Auction of AM and FM Broadcast Construction Permits Scheduled for July 27, 2021; Notice of Filing Requirements, Minimum Opening Bids, Upfront Payments, and Other Procedures for Auction 109, 20294-20311 [2021-08000]

Agencies

• FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION

[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 73 (Monday, April 19, 2021)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 20294-20311]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-08000]


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FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION

47 CFR Parts 1 and 73

[AU Docket No. 21-39; DA 21-361; FR ID 21109]


Auction of AM and FM Broadcast Construction Permits Scheduled for 
July 27, 2021; Notice of Filing Requirements, Minimum Opening Bids, 
Upfront Payments, and Other Procedures for Auction 109

AGENCY: Federal Communications Commission.

ACTION: Final action; requirements and procedures.

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SUMMARY: This document summarizes the procedures, deadlines, and 
upfront payment and minimum opening bid amounts for the upcoming 
auction of certain AM and FM broadcast construction permits. The 
Auction 109 Procedures Public Notice summarized here is intended to 
familiarize potential applicants with details of the procedures, terms, 
and conditions governing participation in Auction 109.

DATES: Applications to participate in Auction 109 must be submitted 
before 6:00 p.m. Eastern Time (ET) on May 11, 2021. Upfront payments 
for Auction 109 must be received by 6:00 p.m. ET on June 16, 2021. 
Bidding in Auction 109 is scheduled to start on July 27, 2021.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 
    General Auction 109 Information: FCC Auctions Hotline at 888-225-
5322, option two; or 717-338-2868.
    Auction 109 Legal Information: Lynne Milne or Lyndsey Grunewald at 
202-418-0660.
    Licensing Information: Lisa Scanlan or Tom Nessinger or James 
Bradshaw at (202) 418-2700.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This is a summary of the Auction 109 
Procedures Public Notice, released on April 1, 2021. The complete text 
of the Auction 109 Procedures Public Notice, including attachments and 
any related document, are available on the Commission's website at 
www.fcc.gov/auction/109 or by using the search function for AU Docket 
No. 21-39, DA 21-361, on the Commission's Electronic Comment Filing 
System (ECFS) web page at www.fcc.gov/ecfs. Alternative formats are 
available to persons with disabilities by sending an email to 
[email protected] or by calling the Consumer & Governmental Affairs Bureau 
at (202) 418-0530 (voice), (202) 418-0432 (TTY).

I. General Information

    1. Introduction. By the Auction 109 Procedures Public Notice, the 
Office of Economics and Analytics (OEA), in conjunction with the Media 
Bureau (MB), establishes the procedures and minimum opening bid amounts 
for the upcoming auction of certain AM and FM broadcast construction 
permits.
    2. On February 8, 2021, OEA, in conjunction with MB, released a 
public notice seeking comment on competitive bidding procedures and 
minimum opening bid amounts to be used in Auction 109. Three parties 
submitted comments in response to the Auction 109 Comment Public 
Notice, 86 FR 12556, March 4, 2021.
    3. Construction Permits Offered in Auction 109. Auction 109 will 
offer four AM construction permits and 136 FM construction permits. The 
construction permits to be auctioned are listed in Attachment A to the 
Auction 109 Procedures Public Notice.
    4. AM Construction Permits. Auction 109 will offer four 
construction permits in the AM broadcast service. Attachment A to the 
Auction 109 Procedures Public Notice lists the community of license, 
channel, class, and coordinates for each AM permit being offered.
    5. The construction permits to be auctioned are for four previously 
licensed AM stations: KFTK(AM), East St. Louis, IL, former Facility ID 
No. 72815; WQQW(AM), Highland, IL, former Facility ID No. 90598; 
KZQZ(AM), St. Louis, MO, former Facility ID No. 72391; and KQQZ(AM), 
Fairview Heights, IL, former Facility ID No. 5281. The license renewals 
of each of these former AM stations were dismissed with prejudice in a 
hearing before the Commission's Administrative Law Judge and the call 
signs deleted.
    6. To facilitate the auction of the four AM permits, the four AM 
facilities will

