Federal agency selects Philadelphia for $12M award to support digital equity 

Philadelphia is prepared to level up its digital equity ecosystem after securing millions in federal funding. 

The National Telecommunications and Innovation Administration (NTIA) selected the city earlier this month to receive almost $12 million to support device distribution, digital skills programming and affordable internet initiatives, including an emergency internet subsidy pilot. 

Philly brought together all its top stakeholders — from government agencies to nonprofits — to make it happen, Juliet Fink Yates, broadband infrastructure and digital inclusion manager for the Office of Innovation and Technology (OIT), told Technical.ly. 

“We wanted to make sure that Philadelphia could go in on an application all together, and that there weren’t too many small applications out there that might compete against each other,” Fink Yates said. “If we were doing similar work, we really wanted to join in together to focus that work.” 

The funding comes from the Digital Equity Act’s Digital Equity Competitive Grant program, which allocates $1.25 billion to fund initiatives that expand digital access and skills. The NTIA selected 24 organizations across the country to distribute $250 million in grants to this round. 

From the outset, the city focused its application on collaboration and partnership, choosing to work closely with the Technology Learning Collaborative (TLC), a local digital inclusion advocacy org, because of its existing connections to the community. 

OIT and TLC put a survey out to potential application partners asking them to be involved in the application. Despite a tight timeline, four city agencies and 18 other stakeholders signed onto the proposal. 

A notable part of the grant includes a proposal for an emergency internet subsidy pilot program, which would provide funding to people who need help paying their internet bills in the short term. 

The city completed a household internet assessment in 2021 and found that about one-third of households were subscription vulnerable, meaning that their access to the internet depended on their financial situation, Kate Rivera, executive director of TLC, told Technical.ly. 

This pilot also offers some relief following the end of the Affordable Connectivity Program, a federal internet subsidy program which ran out of funding last spring. 

“The idea behind this emergency internet subsidy would be that it could be a temporary, maybe three to six-month subsidy,” Rivera said. “They can maintain internet access while they’re going through financial hardships.” 

Millions for esports, digital navigators and laptop kiosks

The final proposal outlined ideas for increased digital skills classes, device access opportunities and possible short-term solutions for affordable internet. 

OIT, Parks and Recreation, the Free Library of Philadelphia and the Mayor’s Office of Education were part of the application process, along with nonprofits and universities. 

The proposal itself sets out to connect thousands of Philadelphians to free or low-cost internet and devices. It also details plans to expand the Digital Navigator network, which is a program that provides one-on-one support to people looking for digital resources. 

It also mentioned continued work with PCs for People to distribute devices and offer upskilling. To increase accessibility, the orgs also floated a low-cost digital coach volunteer program, Fink Yates said. The program would match volunteers with places that need extra hands to increase program capacity. 

The city also plans to build nine esports and digital access centers in parks and rec facilities across the city. The rec centers would receive equipment and additional staff to facilitate esports tournaments and other STEM education programming. This builds on top of Verizon’s deal with the city to install high-speed internet at 183 rec centers over the next two years. 

“We have this goal of trying to get as many parks and rec facilities up to date equipment and and become these digital anchor institutions,” Fink Yates said. “Using esports as the vehicle both as the violence prevention program and as a way to engage young people in a safe and productive competition.” 

The Free Library of Philadelphia will also build laptop kiosks at some of its locations. Members of the community would be able to check out and return laptops at these sites, she said. 

More than a decade of collaboration went into the recent proposal 

This is not the first time Philadelphia pulled together for national digital equity funding. In fact, the city’s history of collaboration in this space goes back about 15 years. 

Both Rivera and Fink Yates already had experience preparing federal funding applications, specifically after the Broadband Technology Opportunities Program (BTOP) in 2009. This money supported the city’s Freedom Rings partnership, which set up digital skills and device access opportunities, including a network of public computer labs called Keyspots. 

Since then, TLC helped keep organizations in the digital equity space connected to each other and continuing their work, even after the BTOP funding ran out, she said. 

“Federal funding may come and go, but having a place where folks can always come together to collaborate and share resources with each other helps with institutional knowledge,” Rivera said. 

Rivera and Fink Yates considered the longevity of the programs they’re creating while writing the proposal, Rivera said. She remembers when the BTOP funding ran out and saw how difficult it was for orgs to adjust and look for funds elsewhere. 

“When we wrote this proposal, we really did try to think about, how can this work be sustainable beyond the federal funding,” Rivera said. “We’re already thinking about sustainability and ways that we can invest in systems that can continue.” 

Advocates brace for opposition from the Trump administration

Digital equity stakeholders are hopeful for even more funding to become available in 2025.

Philadelphia being chosen for the first round signals that the city already has a robust digital equity ecosystem, with room for more digital resources, according to Fink Yates. 

“We need to really increase the skills of our residents,” Fink Yates said. “People really do need a device, they need access to the internet, and they need those skills so that they have opportunities moving forward to enter and succeed in the workforce.”  

The Digital Equity Act, where the recent funding stems from, has an additional grant program that doles out money for each state to implement its digital equity plan. 

In the commonwealth, Rivera anticipates the Pennsylvania Broadband Development Authority, the state office overseeing the funding, will put out a request for proposals for that funding within the next few months. 

Despite these upcoming opportunities, some stakeholders are concerned that the transition to the Trump Administration will cause delays or roadblocks, Fink Yates said. 

Nationally, organizations like the National Digital Inclusion Alliance raised an alarm about the future of digital equity funding after Texas Sen. Ted Cruz sent the NTIA a letter last fall asking them to stop the Digital Equity Competitive Grant Program. 

There are general concerns that some members of government will try to slow down the process of distributing the funds, Rivera said. Any new administration will take some time to ramp up as it reevaluates priorities and changes staff. 

“Even though this is an issue that is bipartisan and the legislation that created this funding opportunity was passed bipartisan,” Rivera said. “There could be some concerns with the new administration coming in about having this funding actually be fully approved and out to our communities.”