The FCC’s Wireline Competition Bureau (Bureau) has issued an order extending the limited waiver of the letter of credit (LOC) rules for the CAF Phase II Auction (Auction 903) and Rural Broadband Experiments (RBE) funding recipients until December 31, 2022. The waiver allows these entities to comply with Rural Digital Opportunity Fund (RDOF) auction LOC obligations in lieu of the more stringent LOC rules for CAF Phase II Auction and RBE funding recipients. The Bureau determined that carriers still face difficulties with financial markets and operational capacity due to the pandemic, and that extending the waiver will allow recipients to free up additional capital. The Bureau will continue to extend the RDOF LOC rules to CAF Phase II Auction and RBE support recipients, allowing them to reduce their LOCs to one year of support upon verification by the Universal Service Administrative Company (USAC) that the recipient has met its buildout milestones.
