How the FCC can fix the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund problems for Phase II

The repercussions of the Federal Communications Commission’s Rural Digital Opportunity Fund (RDOF) Phase I auction are still being felt as waiver requests for winning bids roll in and disputes over whether or not certain bidders were qualified in the first place rage on. To ensure the Phase II auction isn’t plagued by the same issues, it all comes down to the FCC's broadband coverage maps. Mapping issues led to the wave of waiver requests after Phase 1; according to Competitive Carriers Association CEO Steven Berry, the FCC's maps don’t just impact the agency’s own broadband funding efforts but are also used to determine eligibility for state-level support. “We need to clear up this misunderstanding of the data and at least get one reliable data set that not only the federal government – and all the programs that have been made available – but states and localities can rely upon,” he said. The FCC has stated, "The Commission staff is hard at work collecting more detailed broadband coverage data that is necessary before any further auctions for support are conducted.” Broadband industry members also raised bidder vetting and auction timing as two issues the FCC should take special care with in the future, and some think it may not happen at all. Regardless, Steven Berry says "we have an opportunity to rethink the underlying purpose of RDOF II” and reassess where the real areas of need are if billions are already flowing toward fixed broadband.