Indiana
Amplifying Voices through Listening Sessions
As part of Indiana’s Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) Five-Year Action Plan development, the Indiana Broadband Office hosted 19 regional listening sessions, including at least one listening session in each congressional district from May through July 2023. The state received crucial input from local Broadband Task Forces, local elected officials, and community members. The state used this feedback to create Indiana’s Five-Year Action Plan.
Industry Partner Engagement
The Indiana Federal Program Officer (FPO) attended and presented at numerous Internet Service Provider (ISP) industry events, including the Indiana Rural Broadband Association meeting, the Indiana Cable and Broadband Association, Indiana Electric Cooperatives, and Indiana WISPA conference.
Future Proofing Internet Service Providers
The Enabling Middle Mile Broadband Infrastructure (Middle Mile) Program awarded a $11.6 million grant to the Indiana Michigan Power Company Inc. The grant will help build 252 miles of fiber to reduce barriers for last mile ISPs and increase connectivity opportunity for Hoosiers in Grant and Delaware counties.
Fort Wayne Public Engagement
Indiana participated in Comcast’s ProjectUp Digital Equity Roundtable in Fort Wayne in conjunction with the Boys and Girls Clubs of Fort Wayne. The state also participated in the opening of AT&T’s Connected Learning Center in Indianapolis with the Indianapolis Urban League. The office supported industry efforts to bridge the digital divide in advance of the National Telecommunications and Information Administration’s (NTIA) Digital Equity Act State Capacity Grant Program.
Indiana Partnering with OCRA and PCRD to Begin Solutioning
During Indiana’s State Digital Equity Plan development, the Office of Community and Rural Affairs (OCRA), in conjunction with the Purdue Center for Regional Development (PCRD) hosted six Digital Equity regional solutions sessions from July through August 2023. OCRA and PCRD received critical feedback from Hoosiers on the non-infrastructure barriers to connectivity facing communities in both urban and rural Indiana.