CCA Seeks Delay on Mobility Fund Decision; RWA Disagrees
Two groups representing competitive carriers had slightly differently takes on whether the FCC should move forward Thursday with a commissioner vote on phase two of a Mobility Fund (MFII). The Competitive Carriers Association called for a delay. The Rural Wireless Association is asking that a vote still take place, though with the agency seeking further comment on key provisions. The FCC said in a notice last week the order is still on the agenda for commissioners' meeting.
Sign up for a free preview to unlock the rest of this article
If your job depends on informed compliance, you need International Trade Today. Delivered every business day and available any time online, only International Trade Today helps you stay current on the increasingly complex international trade regulatory environment.
“A short delay to allow transparency and public input, and to truly evaluate the best data to underlie critical MFII determinations, will provide the Commission with the necessary tools to construct a final framework that will advance the fundamental goal of universal service and protect the important rural issues that are at stake,” CCA said in the letter, in docket 10-208. “Precipitous action on the item, on the other hand, will open the door to procedural challenges on appeal, while also making it more difficult to demonstrate the deliberative, reasoned decision-making that will be required on review of the merits of the Commission’s new policies.”
RWA has a different approach, Counsel Caressa Bennet told us. “More time is needed on certain parts,” Bennet said Friday. “We have suggested that the FCC deal with the challenge process in a separate commission-level public notice in order to iron out the details and have comment on the proposal the FCC moves forward.”
RWA also criticized an AT&T filing, which suggested that information on Form 477 filings is adequate at least as a “starting point” for determining areas that should be eligible for MFII support (see 1702160054). “Unfortunately, this information provides little insight into how accurately Form 477 data represents the real world,” RWA said in a filing. “Indicating that a 90 meter boundary resolution is the only item necessary to ensure accurate Form 477 data requires a long leap of faith that a carrier uses modeling tools that closely represent actual value in the field.”
CCA added an additional wrinkle Friday, reporting on a meeting Wednesday with FCC Chairman Ajit Pai and aides to Commissioners Mignon Clyburn and Mike O’Rielly. CCA offered the filing, which hasn't been posted by the FCC, when asked about its stance on whether the agency should delay a vote. “CCA encourages the FCC to anchor its Mobility Fund II funding decisions on accurate service data and a sound challenge process, and avoid funding flash-cuts for legacy recipients to prevent widening the digital divide,” the filing said.
Similar to the RWA stance, CCA urges the FCC to seek more comment on parts of the rules. “CCA understands that the precise design of the challenge process has yet to be determined,” the filing said. “Even without clear standards, it is futile for the FCC to expect carriers to engage in a challenge process that is based upon irregular data. CCA therefore agrees that the Commission should seek comment on the structure and standards to be applied in the challenge process, provide a sufficient amount of time for carriers to accurately and wholly respond during the challenge process, and adopt a procedure that does not burden smaller carriers with limited resources. Despite carriers’ efforts to accurately report coverage data, the FCC must actively work to improve the methods by which coverage information is collected and reviewed, to ensure Mobility Fund II funds are responsibly dispersed to advance ubiquitous mobile broadband coverage.”
T-Mobile, which bid and won Mobility Fund money during the MFI, urged the FCC to have a better-thought-out approach this time. “While the agency’s Mobility Fund Phase I rules established a broad framework for the program, critical details regarding compliance were developed post-auction, creating significant confusion for participants,” the carrier said in a filing. “It appeared that many of the procedures were developed on an ad hoc basis by the Universal Service Administrative Company as the program matured, with no input from the industry.” For example, T-Mobile said rules on what carriers had to show to demonstrate compliance weren't clear: “Certain data originally required to demonstrate compliance (e.g., mile marker data) was modified or eliminated both orally and in subsequent guidance after carriers attempted to obtain clarification, even though showings had already been submitted.”
Deere & Co. said the Mobility Fund is critical for rural America. To be a success, the company said, the FCC must “direct funds to, among other areas, currently unserved or underserved areas encompassing agricultural operations, welcome accurate coverage information from a broad category of stakeholders in the coverage data improvement process, consider upload as well as download speeds, and promote coverage on croplands by explicitly including cropland in construction milestones and coverage area requirements and/or weighting unserved geographic areas that include cropland as part of the bidding process.”
“The Commission’s focus on developing a permanent Mobility Fund is an important element in bridging the digital divide,” emailed Scott Bergmann, CTIA vice president-regulatory affairs. “We’ve urged it to craft a robust Mobility Fund, with clear and achievable performance obligations, and a measured and phased transition for legacy support.”