[[Page 20295]]

be treated as existing allotments, using the coordinates, AM station 
frequency and class, and community of license of the respective AM 
facility as listed in Attachment A to the Auction 109 Procedures Public 
Notice. The Media Bureau has protected these four AM stations by 
freezing the filing of any minor modification applications that would 
be mutually exclusive with the facilities of the four AM stations. 
Pursuant to that freeze, any AM minor change application that conflicts 
with the most recently licensed facilities of these four AM stations 
may not be filed during a period that started on March 20, 2020, and 
ends the day after the filing deadline for long-form applications by 
Auction 109 winning bidders. Because protections only extend to the 
previously licensed facility parameters, any winning bidder or 
permittee will be limited in its opportunities to modify these AM 
permits. Due to the existence of these technical limitations, preferred 
site coordinates cannot be specified for any of these AM construction 
permits.
    7. FM Construction Permits. Auction 109 will also offer 136 
construction permits in the FM broadcast service. The construction 
permits to be auctioned include all of the 130 FM permits that had 
previously been listed in the inventory for Auction 106, as well as six 
additional permits. The FM construction permits offered in Auction 109 
include 34 construction permits that were offered but not sold or were 
defaulted upon in prior auctions.
    8. Attachment A to the Auction 109 Procedures Public Notice lists 
the specific vacant FM allotments for which the Commission will offer 
construction permits in this auction, along with the reference 
coordinates for each vacant FM allotment. These construction permits 
are for vacant FM allotments reflecting FM channels added to the Table 
of FM Allotments, 47 CFR 73.202(b), pursuant to the Commission's 
established rulemaking procedures, and assigned at the indicated 
communities.
    9. Each applicant in the FM service may submit a set of preferred 
site coordinates on its short-form application (FCC Form 175) as an 
alternative to the reference coordinates for the vacant FM allotment 
upon which the applicant intends to bid. In order to avoid potential 
conflicts between, on the one hand, FM commercial and noncommercial 
educational (NCE) minor change applications, which can typically be 
filed on a first-come first-served basis, and, on the other hand, any 
alternative reference coordinates submitted on an applicant's short 
form application, MB will not accept any FM commercial or NCE minor 
change application during the Auction 109 short-form application filing 
window from April 28, 2021, to May 11, 2021. FM commercial and NCE 
minor change applications filed during the Auction 109 short-form 
application filing window will be dismissed. In addition, MB has 
announced that, in order to promote a more certain and speedy auction 
process, during a period that started on February 8, 2021 and ending 
the day after the filing deadline for post-Auction 109, long-form 
applications, it will not accept any application proposing to modify 
any FM allotments that will be offered in Auction 109; any petition or 
counterproposal that proposes a change in channel, class, community, or 
reference coordinates for any FM allotments that will be offered in 
Auction 109; nor any application, petition, or counterproposal that 
fails to fully protect any FM allotment that will be offered in Auction 
109. Any such application filed between February 8, 2021 and the day 
after the filing deadline for post-auction 109, long-form applications 
will be dismissed.
    10. OEA and MB declined to adopt commenters' suggestions to add 
certain AM facilities and FM allotments to the Auction 109 inventory.
    11. An applicant may apply for any AM or FM construction permit 
listed in Attachment A to the Auction 109 Procedures Public Notice. 
Consistent with our approach in previous broadcast service auctions, 
when two or more short-form applications (FCC Form 175) are submitted 
specifying the same permit, mutual exclusivity exists for auction 
purposes, and that construction permit must be awarded by competitive 
bidding procedures. As explained in the Auction 109 Comment Public 
Notice, once mutual exclusivity exists for auction purposes, even if 
only one applicant is qualified to bid for a particular construction 
permit, that applicant is required to submit a bid in order to obtain 
the construction permit.

II. Applying To Participate in Auction 109

    12. Relevant Authority. Auction 109 applicants must familiarize 
themselves thoroughly with the Commission's general competitive bidding 
rules, including Commission decisions in proceedings regarding 
competitive bidding procedures, application requirements, and 
obligations of Commission licensees. Broadcasters should also 
familiarize themselves with the Commission's AM and FM broadcast 
service and competitive bidding requirements contained in part 73 of 
the Commission's rules, as well as Commission orders concerning 
competitive bidding for broadcast construction permits. Applicants must 
also be thoroughly familiar with the procedures, terms, and conditions 
contained in the Auction 109 Procedures Public Notice and any future 
public notices that may be released in this proceeding or that relate 
to the construction permits being offered in Auction 109 or the AM and 
FM broadcast services.
    13. The terms contained in the Commission's rules, relevant orders, 
and public notices are not negotiable. The Commission may amend or 
supplement the information contained in its public notices at any time, 
and will issue public notices to convey any new or supplemental 
information to applicants. It is the responsibility of all applicants 
to remain current with all Commission rules and with all public notices 
pertaining to this auction. Copies of most auctions-related Commission 
documents, including public notices, can be retrieved from the FCC 
Auctions internet site at www.fcc.gov/auctions.
    14. An applicant should consult the Commission's rules to ensure 
that, in addition to the materials described below, all required 
information is included in its short-form application. To the extent 
the information in the Auction 109 Procedures Public Notice does not 
address a potential applicant's specific operating structure, or if the 
applicant needs additional information or guidance concerning the 
following disclosure requirements, the applicant should review the 
educational materials for Auction 109 and/or use the contact 
information provided in the Auction 109 Procedures Public Notice to 
consult with Commission staff to better understand the information it 
must submit in its short-form application.
    15. General Information Regarding Short-Form Applications. An 
application to participate in Auction 109, referred to as a short-form 
application or FCC Form 175, provides information that the Commission 
uses to determine whether the applicant is legally, technically, and 
financially qualified to participate in Commission auctions for 
licenses or permits. The short-form application is the first part of 
the Commission's two-phased auction application process. In the first 
phase, parties desiring to participate in the auction must file a 
streamlined, short-form application in which they certify under penalty 
of perjury as to their qualifications. Eligibility to participate in 
bidding is based on the applicant's short-form application and

