- Pennsylvania's first wave of BEAD awards, announced Oct 2, 2026, totals $448,009,274 to 9 providers for projects in 50 counties.
- Every first-wave project is fiber or fixed wireless; SpaceX and Amazon Leo aren't in this wave.
- The 29,884 satellite locations in the approved plan don't have a signed award yet.
- Some first-wave counts are lower than in the April 2026 provisional list: Verizon 10,409 vs 14,297, Frontier 2,407 vs 3,800.
- PBDA says the rest of the BEAD money will be awarded before the end of 2026, with service available by 2030.
Pennsylvania announced its first wave of BEAD awards on Oct 2, 2026: $448,009,274 to 9 providers for projects in 50 counties, all of them fiber or fixed wireless. Satellite locations aren’t in this wave. The state says the rest of its BEAD money will be awarded before the end of 2026.
What changed
The governor’s office and the Pennsylvania Broadband Development Authority (PBDA) announced the awards together. NTIA approved Pennsylvania’s BEAD plan earlier in 2026 for $711,295,843 and 129,356 locations. The first wave covers part of that:
| Approved plan (NTIA overview) | First wave (Oct 2026) | |
|---|---|---|
| BEAD money | $711,295,843 | $448,009,274 |
| Technologies | Fiber, low-orbit satellite, fixed wireless, cable | Fiber and fixed wireless |
| Satellite locations | 29,884 | None yet |
In the April 2026 provisional list, Amazon Leo held 20,408 of the satellite locations and SpaceX 9,476. Neither company appears in the first wave.
Some providers’ counts also fell between the April list and the first wave: Verizon from 14,297 to 10,409 locations, and Frontier from 3,800 to 2,407. The state hasn’t said whether the difference will come in a later wave.
For scale, the governor’s office says Pennsylvania households lacking high-speed internet fell from more than 330,000 in 2022 to fewer than 133,000.
Who it affects
- Households at the 29,884 satellite locations: no signed award yet, so no provider is committed to them.
- Households that expected Verizon or Frontier fiber from the April list: check that your location is still in a first-wave project.
- Everyone else at a first-wave location: a named provider, and the state’s target of service by 2030.
PBDA’s published schedule
- Contracts signed by the end of 2026
- Planning and permitting from fall 2026
- Construction starting in 2027
- Service available by 2030
What to do now
- Search your address on PBDA’s Project Location Map (pa.gov/ConnectPA). It shows whether your location is in a provisionally awarded BEAD or Capital Projects Fund project, which program covers it, and the provider.
- Check that provider against the October award list. If your project isn’t there, your location may come in a later wave.
- If your location was set for satellite, wait for the next announcement and ask PBDA how funded satellite locations will sign up before you buy equipment.
- If your home is missing from the map entirely, start with the FCC map.
The Pennsylvania guide keeps the state’s BEAD links, the map and later changes in one place.