FCC broadband maps overcount rural coverage by 6.4M people, misdirecting funding

The FCC's National Broadband Map shows 19.6 million Americans lacking 100/20 Mbps broadband, but independent audits put the real number closer to 26 million -- a 33% undercount of 6.4 million people. This happens because ISPs self-report coverage and have every incentive to overstate it: claiming a census block is 'served' when only one address in that block can actually get service. The real pain: when BEAD and RDOF funding is allocated based on these maps, communities that are genuinely unserved get classified as 'served' and receive zero federal funding for broadband buildout. A ranch 2 miles outside a small town shows as 'covered' by a fixed-wireless ISP that technically serves one house on the town's edge, so no federal dollars flow there. The challenge process exists but pits individual residents (who must file FCC Form 477 challenges, provide speed test evidence, and document denied service requests) against ISP legal teams. This persists because the FCC relies on provider self-reporting with no independent verification, and ISPs face no penalty for overclaiming coverage.