[[Page 20296]]

certifications, and on its upfront payment, as explained below.
    16. A party seeking to participate in Auction 109 must file a 
short-form application electronically via the FCC's Auction Application 
System prior to 6:00 p.m. ET on May 11, 2021, following the FCC Form 
175 Filing Instructions for this auction in Attachment B to the Auction 
109 Procedures Public Notice. All those wishing to participate in 
Auction 109, regardless of whether they may have previously filed a 
short-form application for Auction 106, will be required to file a new 
application to participate in Auction 109.
    17. An applicant bears full responsibility for submitting an 
accurate, complete, and timely short-form application. An applicant 
must certify on its short-form application under penalty of perjury 
that it is legally, technically, financially, and otherwise qualified 
to hold a license. Each applicant should read carefully the 
instructions set forth in Attachment B to the Auction 109 Procedures 
Public Notice and should consult the Commission's rules to ensure that, 
in addition to the materials described below, all the information 
required is included within its short-form application.
    18. Submission of a short-form application (and any amendments 
thereto) constitutes a representation by the certifying official that 
he or she is an authorized representative of the applicant, that he or 
she has read the form's instructions and certifications, and that the 
contents of the application, its certifications, and any attachments 
are true and correct. Submission of a false certification to the 
Commission may result in penalties, including monetary forfeitures, 
license forfeitures, ineligibility to participate in future auctions, 
and/or criminal prosecution.
    19. No individual or entity may file more than one short-form 
application or have a controlling interest in more than one short-form 
application. If a party submits multiple short-form applications for an 
auction, then only one application may be the basis for that party to 
become qualified to bid in that auction.
    20. Consistent with the Commission's general prohibition of joint 
bidding agreements, a party is generally permitted to participate in a 
Commission auction only through a single bidding entity. Accordingly, 
the filing of applications in Auction 109 by multiple entities 
controlled by the same individual or set of individuals is not 
permitted. This restriction applies across all applications, without 
regard to the construction permits selected. Consistent with this 
requirement, a broadcaster interested in bidding on more than one 
construction permit cannot use two or more subsidiary entities to bid 
separately on construction permits in separate markets, regardless of 
whether each subsidiary were to select different construction permits 
on its short-form application. Likewise, if an entity, individual, or 
set of individuals hold controlling interests in multiple entities that 
are interested in participating in Auction 109, regardless of whether 
those entities have other, non-shared controlling or non-controlling 
interests, those entities must participate in the auction through a 
single bidding entity and only that bidding entity may file an auction 
application. In that regard, the bidding entity must disclose in its 
short-form application any joint ventures or other agreements or 
arrangements with any commonly controlled, non-applicant entities 
related to bidding in Auction 109. As noted by the Commission in 
adopting the prohibition of applications by commonly controlled 
entities, this rule, in conjunction with the prohibition against joint 
bidding agreements, protects the competitiveness of our auctions.
    21. Authorized Bidders. An applicant must designate at least one 
authorized bidder, and no more than three, in its FCC Form 175. The 
Commission's rules prohibit an individual from serving as an authorized 
bidder for more than one auction applicant or being listed as an 
authorized bidder in more than one FCC Form 175 application.
    22. Permit Selection. An applicant must select on its FCC Form 175 
the construction permit or permits, from the list of available permits, 
on which it wants to bid. An applicant must carefully review and verify 
its construction permit selections before the deadline for submitting 
the FCC Form 175, because those selections cannot be changed after the 
initial auction application filing deadline. The FCC auction bidding 
system will not accept bids on construction permits that were not 
selected on the applicant's FCC Form 175.
    23. Disclosure of Agreements and Bidding Arrangements. An applicant 
must provide in its FCC Form 175 a brief description of, and identify 
each party to, any partnership, joint venture, consortium, or 
agreement, arrangement, or understanding of any kind relating to the AM 
and FM construction permits being auctioned, including any agreement 
that addresses or communicates directly or indirectly bids (including 
specific prices), bidding strategies (including the specific 
construction permit(s) or license(s) on which to bid or not to bid), or 
the post-auction market structure, to which the applicant, or any party 
that controls or is controlled by the applicant, is a party. In 
connection with the agreement disclosure requirements, the applicant 
must certify under penalty of perjury in its FCC Form 175 that it has 
described, and identified each party to, any such agreement, 
arrangement, or understanding into which it has entered. An auction 
applicant that enters into any agreement during an auction that relates 
to the permits or licenses being auctioned is subject to the same 
disclosure obligations it would have for agreements existing at the FCC 
Form 175 filing deadline, and it must maintain the accuracy and 
completeness of the information in its pending auction application.
    24. The Commission's rules generally prohibit joint bidding and 
other arrangements involving auction applicants (including any party 
that controls, or is controlled by, such applicants). For purposes of 
this prohibition, joint bidding arrangements include arrangements 
relating to the permits being auctioned that address or communicate, 
directly or indirectly, bidding at the auction, bidding strategies, 
including arrangements regarding price or the specific permits on which 
to bid, and any such arrangements relating to the post-auction market 
structure.
    25. To implement the prohibition on joint bidding arrangements, the 
Commission's rules require each auction applicant to certify in its 
short-form application that it has disclosed any arrangements or 
understandings of any kind relating to the permits or licenses being 
auctioned to which it (or any party that controls or is controlled by 
it) is a party. The applicant must also certify that it (or any party 
that controls or is controlled by it) has not entered and will not 
enter into any arrangement or understanding of any kind relating 
directly or indirectly to bidding at auction with, among others, any 
other applicant.
    26. Although the Commission's rules do not prohibit auction 
applicants from communicating about matters that are within the scope 
of an excepted agreement that has been disclosed in an FCC Form 175, 
the Commission reminds applicants that certain discussions or exchanges 
could nonetheless touch upon impermissible subject matters, and that 
compliance with the Commission's rules will not insulate a party from 
enforcement of the antitrust laws.
    27. Applicants should bear in mind that a winning bidder will be 
required

