Municipalities were able to apply to this digital equity planning opportunity through April 12, 2024. MBI will review applications on a rolling basis to ensure that all required eligibility criteria are met. MBI may request municipalities to supply additional information if needed. Upon review and approval for participation in the Municipal Digital Equity Planning Program, MBI will provide a list of prequalified consultants that can serve the applicant's needs. The Municipal applicant will then make a selection of the consultant. MBI will then execute a work order with the consultant to provide the planning services and the consultant and municipality will engage in the work. The full cost of the consultant's services will be covered by MBI under this program. 

Flow chart explanation of Municipal Digital Equity Planning Application Process

MBI will evaluate applications for the presence of impacted (300% poverty) or disproportionately impacted (185%) populations, as defined under U.S. Treasury Guidance related to ARPA SLFR Funds. Communities that demonstrate the presence of these populations will be considered eligible to participate in the Digital Equity Planning Program. 

Municipalities applying for the Municipal Digital Equity Planning Program will be required to designate a staff member – either a municipal employee or elected official – who will be responsible for coordinating the municipality’s involvement and engagement in the planning activities. This designation will be a prerequisite for any municipality to be eligible to receive digital equity planning support. Municipalities will also have to submit a signed letter from the municipal's chief executive (Mayor, Town/City Manager, etc.) or for a town, a majority of the Selectboard members indicating their support for this planning effort.

A list of questions and answers have been collected and made public as a helpful resource.

Review FAQs

The Digital Equity Charrette option is intended to be a low barrier to entry option to support municipalities with limited staff capacity and existing knowledge or activities related to digital equity. As part of the Digital Equity Charrette, consultants will organize and facilitate an intensive workshop engaging municipal officials, community groups, and other stakeholders (“digital equity stakeholders”) to gather information on the needs of residents and the digital equity issues facing the municipality and focusing on the populations most impacted by the COVID 19 pandemic. With guidance from the municipality’s chosen consultant, digital equity stakeholders will work together to identify priorities, challenges, and solutions addressing the digital equity divide in the municipality

Municipal staff should expect charrette meetings to total approximately 8 hours, spread across one or two days with additional time required for site preparation and clean up. Consultants will be expected to work with municipal staff to enable in person, hybrid, or fully virtual activities as needed by the community. 

At the end of the charrette, the municipality will receive a summary report deliverable with strategic recommendations to begin, modify, or expand digital equity programs/investments and a detailed, realistic vision for future action.

The Digital Equity Planning option is designed to provide municipalities an opportunity to execute a full comprehensive planning exercise. For the Digital Equity Planning option, consultants will provide expanded data collection and dive into deeper conversations and engagement with digital equity stakeholders. 

Through the Digital Equity Planning process consultants will provide a comprehensive existing conditions analysis that will provide a baseline overview of digital access and equity gaps affecting the municipality’s populations - including levels of broadband subscription, aggregate speed data, available services and pricing options, and device access/usage.

In coordination with municipal partners, consultants will also engage in an expanded community/stakeholder engagement process to collect a more nuanced and localized layer of data onto the existing conditions analysis that will inform community specific needs related to digital literacy, devices, connectivity, affordability, and other issues related to digital equity.

A suite of strategic recommendations that meet the needs and goals of residents experiencing the impacts of the digital divide will be delivered for consideration and adoption by the municipality. These recommendations will include an assessment of existing or future funding opportunities available through sources that include the American Rescue Plan Act (“ARPA”) and Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (“IIJA”). 

Municipalities will receive a cohesive and comprehensive final deliverable in report format at the end of the planning process.

See a sample Digital Equity Plan here.

 

 

The Municipal Digital Equity Planning program is designed to integrate with the Massachusetts Statewide Digital Equity Plan. Under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, the US Congress allocated $1.45B to the Digital Equity Act (DEA) to support states to develop and implement digital equity strategies and initiatives. Massachusetts has received funding to conduct a statewide digital equity plan that will provide the vision, goals, and implementation strategy for Digital Equity Capacity Grants - a second funding source that will be allocated to states upon completion and federal approval of the statewide digital equity plan. The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), the federal agency responsible for administering the Digital Equity Act, has not yet announced formula allocations for each state's share of the Capacity Grant funds.

MBI will reflect content and recommendations from all existing municipal or regional digital equity plans into the Massachusetts Statewide Digital Equity Plan to ensure that the Digital Equity Act Capacity Grant program is aligned with community needs.

The Massachusetts Digital Equity Partnerships Program seeks to designate approximately 10-15 Partners as qualified organizations that can implement a suite of digital equity projects that meet the goals outlined in the state’s legislation.

Partners will be expected to work with organizations including municipalities and municipal agencies, community development corporations (CDCs), community-based organizations (CBOs), public housing authorities, community colleges, local and regional school districts, healthcare and telehealth organizations (including federally qualified community health centers), and other entities as sub-awardees to implement digital equity projects.

MBI has identified six program areas that align with the legislative goals of the Broadband Innovation Fund and meet federal requirements established by the US Treasury for the use of Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds (SLRF). 

To the extent that municipalities identify local strategies that align with the program areas under the Digital Equity Partnerships program MBI will work to facilitate connection points between active Digital Equity Partners and municipalities engaging in the Digital Equity Planning program.

The intent of the Municipal Digital Equity Implementation Program is to enable municipalities who need funding to mobilize, start-up, and implement digital equity activities locally to access a one-time grant up to $100,000 per municipality to execute a project (or projects) defined in their Digital Equity Plan, Digital Equity Planning Charette, or pre-existing local digital equity plan or related document that MBI deems of sufficient standard. Project implementation will increase access and usage of the internet for the populations most impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Municipalities are strongly encouraged to utilize their planning consultants from the Municipal Digital Equity Planning Program to define a project (or set of projects) scope and budget for implementation. Upon approval from MBI, municipalities may start project implementation and will be accountable to MBI’s reporting requirements, which vary by proposed focus area(s). Note that the process of applying to the Municipal Digital Equity Implementation Program will differ for municipalities that have not engaged in the Planning Program.