Pai Sets Dec. 10 Spectrum Auction, Plans to Reallocate CAF Funding Ahead of White House 5G Event

The FCC intends to begin its auction of spectrum in the 37, 39 and 47 GHz bands Dec. 10 and plans to begin work on a fund targeting broadband deployment in unserved rural areas, Chairman Ajit Pai told reporters Friday morning. The announcements came ahead of Pai's planned participation in an afternoon event with President Donald Trump aimed at clarifying that the U.S. isn't headed toward a nationalized 5G network, as we reported Thursday. That event is set to begin just before 2:30 p.m., the White House said.

The auction of spectrum in the 37, 39 and 47 GHz bands is “critical to providing the airwaves necessary for carriers to deploy 5G networks,” Pai said on a call with reporters. An item on the auction was already on the docket for Friday's commissioners' meeting, which itself was centered around 5G items. The auction will include 2,400 megahertz from the 37 and 39 GHz bands and 1,000 megahertz from the 47 GHz band. The FCC was also expected to consider a plan for sharing the 37 GHz band between industry and DOD. NTIA Thursday night weighed in on that, signaling it's not backing down, we reported.

The $20.4 billion Rural Digital Opportunity Fund will repurpose funding from the USF Connect America Fund, which is itself set to begin being phased out after the end of 2020, Pai said. Funding for other USF programs would be unaffected by the reallocation. The FCC plans to launch an initial proceeding to set up rules for the fund later this year, but Pai said he wants the funding to be allocated on the same reverse auction basis as was used in the CAF Phase II auction. The funding should be targeted at unserved areas and projects that aim to provide service at the current FCC minimum of 25 Mbps download and 3 Mbps upload, he said.