Elon Musk's SpaceX has slammed the state of Virginia over its proposed distribution of funding for its fiber rollout plans.

As part of Virginia’s $613 million plan to expand high-speed Internet access across the state, SpaceX has called Virginia's proposals a “massive waste of federal taxpayer money," and has called on the Commerce Department's National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) to deny the current proposals.

It all stems back to the Trump Administration's reworking of its $42 billion Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) grant program.

BEAD, which was set up by the Biden administration and confirmed by Congress in November 2021, has been implemented by the NTIA. The federal grant program was designed to fund projects dedicated to providing Internet infrastructure in unserved locations across the US and its territories

The previous Biden Administration had pushed for the program to prioritize fiber over alternative technologies such as satellite Internet.

Subsequently, Trump adjusted the program to ensure BEAD didn't prioritize fiber.

The initial purpose of BEAD was to push the rollout of fiber across the US, however, reforms made in June have put this as an equal with other technologies, such as satellites.

Starlink wants more

In Virginia, SpaceX was hoping to secure $60 million in grant money, but is now only on course for around $3m.

The company has accused the state of favoring fiber.

“Simply put, Virginia has put its heavy thumb on the scale in favor of expensive, slow-to-build fiber bias over speedy, low-cost, and technology-neutral competition,” the company told the state’s government.

“Virginia must immediately revise its final proposal to appropriately consider applications received in line with program rules."

The state has opted to choose Starlink for just 5,579 of the 133,000 locations slated for subsidized broadband installations.

SpaceX has called Virginia's proposals replete with "red flags," noting that it will end up in taxpayers overspending on their broadband, and has accused the state of not providing a level playing field.

Starlink is one of 24 entities to receive funding in Virginia. This includes Amazon's Kuiper satellite service, which is set to receive $4.46 million for 6,957 locations.

Local provider All Points Broadband, which provides fiber and wireless services, is set to be the biggest winner, as it's set to receive $171.4 million to serve 19,801 locations.

The NTIA is set to review the proposals before approval.

BEAD has been highly controversial. So far, the program has yet to connect a single household to broadband.

Only three states, Louisiana, Delaware, and Nevada, had received approval to get on with their broadband buildout.

Musk himself has previously called BEAD an “outrageous waste of taxpayer money."