UPDATE, October 16: After announcing the Department of Commerce’s self-certification list in July, for manufacturers who claim to meet the Build America, Buy America (BABA) requirements of the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) Program — the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) announced today that the first list has been published.
In their announcement, NTIA said, “In this first version of the Self Certification list (linked under ‘Approved Waivers’), nearly twenty companies have proactively self certified that they are making broadband equipment in the U.S that meets the domestic manufacturing requirement in the BABA waiver for the BEAD Program.”
In recent weeks, vendors Nokia and XKL have both announced their self-certification with BABA requirements.
Original Story Follows
Today, the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) released a framework for self-certification and compliance through which manufacturers can meet the Build America, Buy America (BABA) requirements for the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) Program.
The BABA Act, originally part of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, is intended to promote domestic manufacturing and job creation. After the initial BABA requirements were released, leaders within the broadband industry expressed concerns about the feasibility of meeting the requirements.
In response to those concerns, NTIA released a waiver in February 2024 to lift certain BABA restrictions, while maintaining the goal that “close to 90% of BEAD funds spent on equipment would be spent on equipment manufactured in the U.S.”
But manufacturers still had questions about the BABA requirements.
In today’s announcement, the NTIA released a framework for self-certification and compliance that offers more comprehensive guidance on how to meet the BABA requirements.
- Self-certification: Manufacturers will have the option to self-certify that they are meeting the requirements of the BABA waiver. Once a manufacturer’s equipment is self-certified, it will be added to a list on the Department of Commerce’s website that can be viewed by BEAD grant applicants and other stakeholders. The first list will be posted in a few weeks.
- Compliance: NTIA issued compliance guidance for both manufacturers and BEAD subgrantees.
- For manufacturers to be in compliance with the BABA requirements, they must provide a BABA certification letter to subgrantees for any equipment that — according to the BABA waiver — must be domestically produced. Details about the letter are on the NTIA website.
- For subgrantees to be in compliance, they must submit reports on finished waived electronics that were used in their BEAD-funded project. This information will help NTIA understand the various electronics that are being used in broadband deployments.
More information about the compliance BABA requirements, and the NTIA’s full announcement, are found on their websites.
