Trace Fiber Just Landed $250.7M to Wire Rural Oklahoma — Chickasaw Nation's Gigabit Buildout
Trace Fiber Networks — wholly owned by the Chickasaw Nation — is the second-largest single BEAD award winner in the country, behind only Wisper ISP. $250.7 million federal grant to deploy fiber-to-the-home across 13 counties in south-central Oklahoma. No contracts, no data caps, 24/7 local Oklahoma-based support. If you live in Chickasaw country and you've been stuck on satellite or DSL, this is your fiber.
TL;DR — the punch list
- Who: Trace Fiber Networks LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Chickasaw Nation.
- How much: $250.7M BEAD federal grant — the 2nd-largest single fiber award nationally.
- Where: 13-county Chickasaw Nation territory in south-central Oklahoma (Ardmore, Ada, Pauls Valley, Sulphur, Tishomingo, Madill, Marietta, and surrounding rural communities).
- Service terms: No contracts. No data caps. No bandwidth throttling. 24/7 local OK-based phone support.
- Speed tiers: Symmetrical fiber up to 1 Gbps / 2 Gbps (varies by tier).
- Risk rating: 🟢 GREEN. Tribal-owned (financial backer + sovereign accountability), no concerning complaint pattern, strong local presence.
Where they're building
Trace Fiber serves the 13-county Chickasaw Nation jurisdiction in south-central Oklahoma. The buildout is concentrated in small towns and rural communities historically underserved by AT&T DSL and stuck with satellite as the only "fast" alternative.
| Region | Main towns | What's there today |
|---|---|---|
| Carter County | Ardmore, Lone Grove | AT&T DSL in town, satellite elsewhere |
| Pontotoc County | Ada, Allen, Stonewall | Mix of Cable ONE + DSL |
| Garvin County | Pauls Valley, Wynnewood | DSL + satellite |
| Murray County | Sulphur, Davis | DSL only outside town |
| Johnston County | Tishomingo, Milburn | DSL or no service |
| Marshall County | Madill, Kingston | DSL only |
| Love County | Marietta, Thackerville | DSL or satellite |
| Bryan, Coal, Hughes, McClain, Pottawatomie, Stephens counties | Various | Mostly DSL or no broadband |
Timeline
- 2022-2024: Initial Chickasaw Nation broadband planning + state grant pre-work.
- 2025 Q4: $250.7M BEAD provisional award announced.
- 2026: Multi-year fiber backbone construction underway. Address-by-address activations rolling out as crews complete sections.
- 2027-2028 target: Substantial completion across the 13-county footprint per BEAD program timelines.
Speeds + pricing
Trace Fiber's residential plans are symmetrical (matching upload/download — important for video calls, Plex servers, cloud backup):
| Tier | Speed (down/up) | Typical price |
|---|---|---|
| Standard | 250 / 250 Mbps | $59/mo |
| Premier | 500 / 500 Mbps | $79/mo |
| Gig | 1,000 / 1,000 Mbps | $99/mo |
| 2 Gig | 2,000 / 2,000 Mbps | $129/mo |
No contracts, no data caps, equipment included. Confirm current pricing on the Trace Fiber website at signup.
Rick's installer take — why this one is a no-brainer
The thing that sets Trace apart from the other BEAD recipients we're tracking: tribal ownership matters. The Chickasaw Nation has been operating businesses (gaming, hospitality, healthcare, retail) for decades. They don't go bankrupt, they don't get sold to private equity, and they're accountable to their citizens — not Wall Street.
- Free interior install + decent Wi-Fi. Like all grant-funded ISPs, they're motivated to hit completion deadlines. Free Cat6 wiring + Wi-Fi 6 router is the going package — work I'd otherwise charge $400-800 for as an installer.
- No contract. Cancel anytime. That's huge in rural Oklahoma where Cable ONE and AT&T DSL have historically locked people in for 2-3 years.
- Local OK-based support. 24/7 phone tree that actually puts you on with someone in-state. Compare to AT&T's overseas tier-1 script-readers.
- No data caps, no throttling. Watch as much 4K, run as many cameras, host as much from home as you want.
The honest take: if Trace Fiber is building toward your address in Chickasaw country, sign up the day they offer activation. This is the cleanest profile in the BEAD top-10 — financially backed, locally accountable, customer-friendly terms. If you're a few miles outside the 13-county footprint, ask if their build will extend (sometimes does after main territory is wrapped).
How to check your address
- Go to tracefiber.com and use the service-area / address-check tool.
- Verify your county is one of the 13 in scope.
- If in scope: join the install waitlist. They activate batches as crews finish sections.
- Call 1-855-558-7223 if the address tool doesn't show your road — sometimes the database lags actual construction.