The FCC’s Wireline Competition Bureau (WCB) announced Ernst & Young LLP as the chosen administrator of the $1.9 billion Secure and Trusted Communications Networks Reimbursement Program (Reimbursement Program). The 2019 Secure Networks Act directs the FCC to establish a program to “reimburse eligible providers of advanced communications service for reasonable costs associated with removing, replacing, and disposing of covered communications equipment and services.” The Reimbursement Program, to be administered by Ernst & Young, is the vehicle for the FCC to reimburse eligible providers for removing, replacing, and disposing of equipment. Ernst & Young will be tasked with managing the Reimbursement Program, and will review Reimbursement Program participant requests, and provide WCB with funding decision recommendations, among other duties.
