FCC Announces Over $1.2 Billion For Broadband Through Rural Digital Opportunity Fund While Adding New Accountability And Transparency Measures

The Federal Communications Commission is ready to authorize more than $1.2 billion through the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund to fund new broadband deployments in 32 states. In the largest funding round to date, 23 broadband providers will bring broadband service to over 1 million locations. The FCC also has created the Rural Broadband Accountability Plan, a new effort to monitor and ensure compliance for universal service high-cost programs including the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund including increasing :

• Audits and verifications of support recipients – The number of audits and verifications will double in 2022 as compared to 2021, and include on-site audits as well as audits and verifications based upon random selection.
• Audits and verifications of large and higher-risk support recipients – The largest dollar recipients will be subject to an on-site audit in at least one state and higher-risk recipients will be subject to additional audits and verifications.
• Program transparency – For the first time, results of verifications, audits, and speed and latency performance testing will be made public on USAC’s website.