[[Page 20297]]

to disclose in its long-form application following the close of the 
auction the specific terms, conditions, and parties involved in any 
agreement relating to the permits or licenses being auctioned into 
which it had entered prior to the time bidding closed. This applies to 
any joint venture, partnership, or other agreement, arrangement, or 
understanding of any kind entered into relating to the competitive 
bidding process, including any agreements relating to the permits being 
auctioned that address or communicate directly or indirectly bids 
(including specific prices), bidding strategies (including the specific 
permits on which to bid or not to bid), or the post-auction market 
structure, to which the applicant, or any party that controls or is 
controlled by the applicant, is a party.
    28. Ownership Disclosure Requirements. Each applicant must comply 
with the ownership disclosure requirements and provide information 
required by Sec. Sec.  1.2105 and 1.2112 and, where applicable, 1.2110 
of the Commission's rules. Specifically, in completing the FCC Form 
175, an applicant will be required to fully disclose information on the 
real party(ies)-in-interest and the ownership structure of the 
applicant, including both direct and indirect ownership interests of 
10% or more, as prescribed in Sec. Sec.  1.2105 and 1.2112 and, where 
applicable, 1.2110 of the Commission's rules. Each applicant is 
responsible for ensuring that information submitted in its short-form 
application is complete and accurate.
    29. Foreign Ownership Disclosure Requirements. Section 310 of the 
Communications Act of 1934, as amended (the Act), 47 U.S.C. 310, 
requires the Commission to review foreign investment in radio station 
licenses and imposes specific restrictions on who may hold certain 
types of radio licenses. In its FCC Form 175, an applicant must report 
citizenship or jurisdiction of formation for the applicant and for each 
disclosable interest holder (DIH). In completing the FCC Form 175, an 
applicant also will be required to certify that it is in compliance 
with the foreign ownership provisions contained in section 310 of the 
Act. Section 1.2105(a)(2)(vi) specifies that the Commission will accept 
an auction application certifying that a request for waiver or 
declaratory ruling from the requirements of section 310 is pending. If 
an applicant has foreign ownership interests in excess of the 
applicable limit or benchmark specified in section 310(b), it may seek 
to participate in Auction 109 if it has filed with the Media Bureau 
prior to the FCC Form 175 filing deadline a petition for declaratory 
ruling requesting Commission approval to exceed the applicable foreign 
ownership limit or benchmark in section 310(b) that is pending before, 
or has been granted by, the Commission.
    30. Prohibited Communication and Compliance with Antitrust Laws. 
The rules prohibiting certain communications set forth in Sec. Sec.  
1.2105(c) and 73.5002(d) and (e) of the rules apply to each applicant 
that files an FCC Form 175 in Auction 109. Section 1.2105(c)(1) of the 
Commission's rules provides that, subject to specified exceptions, 
after the deadline for filing a short-form application all applicants 
are prohibited from cooperating or collaborating with respect to, 
communicating with or disclosing, to each other in any manner the 
substance of their own, or each other's, or any other applicant's bids 
or bidding strategies (including post-auction market structure), or 
discussing or negotiating settlement agreements, until after the down 
payment deadline.
    31. Entities Subject to Sec.  1.2105(c). An applicant for purposes 
of this rule includes the officers and directors of the applicant, all 
controlling interests in the entity submitting the FCC Form 175, as 
well as all holders of interests amounting to 10% or more of that 
entity. A party that submits an application becomes an applicant under 
the rule at the application filing deadline, and that status does not 
change based on later developments, including failure to become a 
qualified bidder.
    32. Scope of Prohibition on Communications; Prohibition on Joint 
Bidding Agreements. Section 1.2105 of the Commission's rules prohibits 
certain communications between applicants for an auction, regardless of 
whether the applicants seek permits in the same geographic area or 
market. The Commission's rules also prohibit any joint bidding 
arrangement, including arrangements relating to the permits being 
auctioned, that address or communicate, directly or indirectly, bidding 
at the auction, bidding strategies, including arrangements regarding 
price or the specific permits on which to bid, and any such 
arrangements relating to the post-auction market structure. The rule 
provides limited exceptions for a communication within the scope of any 
arrangement consistent with the exclusion from the Commission's rule 
prohibiting joint bidding, provided such arrangement is disclosed on 
the applicant's auction application. An applicant may continue to 
communicate pursuant to any pre-existing agreements, arrangements, or 
understandings that are solely operational or that provide for transfer 
or assignment of licenses, provided that such agreements, arrangements, 
or understandings are disclosed on its application and do not both 
relate to the permits at auction and address or communicate bids 
(including amounts), bidding strategies, or the particular permits or 
licenses on which to bid or the post-auction market structure.
    33. In addition to express statements of bids and bidding 
strategies, the prohibition against communicating in any manner 
includes public disclosures as well as private communications and 
indirect or implicit communications. Consequently, an applicant must 
take care to determine whether its auction-related communications may 
reach another applicant.
    34. Parties subject to Sec.  1.2105(c) should take special care in 
circumstances where their officers, directors, and employees may 
receive information directly or indirectly relating to any applicant's 
bids or bidding strategies. Such information may be deemed to have been 
received by the applicant under certain circumstances. For example, 
Commission staff have determined that, where an individual serves as an 
officer or director for two or more applicants, the bids and bidding 
strategies of one applicant are presumed conveyed to the other 
applicant through the shared officer or director, which creates an 
apparent violation of the rule.
    35. Subject to the exception described above, Sec.  1.2105(c)(1) 
prohibits applicants from communicating with specified other parties 
only with respect to their own, or each other's, or any other 
applicant's bids or bidding strategies. Moreover, a communication 
conveying bids or bidding strategies (including post-auction market 
structure) must also relate to the licenses being auctioned in order to 
be covered by the prohibition. Thus, the prohibition is limited in 
scope and does not apply to all communications between or among the 
specified parties. The Commission consistently has made clear that 
application of the rule prohibiting communications has never required 
total suspension of essential ongoing business. Entities subject to the 
prohibition may negotiate agreements during the prohibition period, 
provided that the communications involved do not relate both (1) to the 
licenses or permits being auctioned and (2) to bids or bidding 
strategies or post-auction market structure.

[[Page 20298]]

