News

On May 1, the Governor signed SB23-183 (Local Government Provision of Communications Services) which eliminates a 2005 law that has jeopardized CBO's efforts to close the digital divide. This bill enables Colorado’s local governments to provide, or partner to provide, broadband internet service without having to pass voter referendums. SB23-183 is necessary to close existing gaps in the state as we work to reach our goal of connecting 99% of Colorado households to high-speed broadband by the end of 2027.

The Broadband Fund and Broadband Deployment Board (BDB) are pleased to invite you to our Summer 2023 Grant Cycle webinar on Monday, May 15 at 10 a.m. In this webinar, we will discuss the BDB application process, available funds, the Board’s critically unserved policy and what to expect in the application submission and review process.

Slides will be posted to our website in advance of the webinar. The webinar will also be recorded.

On April 21, the Broadband Deployment Board (BDB) awarded $8,186,141.76 in High-Cost Support Mechanism Funds (HCSM), and $3,469,252.87 in Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds (SLFRF) to 10 applicants for the Winter 2023 Grant Cycle. All final decisions were posted to our website on April 25, 2023.

On Mar. 29, the CBO Data Team hosted the third webinar in our Broadband Data & Mapping Webinar series, focused on How to Use Our New Maps.

In February, the CBO launched the brand new Broadband Mapping Hub (Hub), an easy-to-use, complete resource to assist in broadband planning, finding partnerships and applying for broadband funding through the state. In this webinar we walked through the features and functionality of the Hub and the new maps and dashboards.

Minimum Requirements Decisions

As of March 31, the Board completed its review and issued Minimum Requirement Decisions for all of the applications for the Winter 2023 Grant Cycle. You can find all of the funding eligibility decisions on High Cost Support Mechanism (HCSM) and State & Local Fiscal Recovery Fund (SLFRF) on our website.

Board Decisions Posted
The Broadband Deployment Board (BDB) has published all of the decisions for the Presentation and Minimum Requirements Review meetings that took place on March 14, 15 and 22. Board decisions can be found on the Grant Awards page of our website. 

On March 15 and 21, the CBO hosted it's Advance Industry and Community Roundtable meetings. In order to maintain a regular cadence of communication with our partners, the CBO holds these Roundtable meetings bi-monthly. The slides and recordings from March's Industry and Community Roundtable discussions can be found below. The next Roundtable discussions will take place in May 2023.

Advance Industry Roundtable (March 15)

On Feb. 22, Lt. Governor Primavera announced a statewide initiative to increase awareness of the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP), a long-term benefit to help eligible households pay for high-speed internet, with support from EducationSuperHighway. Seventy one (71) partner cities, community-based organizations and trusted institutions around Colorado were invited to participate in the initiative.

Read the full press release.

We are very excited to launch the Colorado Broadband Office Mapping Hub (Hub)! The Hub is now available at broadbandhub.colorado.gov and is an easy-to-use resource for the public, internet service providers (ISPs), schools, communities and businesses around Colorado for their broadband education and planning purposes.