Sen. Ted Cruz seeks to stop digital equity funding

Sen. Ted Cruz, a Texas Republican who just won re-election and is likely to chair the Senate Commerce Committee come January, is seeking to halt part of the NTIA's $2.75 billion Digital Equity Act. But while the senator's letter accuses the NTIA of breaking the law in its administration of the program, the agency's program rules are following the law as written by Congress.

In his letter to NTIA Chief Administrator Alan Davidson, dated November 20, Cruz specifically takes issue with the Digital Equity Act's $1.25 billion Digital Equity Competitive Grant program.

The Digital Equity Act, created in the 2021 bipartisan infrastructure law, reserves $2.75 billion for three grant programs to fund digital equity and inclusion initiatives. The $1.25 billion competitive grant program in particular provides funding to states for "initiatives that ensure communities have the access and skills to fully participate in the digital world, regardless of their background or circumstances." The NTIA started accepting applications for the competitive grant program in July. The agency announced in October that it had received more than 700 applications requesting over $6.5 billion in funding, far more than the funds available. The Digital Equity Act is a companion piece to the $42.5 billion Broadband Equity Access and Deployment (BEAD) program.

But according to Cruz, the Digital Equity Act's competitive grant program is being administered "in violation of the Fifth Amendment to the Constitution" for dictating the need to fund "covered populations," or "individuals who are members of a racial or ethnic minority group."

However, while Cruz in his letter seeks to blame the NTIA for this, the "covered population" mandate comes from Congress. As stated in the infrastructure law, which Cruz voted against in 2021, the NTIA must create a grant program, "the purpose of which is to award grants to support efforts to achieve digital equity, promote digital inclusion activities, and spur greater adoption of broadband among covered populations."

Cruz's letter ignores this fact.

"As the Ranking Member of the United States Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, which oversees NTIA, I urge you to withdraw the unlawful NOFO and halt issuing Program grants before you cause real harm," wrote Cruz.

"No later than December 12, 2024, please provide a response to this letter, confirming that the NOFO is no longer in place and NTIA has halted the process of issuing grants under it, or otherwise setting forth, in detail, the reasons you believe the NOFO does not violate the United States Constitution."

'Following the law'

Consumer broadband advocates were swift to call out Cruz for his allegation that the competitive grant program is unlawful, pointing back to the language of the infrastructure law.

"[I]t was Congress, in its wisdom, that defined the covered populations the Digital Equity Act programs are designed to address—including 'individuals who are members of a racial or ethnic minority group'," said Drew Garner, director of policy engagement at the Benton Institute for Broadband & Society, in a statement responding to the letter.

Garner added that the law further defines covered populations "to include low-income people, seniors, veterans, people with disabilities, and rural Americans (among others) and outlines the critical steps that NTIA must follow to advance digital literacy and improve internet adoption."

Gigi Sohn, spokesperson for the Affordable Broadband Campaign, added that Cruz "cannot unilaterally stop a Congressional mandate." She further noted that Cruz's own constituents stand to benefit from the program:

"One of the ironies of Sen. Cruz's demand is that Texas will soon receive over $55 million dollars for its own digital equity program – the Texas Digital Opportunity Program. Congress recognized that Texas and every other state in the nation require resources to ensure that everyone has the tools and skills that they need to use the Internet, which is essential to empowering full participation in every aspect of our society and our economy," said Sohn.

"We ask Senator Cruz to respect the will of his colleagues in Congress and not interfere with the Digital Equity Competitive Grant Program."

'Unburdened' by Congressional mandate?

Nevertheless, it seems that Cruz and the incoming Trump administration plan to interfere with the existing rollout of the Digital Equity Act and the BEAD program. That disruption may come as BEAD finally gets underway, with every state officially having its proposal approved, and with Louisiana being first to award BEAD grants. It is as yet unclear what may come of BEAD, but Trump has suggested the funds should go to low-Earth (LEO) orbit satellite technology, like SpaceX's Starlink. "Elon can do it for nothing," he said, without evidence, on Joe Rogan's podcast in October.

Moreover, Republicans in Congress including Cruz have repeatedly claimed the NTIA is instituting the BEAD program unlawfully, despite the NTIA writing its rules to reflect the law as written by Congress.

In a separate letter to the NTIA, dated November 21, Cruz (using a phrase that apparently seeks to mock Vice President Kamala Harris), told the NTIA that, under the new administration, BEAD will be "unburdened by what has been":

"Fortunately, as President-elect Trump has already signaled, substantial changes are on the horizon for this program," wrote Cruz of BEAD. "With anticipated new leadership at both NTIA and in Congress, the BEAD program will soon be 'unburdened by what has been' and states will no longer be subject to the unlawful and onerous bureaucratic obstacles imposed by the Biden-Harris NTIA."