The Washington State Broadband Office (WSBO) is preparing for the second and final round of funding under monies made available by the American Recovery Plan Act. WSBO is soliciting comments on important issues that will inform WSBO in crafting scoring requirements for the Fall Notice of Funding Opportunity (NoFO) as well as certain other considerations that are important in the process of administering grant monies.

As a possible/potential grant applicant, Whatcom PUD Commissioners responded on September 27, 2022, to the Call for Comments regarding the following:

  1. On questions regarding open access and how it should be considered in an evaluation process;
  2. On the possible scoring associated with financial matches in an evaluation process;
  3. If/how potential applicants would use considerations of digital equity to select between possible projects;
  4. Opinions regarding the challenge process;
  5. The definition of Last Mile service.
  6. On various considerations that are not intended to be scoring criteria, but rather, guidance to applicants regarding considerations that might be made in preparing project applications.

Click on the link below to view or download Whatcom PUD’s Call for Comments Response:
Call for Comments Response

Responses to the questions shown below are due by October 4, 2022.

Once comments are received, WSBO will host a roundtable in late October to listen to views of various stakeholders. WSBO will then incorporate the views expressed by stakeholders into the Fall Notice of Funding Opportunity.

More information:  Washington State Broadband Office Link