    36. Accordingly, business discussions and negotiations that are 
unrelated to bidding in Auction 109 and that do not convey information 
about the bids or bidding strategies of an applicant, including the 
post-auction market structure, are not prohibited by the rule. While 
Sec.  1.2105(c) does not prohibit business discussions and negotiations 
among auction applicants that are not auction related, each applicant 
must remain vigilant not to communicate, directly or indirectly, 
information that affects, or could affect, bids or bidding strategies. 
Certain discussions might touch upon subject matters that could convey 
price or geographic information related to bidding strategies. Such 
subject areas include, but are not limited to, management, sales, local 
marketing agreements, and other transactional agreements.
    37. Communicating with Third Parties. Section 1.2105(c) does not 
prohibit an applicant from communicating bids or bidding strategies to 
a third-party, such as a consultant or consulting firm, counsel, or 
lender. The applicant should take appropriate steps, however, to ensure 
that any third party it employs for advice pertaining to its bids or 
bidding strategies does not become a conduit for prohibited 
communications to other specified parties, as that would violate the 
rule. For example, an applicant might require a third party, such as a 
lender, to sign a non-disclosure agreement before the applicant 
communicates any information regarding bids or bidding strategy to the 
third party. Within third-party firms, separate individual employees, 
such as attorneys or auction consultants, may advise individual 
applicants on bids or bidding strategies, so long as such firms 
implement firewalls and other compliance procedures that prevent such 
individuals from communicating the bids or bidding strategies of one 
applicant to other individuals representing separate applicants. 
Although firewalls and/or other procedures should be used, their 
existence is not an absolute defense to liability if a violation of the 
rule has occurred.
    38. Applicants may discuss the short-form application or bids for 
specific permits with their counsel, consultant, or expert of their 
choice before the short-form application deadline. Furthermore, the 
same third-party individual could continue to give advice to multiple 
applicants regarding their applications after the short-form 
application deadline, provided that no information pertaining to bids 
or bidding strategies is conveyed to that individual from any of the 
applicants the individual advises. No person may serve as an authorized 
bidder for more than one applicant in Auction 109.
    39. Applicants also should use caution in their dealings with other 
parties, such as members of the press, financial analysts, or others 
who might become conduits for the communication of prohibited bidding 
information. For example, even though communicating that it has applied 
to participate in this auction will not violate the rule, an 
applicant's statement to the press that it intends to stop bidding in 
an auction could give rise to a finding of a Sec.  1.2105 violation. 
Similarly, an FCC Form 175 applicant's public statement of intent not 
to place bids during bidding in Auction 109 could also violate the 
rule.
    40. Section 1.2105(c) Certification. By electronically submitting 
its FCC Form 175, each applicant in Auction 109 certifies its 
compliance with Sec. Sec.  1.2105(c) and 73.5002(d) of the rules. 
However, the mere filing of a certifying statement as part of an 
application will not outweigh specific evidence that a prohibited 
communication has occurred, nor will it preclude the initiation of an 
investigation when warranted. Any applicant found to have violated 
these communication prohibitions may be subject to sanctions.
    41. Duty to Report Prohibited Communications. Section 1.2105(c)(4) 
requires that any applicant that makes or receives a communication that 
appears to violate Sec.  1.2105(c) must report such communication in 
writing to the Commission immediately, and in no case later than five 
business days after the communication occurs. Each applicant's 
obligation to report any such communication continues beyond the five-
day period after the communication is made, even if the report is not 
made within the five-day period.
    42. Procedures for Reporting Prohibited Communications. Section 
1.2105(c) requires parties to file only a single report concerning a 
prohibited communication and to file that report with Commission 
personnel expressly charged with administering the Commission's 
auctions. This rule is designed to minimize the risk of inadvertent 
dissemination of information in such reports. Any reports required by 
Sec.  1.2105(c) must be filed consistent with the instructions set 
forth in the Auction 109 Procedures Public Notice. For Auction 109, 
such reports must be filed with the Chief of the Auctions Division, 
OEA, by the most expeditious means available. Any such report should be 
submitted by email to the Auctions Division Chief at the following 
email address: [email protected]. If you choose instead to submit a 
report in hard copy, contact Auctions Division staff for guidance at 
[email protected] or (202) 418-0660.
    43. A party reporting any communication pursuant to Sec.  1.65 or 
Sec.  1.2105(a)(2) or (c)(4) must take care to ensure that any report 
of a prohibited communication does not itself give rise to a violation 
of Sec.  1.2105(c). For example, a party's report of a prohibited 
communication could violate the rule by communicating prohibited 
information to other applicants through the use of Commission filing 
procedures that would allow such materials to be made available for 
public inspection. A party seeking to report such a prohibited 
communication should consider submitting its report with a request that 
the report or portions of the submission be withheld from public 
inspection by following the procedures specified in 47 CFR 0.459. Such 
parties also are encouraged to coordinate with the Auctions Division 
staff about the procedures for submitting such reports.
    44. Winning Bidders Must Disclose Terms of Agreements. Each 
applicant that is a winning bidder will be required to disclose in its 
long-form application the specific terms, conditions, and parties 
involved in any agreement relating to the competitive bidding process 
it has entered into. Such agreements must have been entered into prior 
to the filing deadline for short-form applications. This disclosure 
requirement applies to any bidding consortia, joint venture, 
partnership, or agreement, understanding, or other arrangement entered 
into relating to the competitive bidding process, including any 
agreement relating to the post-auction market structure. Failure to 
comply with the Commission's rules can result in enforcement action.
    45. Antitrust Laws. Regardless of compliance with the Commission's 
rules, applicants remain subject to the antitrust laws, which are 
designed to prevent anticompetitive behavior in the marketplace. 
Compliance with the disclosure requirements of Sec.  1.2105(c) will not 
insulate a party from enforcement of the antitrust laws. To the extent 
the Commission becomes aware of specific allegations that suggest that 
violations of the Federal antitrust laws may have occurred, the 
Commission may refer such allegations to the United States Department 
of Justice for investigation. If an applicant is found to have violated 
the antitrust laws or the Commission's rules in connection with its 
participation in the competitive bidding process, it may be subject to 
forfeiture of its upfront payment, down

