Dear Tribal Leaders:
I send you all greetings from the Rosebud Sioux Indian Reservation in South Dakota on behalf of the Coalition of Large Tribes and Native Connections.
Recently Tribes have attempted to work with States on the BEAD funding and depending on your area you have had a good working relationship with the Governor’s office or have had a bad working relationship in which the Governor’s office is looking at local providers and are stating they can provide the services therefore Tribal participation is not needed.
We are concerned if Tribes are ultimately treated unfairly when it comes to broadband deployment dollars and projects.
The Coalition of Large Tribes is working with Native Connection and are inviting you to join us for a 45-minute webinar next Friday, January 12 to focus on the Mapping Challenge Process. The Zoom event will take place at 2:30 Mountain time.
The Mapping Challenge Process is a unique way to question submitted state BEAD coverage plans as well as those being prepared for submission in Round 2 of the Tribal Broadband Connectivity Program (TBCP) so the timing of this webinar is on point.
Our guest presenter will be Ed Bartholme. Ed is the FCC’s Deputy Chief of the Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau and more importantly the Outreach Director for the Broadband Data Task Force who oversees the mapping function for the Commission.
Ed is acutely aware of issues facing Indian Country and has traveled to a number of reservations over the past two years to see the impact that the lack of ubiquitous broadband has on Tribal populations. He will be joined by colleagues of his at the FCC.
A link to the Zoom call is included below as are some materials you may want to review in advance.
Zoom Link for January 12, 2:30 PM Mountain Time:
https://us05web.zoom.us/j/86413262482?pwd=yRn46VtfT0zrYmF2tlAKKZR1C2Htnc.1
Tribal Broadband Connectivity Program Round 2 Webinar: Mapping Requirements (youtube.com)
Information on Fabric (or location) Challenges:
https://help.bdc.fcc.gov/hc/en-us/articles/8554187214107-Fabric-Challenge-Process
Information on Service Availability Challenges:
Details on how to request a no-cost license to the Fabric (location) data: https://help.bdc.fcc.gov/hc/en-us/articles/6785010654235-How-Government-Entities-Can-Access-the-Location-Fabric-
Pila maya pelo (Thank you)
Mitakuye Oyasin (We are all related)
OJ Semans Sr.
www.nativeconnects.com