Arkansas' preliminary proposal to invest roughly $308 million in federal funding to provide internet access for 79,000 underserved Arkansas homes and businesses is open for public comment until Aug. 29, the Arkansas State Broadband Office announced Monday.

The proposal announcement comes after sweeping federal changes to the program, called the Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment Program, or BEAD, that required the state broadband office to scrap its earlier plan and redo its bidding process starting in June . Arkansas received a record $1 billion to invest in broadband, a high-capacity transmission technology that is more than 100 times faster than dial-up internet.

The program aims to provide internet coverage to rural and lower-income households.

Under the proposed bids, 76% of t

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