# Commerce OIG Flags BEAD Record Gaps

The Department of Commerce Office of Inspector General found that NTIA allocated approximately $42.45 billion through the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program in accordance with the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act and identified no direct misspending. However, NTIA did not retain original poverty datasets and supporting analysis, limiting independent verification of parts of the allocation calculations. NTIA must submit a documentation-retention action plan by December 22, 2026, while rules for unspent nondeployment funds remain under review.

- BEAD broadband offices, contractors, and grant recipients should keep traceable records of data, assumptions, and costs to support funding decisions and project documentation.
- The missing records concern verification of allocation calculations; the audit did not find that the allocations violated federal law or identify direct misspending.
- The NTIA action-plan deadline is **December 22, 2026**. The signals identify no new solicitation, contract award, or procurement deadline for industry.

**Jurisdictions:** federal
**Industries:** Information Technology, Construction & Infrastructure
**Topics:** Digital Infrastructure, Grants & Funding, Regulatory Compliance
**Published:** November 04, 2026

### Government Entities
- National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA)
- Department of Commerce Office of Inspector General (Commerce OIG)
- U.S. Department of Commerce (Commerce)

### Key Quotes
> NTIA should have saved the exact datasets, model versions, assumptions, and explanations behind its decisions as the work was being done.
> — Paroma Sanyal, telecommunications industry expert at Brattle

### Sources
- [Inspector General Finds NTIA Allocated BEAD Funds Properly but Lost Key Data | Benton Institute for Broadband & Society](https://www.benton.org/headlines/inspector-general-finds-ntia-allocated-bead-funds-properly-lost-key-data) - Benton Institute for Broadband & Society
- [Where did the broadband billions go? Watchdog finds gaps in federal records](https://san.com/cc/where-did-the-broadband-billions-go-watchdog-finds-gaps-in-federal-records) - Straight Arrow