Minnesota Telecom Alliance urges the state to revoke LTD Broadband's Rural Digital Opportunity Fund certification

The hits just keep coming for LTD Broadband. The Minnesota Telecom Alliance renewed an effort to block the operator from receiving millions in federal funding to deploy broadband in Minnesota, arguing LTD lacks the technical, managerial and financial capabilities needed to deliver the promised coverage. At issue is the $311 million in support LTD Broadband won in the Federal Communications Commission’s Rural Digital Opportunity Fund (RDOF) auction in 2020 to cover 102,000 residents in Minnesota. That money is set to be distributed over the course of 10 years, in annual installments of $31 million. In order to receive the funding from the FCC, the state must certify LTD as an Eligible Telecommunications Carrier (ETC). Minnesota’s Public Utilities Commission (PUC) approved LTD’s ETC application in June 2021. But the Minnesota Telecom Alliance now wants it to reverse course on the grounds that information has subsequently come to light indicating that LTD will not be able to deliver on its RDOF commitments. Specifically, it noted LTD has failed to receive ETC certification in seven of the 15 states where it won RDOF funding and the FCC has already declared the operator to be in default on over 30 percent of the 528,000 locations it bid on. However, the operator is notably fighting Iowa’s decision to deny its application.