National Institute of Standards and Technology

The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) is a non-regulatory federal agency within the U.S. Department of Commerce responsible for developing cybersecurity frameworks, technology standards, and measurement science that underpin critical infrastructure protection across American broadband networks, power systems, and digital communications. Founded in 1901, NIST establishes the technical foundations enabling interoperability, security, and reliability for infrastructure systems ranging from telecommunications equipment to encryption protocols protecting sensitive government and commercial data.

NIST's cybersecurity work directly shapes BEAD Program compliance requirements. The BEAD Notice of Funding Opportunity mandates that subgrantees maintain cybersecurity risk management plans reflecting the NIST Cybersecurity Framework (currently Version 1.1) and supply chain risk management plans based on NIST Special Publication 800-161 and NISTIR 8276 guidance. These standards establish baseline security controls for broadband infrastructure receiving federal funding, ensuring networks can detect, respond to, and recover from cyber threats throughout their operational lifetime.

NIST leads the national transition to post-quantum cryptography (PQC), releasing the first three finalized quantum-resistant encryption standards (FIPS 203, 204, 205) in August 2024 and selecting the HQC backup algorithm in March 2025. This standardization work is essential for protecting BEAD-funded infrastructure investments—broadband networks deployed today with 20+ year lifespans must incorporate cryptographic agility to transition to quantum-resistant protocols before adversaries achieve quantum computing capabilities sufficient to break current encryption protecting critical infrastructure communications.