The head of a Biden program that could help rural broadband has left

Evan Feinman has stepped down as director of the $42.5bn Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment (BEAD) programme.
The programme’s mission is to provide 100Mbps high-bandwidth internet to underserved areas, mainly in rural America.
Feinman warned in an email that the programme faced a Trump-era overhaul that would shift from prioritising fibre buildouts to Elon Musk’s Starlink satellite-based internet.
This month, the programme underwent a “rigorous review” led by the new Biden administration.
SpaceX was expected to receive $4.1 bn f ro m t h eor i g ina l r u l es, b u tt h e Wa llSt ree t J o u r na l re p or t e d in M a rc h t ha tt h eo v er ha u l co u l d res u lt in St a r l ink rece i v in g a s m u c ha s$ 20bn.
Feinman alleged the overhaul would leave “all or part of rural America with worse internet to make the world’s richest man even richer.

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