CenturyLink, Frontier Miss 2019 CAF II Milestones in Multiple States

Two telcos didn't meet all deployment requirements for having gotten USF money from the federal government, they reported Thursday. That drew concern from some state officials.

CenturyLink might not have met broadband deployment milestones in 23 states for the Connect America Fund Phase II USF program, it filed. Frontier Communications receives CAF II support for 29 states, and may not have met the 87 percent interim deployment milestone for 2019 in 13. The filings posted in docket 10-90.

States where both appeared to have missed requirements are Iowa, Illinois, Minnesota, New Mexico, Ohio, Oregon, Washington and Wisconsin. CenturyLink may also have missed targets in Alabama, Arkansas, Colorado, Idaho, Indiana, Kansas, Louisiana, Michigan, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, Utah and Virginia. Frontier may not have met thresholds in Arizona, California, New York, Utah and West Virginia. The FCC declined to comment.

"CenturyLink has been making substantial investments to bring broadband to FCC-designated, high-cost locations in the 33 states where it accepted CAF II money and will continue to make these investments," a spokesperson emailed. "Over the last four years, the company has deployed broadband to nearly 900,000 homes and small businesses in FCC-designated census blocks across rural America. We met our CAF II 2019 enablement milestone in 10 states and are close in the remaining states, where we are working diligently and expect to meet the milestone soon." The filing said the funding was for about 1 million locations.

As the USF recipient approaches completion of CAF II obligations, "the remaining locations are the most challenging to serve in terms of planning and cost," CenturyLink said. "Factors including density and terrain, for example, may have impacted the final number of homes and businesses CenturyLink enabled in 2019." The telco said it will file a 2019 year-end report by March 1 and hopes to share more detailed information then.

Frontier has deployed to more than 76 percent of total CAF II locations in California, Iowa, New York, Oregon and West Virginia. It, too, will provide vetted numbers by March 1. For those states where Frontier hasn't deployed to at least 76 percent of CAF II locations, the company said it will file requisite quarterly reports updating deployment. The company has enabled broadband at 10/1 Mbps to more than 596,000 locations. Its obligations are for 774,000 locations; it reached its interim milestone in 16 states.

Both telcos' failure to meet some buildout obligations in Illinois concerns that state's Citizens Utility Board Executive Director David Kolata. He wants to know what the companies will do to catch up. "Generally, citizens in more rural parts of Illinois have been frustrated for a while at the lack of quality broadband options," he said by phone. "It is one of the bigger issues on the telecom side in our state. Even in the best of circumstances in large cities, you often don’t have much choice." In rural and sparsely populated places, there may be no quality wireline or wireless internet service, Kolata said. "It’s a big policy issue and one that I know the governor and general assembly" have been working on, he said of legislators and of Gov. J.B. Pritzker (D).

This is an "important consumer issue," emailed Ohio Consumers’ Counsel office Chief of Staff for Non-Case Services Monica Hunyadi. Officials there and at other state-agency consumer advocacy offices didn't comment further.

Nebraska regulator Tim Schram has some concerns about carriers not meeting CAF II obligations, though he doesn't know how it affects his state. The Public Service Commission hasn't "had an opportunity to hear from CenturyLink directly about where they may fall short in meeting their CAF II obligations in Nebraska," emailed Schram. The commissioner is co-vice chair of NARUC's Telecom Committee.

Other state commissions noted they don't oversee CAF II. "It appears from notices sent by both CenturyLink and Frontier that neither company has met their 80% interim deployment milestones," emailed a Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission spokesperson. She noted the telco's statements are preliminary. Other state commissions and commissioners we surveyed Thursday didn't comment.

The FCC Wireline Bureau granted Frontier waiver Monday for missing deployment milestones in New Mexico, Arizona and Utah. That was "due to unforeseeable hurdles with tribal permitting and rights of way" (see 2001150003).