[[Page 20299]]

payment, or full bid amount, and may be prohibited from participating 
in future auctions, among other sanctions.
    46. New Entrant Bidding Credits. To promote the objectives of 
section 309(j) of the Act and further its long-standing commitment to 
the diversification of broadcast facility ownership, the Commission 
provides a tiered new entrant bidding credit for broadcast auction 
applicants with no, or very few, other media interests.
    47. The Auction 109 Procedures Public Notice explains why OEA and 
MB are unable to establish for Auction 109 a bidding credit for a party 
that had successfully petitioned for a vacant FM channel to be added to 
the FM Table of Allotments, as suggested by a commenter.
    48. Applicants that qualify for the new entrant bidding credit are 
eligible for a bidding credit in this auction that represents the 
amount by which a bidder's winning bid is discounted. The size of a new 
entrant bidding credit depends on the number of ownership interests in 
other media of mass communications that are attributable to the bidder-
entity and its attributable interest-holders. A 35% bidding credit will 
be given to a winning bidder if it, and/or any individual or entity 
with an attributable interest in the winning bidder, has no 
attributable interest in any other media of mass communications, as 
defined in 47 CFR 73.5008. A 25% bidding credit will be given to a 
winning bidder if it, and/or any individual or entity with an 
attributable interest in the winning bidder, has an attributable 
interest in no more than three mass media facilities, as defined in 47 
CFR 73.5008. No bidding credit will be given if any of the commonly 
owned mass media facilities serve the same area as the broadcast permit 
proposed in the auction, as defined in 47 CFR 73.5007(b), or if the 
winning bidder, and/or any individual or entity with an attributable 
interest in the winning bidder, has attributable interests in more than 
three mass media facilities. For purposes of determining whether a 
broadcast permit offered in this auction is in the same area as an 
applicant's existing mass media facilities, the coverage area of the 
to-be-auctioned facility is calculated using maximum class facilities 
at the AM construction permit coordinates or the FM allotment reference 
coordinates specified in Attachment A to the Auction 109 Procedures 
Public Notice, not, based on any applicant-specified preferred site 
coordinates for FM allotments.
    49. Bidding credits are not cumulative; qualifying applicants 
receive either the 25% or the 35% bidding credit, but not both.
    50. The interests of the applicant, and of any individuals or 
entities with an attributable interest in the applicant, in other media 
of mass communications are considered when determining an applicant's 
eligibility for the New Entrant Bidding Credit. Attributable interests 
are defined in 47 CFR 73.3555 and note 2 of that section. In Auction 
109, the bidder's attributable interests, and thus, its maximum new 
entrant bidding credit eligibility, are determined as of the short-form 
application filing deadline. An applicant intending to divest a media 
interest or make any other ownership change, such as resignation of 
positional interests (officer or director) in order to avoid 
attribution for purposes of qualifying for the New Entrant Bidding 
Credit, must have consummated such divestment transactions or have 
completed such ownership changes by no later than the FCC Form 175 
filing deadline. However, events occurring after the short-form 
application filing deadline, such as the acquisition of attributable 
interests in media of mass communications, may cause diminishment or 
loss of the bidding credit and, must be reported immediately.
