A new BTOP resource has been released. BTOP’s Connecting America’s Communities Map located at http://www2.ntia.doc.gov/BTOPmap/ is now available as a beta application. This resource provides a map which gives a visual depiction of BTOP grant recipient activities within each state. View the national map, select a state from the drop-down list, or enter a zip code and select search. Filter information by connection speed, by the type of institution to be served, or by the type of award. Overlay congressional district boundaries or add a population density gradient overlay to the map. Or toggle all filters on and off using the “Select All Filters” bar.

When first entering the site and viewing the information at a national level note the arrow tabs on either side of the map. Toggle between speed, institution type and award type using the arrows. Or let the maps advance from one to the next based on timing provided by the site.

This beta application also includes a State Dashboard for viewing planned activities and for noting the progress made within a state based on the last submitted annual report. Users can view award information for a selected state and also download summary information on the BTOP awards. When viewing awards for a selected state such as Washington State, the user is taken to another BroadbandUSA page, in this case http://www2.ntia.doc.gov/washington.

From the website, “The content presented in BTOP’s Connecting America’s Communities Map includes data provided by grant recipients, which was submitted during the annual and quarterly report process and is available on the BTOP website. The Map is updated annually and therefore, does not reflect current project status. The Map also contains certain information about planned project progress, and such information is subject to change. It does not include data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Rural Utilities Service’s (RUS) Broadband Initiatives Program (BIP), although a list of BIP-funded projects is available on the State Dashboard.” Even though the data is quickly dated once current report information has been posted, the site provides an interesting overview of planned work associated with all of the NTIA awards for a state.

A two page fact sheet on BTOP’s Connecting America’s Comunities Map is available at http://www2.ntia.doc.gov/BTOPmap/data/btop-map-fact-sheet.pdf.

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