For many localities across the United States, there is a desperate need for better internet infrastructure, but also the realization that BEAD has fallen short of their needs. “Benefit of the bargain” has removed the areas with the most challenging business cases. These are the areas that need broadband subsidies the most in order to build a case for broadband infrastructure investment. Satellite, although a practical solution for remote areas, is not a substitute for fiber connectivity.

In terms of long-term viability for a locality, broadband gaps can create a perilous situation because the need for high-speed internet continues to grow, as do the demands and opportunities in an increasingly online world. SNG’s recent research has shown that residents value access to robust and competitive broadband almost as much as they value proper community management of water and sanitation.

In addition, Q1 2026 data also shows that users are paying more than ever for high-speed internet service, while not getting the reliability or speed they need.

In today’s economy, small businesses are trying to compete in a world that requires 24/7 connectivity. School students are being assigned homework that requires broadband. Healthcare providers are continuing to advance telehealth, but adoption in many places has flattened because people either don’t trust the connection or simply don’t have the bandwidth at home to use it properly.

The need is real. Everybody can feel it. It’s the world we live in. Broadband is no longer a technology discussion.

It is a healthcare discussion.

It is an education discussion.

It is an economic development discussion.

It is a civic pride discussion.

Most importantly, it is a long-term economic survival discussion.

So what comes next?

For communities left outside of BEAD funding opportunities, waiting is unlikely to be a winning strategy. The communities that ultimately give themselves the best chance to bridge their broadband gaps will be those that continue planning, building partnerships, documenting need, exploring alternative funding and leveraging community infrastructure deployment models.

For more than 20 years, SNG has partnered with localities across North America to help assess broadband needs, engage stakeholders, evaluate opportunities and develop strategies for building a case for investing in broadband infrastructure.

The path to creating community broadband infrastructure can be different for each locality, however the process typically includes local investment, public-private partnerships, community anchor institution-driven demand or wholesale / open-access networks.

None of these steps are easy, but neither is standing still or waiting for the next funding while connectivity needs continue to grow. Leaving broadband gaps and needs unaddressed will grow increasingly costly for the local economy and quality of life.

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Building an Economic Case for Community Broadband Infrastructure

To begin, we’ll break down financing because that is the biggest hurdle for community broadband projects. When the business case does not work, broadband will not get financed. Broadband gaps will continue until localities and investors find a viable solution that better aligns community needs with investors’ returns on their investments. The critical first step is to pivot to a broadband infrastructure approach in which the longer-term economic benefits to community growth and business success, which grows the addressable market for service providers and leads to a virtuous cycle that increases network revenue opportunities and returns on investment.

Community initiatives need to take an infrastructure investment approach in order to realize the full economic and community benefits from digital infrastructure over the long term. This can be operationally achieved by partnering with digital infrastructure investors (public and private) in which ownership and operations are structurally separated from retail service delivery. This enables competitive service offerings without becoming a direct competitor to incumbent providers.

Broadband that connects all in a community is digital infrastructure. Like roads and electrical grids, digital infrastructure enables benefits to local economic vitality, competitiveness, resilience and quality of life. However, most of these benefits from digital infrastructure investments do not accrue to private sector internet service providers. This results in underinvestment in broadband as providers only target areas they assess to be profitable.

Broadband infrastructure is more than simply fast broadband access. Community broadband infrastructure connects all anchor institutions, residents and businesses in the community (like roads) so that all can effectively participate in an increasingly online economy, rather than only serving the most profitable areas. Ubiquitous, affordable broadband increases local innovation and grows the local economy, which, in turn, grows the local market for broadband and value-added services. There is an attendant upswing in demand for broadband and the value-added services it delivers. These spillover effects (sustainable local economic growth, enhanced quality of life) are indirect benefits to communities and a primary driver for public investment in infrastructure (roads, water and sewer systems, electric utilities).

Ubiquitous, competitive broadband is a goal that is often best (or only) realized through a model driven by public-private partnership in the investment in broadband infrastructure. This model builds on principles established in the public funding of roads, water and sewer systems, and electric utilities because the indirect benefits to communities are a primary driver for public investment in infrastructure, whereas indirect benefits are off-balance sheet to private investors.

As with roads, or airport authorities, broadband infrastructure is critical to ensuring long-term future economic sustainability and community resilience. Assessing these ‘off-balance sheet’ benefits from digital infrastructure helps localities better understand the scope and scale of necessary investments – and possible partnerships.

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Financing Options for Community Broadband Investments

Based on expected ‘off-balance sheet’ community benefits, there are a number of options for localities that include Full Faith and Credit, Revenue Bonds, Operator Investors, USDA loans, co-financing with the local electric utility, zero interest loans, etc. The best fit for the locality needs to take into account the following factors:

• Have broadband gaps, needs and potential community benefits been assessed?
• Is there political will to bridge these broadband gaps and address these needs?
• To what extent can these gaps be addressed by reallocating existing budgets?
• Are community anchor institutions willing to advocate and support community broadband investment?
• What is the status of pre-signups and securing market demand?
• What is the community’s appetite for risk and reward?

Strategic Networks Group, Advancing Economies in a Digital World, our LinkedIn page, will examine some of the opportunities and challenges of each model and why each may or may not be a fit for your community.

Coming next in this series – the Path to building an economic case for Community Broadband Infrastructure.

We’ll explore the practical realities of building an economic case for community broadband infrastructure, including financing options, risk assessment, demand forecasting, community engagement, and strategies for long-term sustainability.

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Working with SNG – that’s the kind of diligence and know-how that helps communities take ownership of their digital future.

Ready to see what smart broadband strategy can unlock for your community? Visit SNGroup.com to learn how SNG delivers practical, results-driven broadband solutions.

For a closer look at what that impact looks like on the ground, explore our success stories and see how SNG’s broadband strategy drives local economies forward.