(a) Public Notice of the Application Process. The dates and procedures for submitting applications to participate in competitive bidding pursuant to this subpart shall be announced by public notice.

(b) Application contents. Unless otherwise established by public notice, an applicant to participate in competitive bidding pursuant to this subpart shall provide the following information in an acceptable form:

(1) The identity of the applicant, i.e., the party that seeks support, and the ownership information as set forth in §1.2112(a);

(2) The identities of up to three individuals authorized to make or withdraw a bid on behalf of the applicant. No person may serve as an authorized bidder for more than one auction applicant;

(3) The identities of all real parties in interest to, and a brief description of, any agreements relating to the participation of the applicant in the competitive bidding;

(4) Certification that the applicant has provided in its application a brief description of, and identified each party to, any partnerships, joint ventures, consortia or other agreements, arrangements or understandings of any kind relating to the applicant's participation in the competitive bidding and the support being sought, including any agreements that address or communicate directly or indirectly bids (including specific prices), bidding strategies (including the specific areas on which to bid or not to bid), or the post-auction market structure, to which the applicant, or any party that controls as defined in paragraph (d)(1) of this section or is controlled by the applicant, is a party;

(5) Certification that the applicant (or any party that controls as defined in paragraph (d)(1) of this section or is controlled by the applicant) has not entered and will not enter into any partnerships, joint ventures, consortia or other agreements, arrangements, or understandings of any kind relating to the support to be sought that address or communicate, directly or indirectly, bidding at auction (including specific prices to be bid) or bidding strategies (including the specific areas on which to bid or not to bid for support), or post-auction market structure with any other applicant (or any party that controls or is controlled by another applicant);

(6) Certification that if the applicant has ownership or other interest disclosed pursuant to paragraph (b)(1) of this section with respect to more than one application in a given auction, it will implement internal controls that preclude any individual acting on behalf of the applicant as defined in §1.21002(a) from possessing information about the bids or bidding strategies (including post-auction market structure), of more than one party submitting an application for the auction or communicating such information with respect to a party submitting an application for the auction to anyone possessing such information regarding another party submitting an application for the auction;

(7) Certification that the applicant has sole responsibility for investigating and evaluating all technical and marketplace factors that may have a bearing on the level of support it submits as a bid, and that if the applicant wins support, it will be able to build and operate facilities in accordance with the obligations applicable to the type of support it wins and the Commission's rules generally;

(8) Certification that the applicant and all applicable parties have complied with and will continue to comply with §1.21002;

(9) Certification that the applicant is in compliance with all statutory and regulatory requirements for receiving the universal service support that the applicant seeks, or, if expressly allowed by the rules specific to a high-cost support mechanism, a certification that the applicant acknowledges that it must be in compliance with such requirements before being authorized to receive support;

(10) Certification that the applicant will be subject to a default payment or a forfeiture in the event of an auction default and that the applicant will make any payment that may be required pursuant to §1.21004;

(11) Certification that the applicant is not delinquent on any debt owed to the Commission and that it is not delinquent on any non-tax debt owed to any Federal agency as of the deadline for submitting applications to participate in competitive bidding pursuant to this subpart, or that it will cure any such delinquency prior to the end of the application resubmission period established by public notice.

(12) Certification that the individual submitting the application is authorized to do so on behalf of the applicant; and

(13) Such additional information as may be required.

(c) Limit on filing applications. In any auction, no individual or entity may file more than one application to participate in competitive bidding or have a controlling interest (as defined in paragraph (d)(1) of this section) in more than one application to participate in competitive bidding. In the case of a consortium, each member of the consortium shall be considered to have a controlling interest in the consortium. In the event that applications for an auction are filed by applicants with overlapping controlling interests, pursuant to paragraph (f)(3) of this section, both applications will be deemed incomplete and only one such applicant may be deemed qualified to bid.

