Closing the Broadband Availability Gap and Support the Development of a Five-Year Action Plan

Description

Purpose: The Purpose of This Grant Is to Support Closing the Broadband Availability Gap and Support the Development of a Five-Year Action Plan.the Proposed Project Includes the Following Planning and Pre-Deployment Activities: The Proposed Project Includes: Research and Data Collection, Including Initial Identification of Unserved Locations and Underserved Locations Consistent with Rules, Regulations, and Processes Commission Has Established for Making Determinations in Broadband Data Maps; the Development of a Preliminary Budget for Pre-Planning Activities; Training for Employees of Broadband Program or Office of Eligible Entity or Employees or Political Subdivisions of Eligible Entity, and Related Staffing Capacity or Consulting or Contracted Support to Effectuate Goals of Bead Program; Establishing, Operating, or Increasing Capacity of a Broadband Office That Oversees Broadband Programs and Broadband Deployment in an Eligible Entity; Asset Mapping Across the Eligible Entity to Catalogue Broadband Adoption, Affordability, Equity, Access and Deployment Activities Occurring Within the Eligible Entity; Conducting Surveys of Unserved, Underserved, and Underrepresented Communities to Better Understand Barriers to Adoption; Costs Associated with Meeting the Local Coordination Requirements in Section IV.C.1.C of This Nofo Including Capacity Building at the Local and Regional Levels or Contracted Support; Reasonable Post-Nofo, Pre-Award Expenses <$100,000 Relating to Preparation of Program Submissions or Adding Additional Capacity in Preparation for Bead Program; Publications, Outreach, and Communications Support Expected Outcomes: The Outcomes of Commonwealth of Norther Mariana Island's (Cnmi) Proposed Project, "Opd Broadband," Are a Sustainable Development Plan That Also Serves as the Five-Year Action Plan; Making Affordable, Qualifying Broadband Available to Nearly All the People of the Cnmi; Offering More Reliable, Affordable, and Qualifying Broadband Service to the Cnmi; Ensuring That the Investment from Our Federal Partners in Broadband Is Applied to Deliver the Maximum Possible Benefit to Our Citizens; and Keeping in Mind the Special Characteristics of the Homes, Workplaces, Society, and Cnmi Culture.intended Beneficiaries: The Intended Beneficiaries Are Unserved and Underserved Groups in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands with a Focus on Rural and Unserved Populations.subrecipient Activities: The Recipient Does Intend to Subaward Funds to the College Broadband Mapping/Sampling Project.