To require the Federal Communications Commission to establish a vetting process for prospective applicants for high-cost universal service program funding.
Sponsors
Legislative Progress
Passed SenateReported by Mr. Cruz, without amendment
Passed Senate (inferred from es version)
Mrs. Capito (for herself, Ms. Klobuchar, and Mr. Curtis) introduced …
Mrs. Capito (for herself, Ms. Klobuchar, Mr. Curtis, and Mr. …
Summary
What This Bill Does
This bill requires the FCC to create a rigorous vetting process for companies applying for high-cost universal service fund (USF) broadband deployment subsidies. Applicants must demonstrate technical, financial, and operational capabilities with a reasonable business plan before receiving funding. The FCC must set minimum penalties of at least $9,000 per violation for defaults, with base forfeitures of at least 30% of total support.
Who Benefits and How
- Rural communities benefit from more reliable broadband deployment by ensuring only qualified providers receive funding.
- Established telecommunications providers with proven track records benefit from qualification requirements that favor experienced operators.
- Taxpayers/ratepayers benefit from reduced waste as unqualified applicants are screened out before receiving subsidies.
- FCC enforcement gains clearer authority and minimum penalty floors for holding recipients accountable.
Who Bears the Burden and How
- Smaller/newer broadband providers face higher barriers to entry with documentation and qualification requirements.
- Companies with poor compliance history in government broadband programs face disadvantage in future applications.
- FCC must initiate rulemaking within 180 days and develop vetting standards.
- Providers who default face minimum $9,000 per violation penalties and at least 30% support forfeiture.
Key Provisions
- FCC must initiate rulemaking within 180 days to establish vetting process
- Applicants must demonstrate technical, financial, and operational capabilities
- Must have reasonable business plan for network deployment
- Evaluation against Digital Opportunity Data Collection technical standards
- Applicant compliance history in government broadband programs considered
- Minimum $9,000 penalty per pre-authorization default violation
- Base forfeiture minimum of 30% of total support (unless FCC justifies lower)
- Technology neutrality principle maintained
Evidence Chain:
This summary is derived from the structured analysis below. See "Detailed Analysis" for per-title beneficiaries/burden bearers with clause-level evidence links.
Primary Purpose
Requires the FCC to establish a vetting process for applicants seeking high-cost universal service fund broadband deployment funding, including technical, financial, and operational qualification requirements and minimum penalties for defaults.
Policy Domains
Legislative Strategy
"Prevent waste in rural broadband subsidies by requiring upfront qualification vetting and meaningful penalties"
Bill Structure & Actor Mappings
Who is "The Secretary" in each section?
- "the_commission"
- → Federal Communications Commission (FCC)
Key Definitions
Terms defined in this bill
Any new offer of high-cost universal service program funding, including reverse competitive bidding, for broadband-capable network deployment
Award of covered funding based on application submitted after rules are promulgated
We use a combination of our own taxonomy and classification in addition to large language models to assess meaning and potential beneficiaries. High confidence means strong textual evidence. Always verify with the original bill text.
Learn more about our methodology