LTD Broadband may lose Rural Digital Opportunity Fund dollars in Minnesota

LTD Broadband, the top bidder in the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund (RDOF) that can't seem to hold on to its funding, may see its dollars revoked in yet another state. This time the company is being challenged in Minnesota, where the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) in that state has ordered an investigation to determine if the company can deliver on the $311 million it was designated by the Federal Communications Commission to build out in the state's rural areas. As reported by MinnPost, the PUC reversed its earlier decision in June 2021 to approve LTD as an "eligible telecommunications carrier" (ETC) – a designation it needs in order to receive FCC grants – by asking an administrative law judge to determine if that status can be revoked. LTD was originally awarded $1.32 billion in the $9.2 billion FCC auction in 2020. The company was to spend those funds expanding broadband across 15 states. But it has since had its ETC status challenged for a variety of reasons – including widespread doubt that the fixed wireless company can build out gigabit fiber – and has lost grants and withdrawn its bids in several states, including South Dakota and California. The PUC's decision to investigate LTD came in response to a petition brought by the Minnesota Telecom Alliance and Minnesota Rural Electric Association requesting to initiate a proceeding to revoke LTD's ETC status and deny its funding certification for 2023.