    51. Under broadcast attribution rules, those entities or 
individuals with an attributable interest in a bidder include: (1) All 
officers and directors of a corporate bidder; (2) any owner of 5% or 
more of the voting stock of a corporate bidder; (3) all general 
partners and limited partners of a partnership bidder, unless the 
limited partners are sufficiently insulated; and (4) all members of a 
limited liability company, unless sufficiently insulated.
    52. In cases where an applicant's spouse or close family member 
holds other media interests, such interests are not automatically 
attributable to the bidder. The Commission decides attribution issues 
in this context based on certain factors traditionally considered 
relevant.
    53. The eligibility standards for the New Entrant Bidding Credit 
include attribution of the media interests held by very substantial 
investors in, or creditors of, an applicant claiming new entrant 
status. Specifically, the attributable mass media interests held by an 
individual or entity with an equity and/or debt interest in an 
applicant shall be attributed to that bidder for purposes of 
determining its eligibility for the New Entrant Bidding Credit, if the 
equity and debt interests, in the aggregate, exceed 33% of the total 
asset value of the applicant, even if such an interest is non-voting.
    54. Generally, media interests will be attributable for purposes of 
the New Entrant Bidding Credit to the same extent that such other media 
interests are considered attributable for purposes of the broadcast 
multiple ownership rules. However, attributable interests held by a 
winning bidder in existing low power television, television translator 
or FM translator facilities will not be counted among the applicant's 
other mass media interests in determining its eligibility for a New 
Entrant Bidding Credit. A medium of mass communications is defined in 
47 CFR 73.5008(b). Full service noncommercial educational stations, on 
both reserved and non-reserved channels, are included among media of 
mass communications as defined in Sec.  73.5008(b).
    55. Application Requirements. If an applicant claims eligibility 
for a bidding credit, the information provided in its FCC Form 175 will 
be used to determine whether the applicant is eligible for the claimed 
bidding credit. In addition to the ownership information required 
pursuant to Sec. Sec.  1.2105 and 1.2112, applicants seeking a New 
Entrant Bidding Credit are required to establish on their short-form 
applications that they satisfy the eligibility requirements to qualify 
for the bidding credit. In those cases, a certification under penalty 
of perjury must be provided in completing the short-form application. 
An applicant claiming that it qualifies for a 35% New Entrant Bidding 
Credit must certify that neither it nor any of its attributable 
interest holders has any attributable interests in any other media of 
mass communications. An applicant claiming that it qualifies for a 25% 
New Entrant Bidding Credit must certify that neither it nor any of its 
attributable interest holders has any attributable interests in more 
than three media of mass communications, and must identify and describe 
such media of mass communications.
    56. Unjust Enrichment. Unjust enrichment provisions apply to a 
winning bidder that utilizes a bidding credit and subsequently seeks to 
assign or transfer control of its license or construction permit to an 
entity not qualifying for the same level of bidding credit.
    57. Former and Current Defaulters. Pursuant to the rules governing 
competitive bidding, each applicant must make certifications regarding 
whether it is a current or former defaulter or delinquent. A current 
defaulter or delinquent is not eligible to participate in Auction 109. 
Accordingly,

