FCC Shouldn't Limit Upfront Repacking Reimbursement Allocation to $1 Billion, NAB Says
The FCC shouldn’t limit its initial allocation of the $1.75 billion repacking reimbursement fund to $1 billion, NAB said in a meeting with Incentive Auction Task Force Chair Jean Kiddoo and IATF staff Tuesday, recounted a filing posted Thursday in…
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docket 16-306. “Failing to do so unnecessarily creates the potential for delay for stations that cannot afford to order equipment and services until they are reimbursed.” The FCC has the full reimbursement fund available, NAB said, and stations have delayed placing orders for repack equipment because of uncertainty they’ll receive enough funds upfront. The agency already knows the cost of the repacking exceeds the reimbursement fund, and capping the upfront allocation at $1 billion would be a departure from original plans, NAB said. "Withholding $175 million, 10 percent of the available funding, is adequate to guard against the possibility of over-allocation while also reducing the possibility that a lack of funding becomes a source of otherwise avoidable delays.”