(d) Definitions. For purposes of the certifications required under paragraph (b) of this section and the limit on filing applications in paragraph (c) of this section:

(1) The term controlling interest includes individuals or entities with positive or negative de jure or de facto control of the applicant. De jure control includes holding 50 percent or more of the voting stock of a corporation or holding a general partnership interest in a partnership. Ownership interests that are held indirectly by any party through one or more intervening corporations may be determined by successive multiplication of the ownership percentages for each link in the vertical ownership chain and application of the relevant attribution benchmark to the resulting product, except that if the ownership percentage for an interest in any link in the chain meets or exceeds 50 percent or represents actual control, it may be treated as if it were a 100 percent interest. De facto control is determined on a case-by-case basis. Examples of de facto control include constituting or appointing 50 percent or more of the board of directors or management committee; having authority to appoint, promote, demote, and fire senior executives that control the day-to-day activities of the support recipient; or playing an integral role in management decisions. In the case of a consortium, each member of the consortium shall be considered to have a controlling interest in the consortium.

(2) The term consortium means an entity formed to apply as a single applicant to bid at auction pursuant to an agreement by two or more separate and distinct legal entities.

(3) The term joint venture means a legally cognizable entity formed to apply as a single applicant to bid at auction pursuant to an agreement by two or more separate and distinct legal entities.

(e) Financial Requirements for Participation. As a prerequisite to participating in competitive bidding, an applicant may be required to post a bond or place funds on deposit with the Commission in an amount based on the default payment or forfeiture that may be required pursuant to §1.21004. The details of and deadline for posting such a bond or making such a deposit will be announced by public notice. No interest will be paid on any funds placed on deposit.

(f) Application Processing.

(1) Any timely submitted application will be reviewed by Commission staff for completeness and compliance with the Commission's rules. No untimely applications will be reviewed or considered.

(2) Any application to participate in competitive bidding that does not identify the applicant or does not include all of the certifications required pursuant to this section is unacceptable for filing and cannot be corrected subsequent to the applicable deadline for submitting applications. The application will be deemed incomplete and the applicant will not be found qualified to bid.

(3) If an individual or entity submits multiple applications in a single auction, or if entities that are commonly controlled by the same individual or same set of individuals submit more than one application in a single auction, then at most only one of such applications may be deemed complete, and the other such application(s) will be deemed incomplete, and such applicants will not be found qualified to bid.

(4) An applicant will not be permitted to participate in competitive bidding if the applicant has not provided any bond or deposit of funds required pursuant to paragraph (e) of this section, as of the applicable deadline.

(5) The Commission will provide applicants a limited opportunity to cure defects (except for failure to sign the application and to make all required certifications) during a resubmission period established by public notice and to resubmit a corrected application. During the resubmission period for curing defects, an application may be amended or modified to cure defects identified by the Commission or to make minor amendments or modifications. After the resubmission period has ended, an application may be amended or modified to make minor changes or correct minor errors in the application. An applicant may not make major modifications to its application after the initial filing deadline. An applicant will not be permitted to participate in competitive bidding if Commission staff determines that the application requires major modifications to be made after that deadline. Major modifications include, but are not limited to, any changes in the ownership of the applicant that constitute an assignment or transfer of control, or any changes in the identity of the applicant, or any changes in the required certifications. Minor amendments include, but are not limited to, the correction of typographical errors and other minor defects not identified as major. Minor modifications may be subject to a deadline established by public notice. An application will be considered to be newly filed if it is amended by a major amendment and may not be resubmitted after applicable filing deadlines.

(6) An applicant that fails to cure the defects in their applications in a timely manner during the resubmission period as specified by public notice will have its application dismissed with no further opportunity for resubmission.

(7) An applicant that is found qualified to participate in competitive bidding shall be identified in a public notice.

(8) Applicants shall have a continuing obligation to make any amendments or modifications that are necessary to maintain the accuracy and completeness of information furnished in pending applications. Such amendments or modifications shall be made as promptly as possible, and in no case more than five business days after applicants become aware of the need to make any amendment or modification, or five business days after the reportable event occurs, whichever is later. An applicant's obligation to make such amendments or modifications to a pending application continues until they are made.

[76 FR 73851, Nov. 29, 2011, as amended at 81 FR 44448, July 7, 2016; 85 FR 75814, Nov. 25, 2020]