The Trump administration said Wednesday it would overhaul a $42 billion federal grant program aimed at expanding high-speed internet to the country.
The program will be revamped to “take a technology-neutral approach” in funding distribution to the state, Commerce Secretary Howard Luttonick said in a statement. The rules for the programme created during the Biden administration previously favored broadband lines made from home-mounted fiber optic cables.
“The department is tearing the meaningless requirements of the Biden administration,” Rutnick said. He added that the Commerce Department will also remove regulations and other barriers that slow construction and connections to homes.
Congress created a broadband equity, access and deployment program in 2021, expanding broadband to the country's most remote regions. The Department of Commerce has devised state and local standards and regulations for applying for funds, including the preference for fiber optic broadband, which provides the fastest internet service speeds.
Musk, a close adviser to President Trump and helps lead the government's efficiency initiative, is the CEO of SpaceX, the Rocket Company, which makes Starlink. Starlink uses low-altitude satellites to turn Internet services into beam internet services, devices anywhere on the globe. It serves nearly 5 million subscribers worldwide and was used by emergency responders in North Carolina late last year when communications networks were shut down after the hurricane.
The Commerce Department's Internet program has yet to spend any funds, and Republicans use it as an example of a slower program on red tape.
He accused the Biden administration of blocking Starlinks, which were unfairly blocked from Grant, and said satellite services could soon serve some of the country's most distant regions.
In 2023, the Federal Communications Commission rejected the Starlink application with a subsidy of nearly $900 million in another rural broadband program, indicating that the company was unable to meet its funding service requirements.
Brendan Kerr, then a Republican FCC member and now the agency's chairman, opposed the decision, saying the lawsuit was placed on the “growth list of administrative agencies taking action against Elon Musk's businesses.”
Musk's business interests include electric car maker Tesla and social media company X, but are spurring concerns about potential conflicts of interest as they make important decisions in Washington.
On Wednesday, some public interest groups expressed concern that Lutnik's plan to change the broadband program could directly benefit Musk.
“Fiber broadband is widely understood to be superior to other internet options, such as Starlink's satellites, because it offers significantly faster speeds.”
The Commerce Department did not immediately respond to requests for details on the plan. Musk did not respond to a request for comment.
