Mississippi Code Title 77. Public Utilities and Carriers § 77-19-15

(1) An applicant for funding under this chapter shall provide the following information at a minimum on the application:

(2) After scoring and considering all applications, the Office of Broadband Expansion and Accessibility of Mississippi (BEAM) shall make its preliminary determinations. Within thirty (30) days after the preliminary determinations have been made, BEAM shall publish on its website the applications, the proposed geographic broadband service area illustrated by a shapefile, and the proposed broadband service speeds for each application that receives a preliminary determination.

(3) Within thirty (30) days from the date the preliminary determinations are published on BEAM's website, BEAM shall accept comments or objections concerning each application and investigate each of them as appropriate. BEAM shall consider all comments and objections received and the investigative findings in determining whether an applicant is eligible for a final determination and award.

(4) BEAM shall not make a final determination and award to an applicant if verifiable information is made available that shows the proposed project includes an area where broadband services currently are deployed, or where construction of a network to deploy broadband service is underway by a provider other than the applicant, and the construction is scheduled to be completed within one (1) year after the date of the application.

(5) An applicant's or challenging party's trade secrets, financial information and proprietary information submitted under this chapter as part of an application or challenge are exempt from disclosure under the Mississippi Public Records Act, Section 25-61-1 et seq.

(6) Any contractor deploying broadband infrastructure for a project that has been awarded grant monies by BEAM is encouraged to use Mississippi employment to the fullest extent possible.