Submitted Applications

 The Broadband Deployment Board accepts written comments on applications during a 45-day comment period. Comments may be submitted by local governments, incumbent providers and the public. Comments received during the 45-day comment period will be considered by the Board when making funding decisions. If an applicant is seeking certification from a local entity that the application area is unserved, the written certification must be submitted to the Board before the expiration of the 45-day comment period. 

Stakeholders are also encouraged to submit the Response Objection Form with additional details attached to their comment form. Please note that all comments are subject to public inspection under the Colorado Open Records Act (CORA) and will be posted to the Board's website.

Incumbent providers in a project area that is the subject of an application may consider submitting a Right of First Refusal (RoFR) Notice or a Response Objection Form during the 45-day comment period.

Broadband Fund Comment Form

Broadband Response Objection Form

Applicability & Purpose

Eligible entities who wish to contest a Board decision should carefully review the Board's Appeal Policy (Effective December 2022). Significant changes have been made at the end of December 2022, and we encourage you to review the policies, including the new Guidance Document, which covers many components of the application and review process. The Appeal Policy describes who may appeal, the requirements for submitting an appeal, and how appeals are taken by the Board. 

The Appeal Form can be found here.

What can or cannot be appealed?

The decision to award funds (or not award funds) to a particular applicant is not appealable. Aggrieved parties may only appeal a decision by the Board that an individual applicant is eligible for grant funds.

Aggrieved Party - An Appellant must be one of the following:

1. An Applicant for a broadband grant who has been denied a grant award, such as due to a Board determination that an application does not meet minimum requirements or upon the Board’s decision not to award following review of award criteria.
2. An Applicant for a broadband grant for which the Board has granted a right of first refusal to an incumbent.
3. An incumbent provider who timely exercised a right of first refusal but was subsequently denied a project by the Board.
4. An incumbent provider who has broadband in a proposed service area that contests a Board determination that a proposed area is “unserved” or that a project will not result in “overbuilding.”

When can appeals be submitted?

Application Appeals. For appeals of any approval or denial of an application, the complete Appeal Form must be received by Board staff within seven (7) days of the written decision being posted on the Board’s webpage.

Appeals of all Other Decisions. For appeals of any other Board decision, including right of first refusal decisions, the complete Appeal Form must be received by Board staff within seven (7) days of the decision being made by the Board (typically by a vote of the Members).

How to submit an appeal:  

Appeals must be submitted as attachments via electronic mail to Board staff (“Staff”) at the following e-mail address: oit_broadbanddeploymentboard@state.co.us.

The e-mail must also copy as a CC: (A) the current Director of the Board, as identified on the Colorado Broadband Office website; and (B) if the appeal involves an Interested Party, the primary e-mail address of the Interested Party as contained in their most recent filing with the Board or such other e-mail address as Staff may provide for the Interested Party. 

Appellants are strongly encouraged to request read receipts for their e-mail submissions. 

The completed Appeal Form must be included as an attachment in the e-mail submission, and, barring technical difficulties the Board Staff deems warrant excuse from this strict requirement, the Board will not accept documents which are not attached to the e-mail submission.

• Before the seven (7) day appeal submission deadline, please review and adhere to the requirements of this process as found in the Board's Appeal Policy.
• Before the seven (7) day appeal submission deadline, fill out the Appeal Form; include any additional documentation you wish the board to consider when reviewing your appeal.
• Submit any presentation materials two weeks prior to the Appeal Hearing.
• Present your case for appeal and prepare for the BDB to ask questions pertaining to your presentation (Attending Board meetings and presenting is not required, but it is highly encouraged).

Review the Right of First Refusal Policy (Updated December 2022)

The Board is charged with allowing competing incumbent providers to file a right of first refusal (RoFR) for project areas that are the subject of an application before the Board.

Steps:

RoFR Notice. RoFR Incumbents must submit a RoFR Notice no later than forty-five (45) days after the application has been posted to the Board website for the cycle. Late submissions, or submissions that materially fail to comply with the submission requirements herein, may be rejected by Board staff. A RoFR Notice must be submitted for each of the projects for which the RoFR Incumbent intends to exercise a RoFR. The RoFR Notice Form can be found here.

RoFR Written Proposal Form. If a grant is awarded to the application of the properly noticed "RoFRed application", the RoFR incumbent must file the RoFR written proposal and all accompanying attachments within twenty (20) days of the grant application being approved by the Board. Late submissions, or submissions that materially fail to comply with the submission requirements contained in the RoFR Policy, may be rejected by Board staff. The RoFR Written Proposal form can be found here.

RoFR Submissions. Both the RoFR Notice and the RoFR Written Proposal Form must be submitted as attachments via electronic mail to Board staff at the following e-mail address: oit_broadbanddeploymentboard@state.co.us.

RoFR Policy

RoFR Notice Form

RoFR Written Proposal Form