FCC Clarifies Connect America Fund Performance Measures

In 2018, the Federal Communications Commission's Wireline Competition Bureau, the Wireless Telecommunications Bureau, and the Office of Engineering and Technology (collectively, the Bureaus) adopted performance requirements establishing a uniform framework for measuring speed and latency performance for recipients of high-cost support to serve fixed locations. Later, the Bureaus addressed certain issues regarding testing to be conducted by high-latency bidders in the Connect America Fund (CAF) Phase II auction. Now the Bureaus clarify that carriers have their entire support term to improve their networks and come into compliance with performance requirements. A carrier’s final performance testing milestone is at the end of its support term, and it is only then that a carrier may be subjected to final performance compliance withholdings. The Bureaus also clarify that carriers participating in multiple high-cost programs with required testing or subject to multiple speed obligations in a state will have compliance and non-compliance (as well as any potential withholding of support) determined specifically for each program, state, and speed tier. Thus, compliance and noncompliance percentages will be calculated for each program, state, and speed tier separately.