA ReConnect funding rounds, the analyst said.

Existing awards will not be clawed back automatically, the analyst said, but recipients that received overlapping funds will be required to submit revised project maps by February 14. The FCC plans to publish a public notice on December 31 explaining the pause and establishing a 30-day comment period on proposed deconfliction rules.

Two congressional appropriators said House and Senate staff are drafting language for the fiscal year 2026 spending bill that would require agencies to clear any broadband award through a single federal portal before disbursing funds. The portal, modeled on an existing Treasury system used for pandemic relief, would cost an estimated $24 million to build and would be operated by the General Services Administration, the appropriators said.

The GAO investigator said the report recommends that the NTIA recover roughly $210 million in funds that have not yet been disbursed to overlapping BEAD projects. The NTIA has not agreed to that recommendation, the investigator said, citing concerns that recovery actions could delay deployment in rural communities. Negotiations between the agencies continued through the December 22 holiday recess.

The OMB budget analyst said the pause was discussed during a December 18 meeting of the President's Management Council, where acting agency heads reviewed the GAO findings. The council directed the FCC to lead the deconfliction effort because it maintains the federal broadband map, though the NTIA retains statutory authority over BEAD funds, the analyst said.

What Comes Next

Congressional hearings are expected to begin during the second week of January, according to the two congressional appropriators. The House Energy and Commerce Committee has scheduled a hearing for January 14, while the Senate Commerce Committee is planning a session for January 16. FCC Chair Brendan Carr and NTIA Administrator Alan Davidson are expected to testify, the appropriators said.

The OMB budget analyst said the administration plans to include a legislative proposal in its fiscal year 2027 budget request that would consolidate most federal broadband grant programs under a single appropriations account. The proposal faces skepticism from lawmakers who want to preserve USDA programs separate from FCC-led efforts, the analyst said.

Industry groups are divided on the pause. The Rural Broadband Association has warned that halting awards could leave 400,000 locations without service by the end of 2026, according to one congressional aide briefed on the dispute. A coalition of municipal broadband providers supports the deconfliction effort but has asked for a 60-day rather than 30-day comment period, the aide said.

The GAO report will be posted publicly on December 30 at approximately 9:00 a.m. Eastern Time, the investigator said. The FCC's halt notice is expected to follow within 72 hours. Watch for whether the NTIA accepts the recovery recommendation, which would mark the first time a major broadband program has clawed back funds for coordination failures since the 2021 infrastructure law took effect.

Appropriators are also watching whether the administration uses the pause to redirect unspent BEAD funds toward other priorities, the two congressional appropriators said. At least one draft proposal circulating on Capitol Hill would shift $5 billion from BEAD into a new rural connectivity pilot managed by the USDA, though no decision has been made, the appropriators said.