House Commerce Committee Leaders Raise Questions Regarding Concerning Lack of Detail in FCC's Broadband Announcement

House Commerce Committee Chairman Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ), Ranking Member Greg Walden (R-OR), Communications and Technology Subcommittee Chairman Mike Doyle (D-PA) and Subcommittee Ranking Member Bob Latta (R-OH) sent a letter to Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai in response to the FCC’s recent announcement that the Mobility Fund Phase II (MF II) will be replaced with a new 5G Fund. The lawmakers are seeking the following information on the FCC’s plan for this new 5G fund by January 17, 2020:

• What safeguards will the FCC put in place to ensure that areas eligible for support are based on reliable coverage data?
• How will the FCC determine which services are eligible for support?
• What performance benchmarks will you require to qualify for support?
• What steps will the FCC take to ensure that new services are sufficiently secure?