§1506 Rulemaking Related to Partitioning or Disaggregating Licenses

Summary

The Commission must start a rulemaking no later than 1 year after March 23, 2018 to decide whether to create or change a program that lets a license holder split a spectrum license by selling or long-term leasing part of it. The split can be used so the licensee keeps using its part and so unused spectrum can go to a different small carrier or to another carrier to serve rural areas. A "covered small carrier" is a carrier with no more than 1,500 employees that uses its own facilities. A "rural area" is any place that is not a city/town over 20,000 people or an urbanized area next to a city/town over 50,000 people. In that rulemaking the Commission must look at things like whether to lower performance rules for spectrum from the program, what conditions new holders need to meet so they can build out service in a reasonable time, what incentives (for example, extending a license term or changing performance rules) would encourage licensees to sell or lease, and whether those incentives are practical to administer. If someone fails to meet the build-out rules for sold or leased spectrum, the Commission will take back the spectrum unless there is a good reason. The Commission can only offer incentives if it finds they will likely increase advanced telecommunications service in rural areas.