[[Page 20300]]

each applicant must certify under penalty of perjury on its FCC Form 
175 that, as of the filing deadline, the applicant, any of its 
affiliates, any of its controlling interests, and any of the affiliates 
of its controlling interests are not in default on any payment for a 
Commission construction permit or license (including down payments), 
and that they are not delinquent on any non-tax debt owed to any 
Federal agency.
    58. An applicant is considered a former defaulter or a former 
delinquent when it or any of its controlling interests has defaulted on 
any Commission construction permit or license or has been delinquent on 
any non-tax debt owed to any Federal agency, but has since remedied all 
such defaults and cured all of the outstanding non-tax delinquencies, 
as of the FCC Form 175 filing deadline. A former defaulter or 
delinquent who has remedied all such defaults and cured all of the 
outstanding non-tax delinquencies prior to the FCC Form 175 filing 
deadline in this auction may participate so long as it is otherwise 
qualified, if the applicant makes an upfront payment that is 50% more 
than would otherwise be required. For this reason, an applicant must 
certify under penalty of perjury whether it (along with any of its 
controlling interests) has ever been in default on any payment for a 
Commission construction permit or license (including a down payment) or 
has ever been delinquent on any non-tax debt owed to any Federal 
agency, subject to the exclusions described in 47 CFR 
1.2105(a)(2)(xii).
    59. Applicants should review previous guidance provided on default 
and delinquency disclosure requirements in the context of the auction 
short-form application process. Applicants also may consult with 
Auctions Division staff if they have questions about delinquency or 
default disclosure requirements.
    60. The Commission considers outstanding debts owed to the United 
States Government, in any amount, to be a serious matter. The 
Commission adopted rules, including a provision referred to as the red 
light rule, that implement its obligations under the Debt Collection 
Improvement Act of 1996, which governs the collection of debts owed to 
the United States. Under the red light rule, applications and other 
requests for benefits filed by parties that have outstanding debts owed 
to the Commission will not be processed. When adopting that rule, the 
Commission explicitly declared, however, that its competitive bidding 
rules are not affected by the red light rule. As a consequence, the 
Commission's adoption of the red light rule does not alter the 
applicability of any of its competitive bidding rules, including the 
provisions and certifications of Sec. Sec.  1.2105 and 1.2106, with 
regard to current and former defaults or delinquencies.
    61. The Commission's Red Light Display System, which provides 
information regarding debts currently owed to the Commission, may not 
be determinative of an auction applicant's ability to comply with the 
default and delinquency disclosure requirements of Sec.  1.2105. Thus, 
while the red light rule ultimately may prevent the processing of long-
form applications by auction winners, an auction applicant's lack of 
current red light status is not necessarily determinative of its 
eligibility to participate in an auction (or whether it may be subject 
to an increased upfront payment obligation). Moreover, any long-form 
applications filed after the close of bidding will be reviewed for 
compliance with the Commission's red light rule, and such review may 
result in the dismissal of a winning bidder's long-form application. 
Each applicant should carefully review all records and other available 
Federal agency databases and information sources to determine whether 
the applicant, or any of its affiliates, or any of its controlling 
interests, or any of the affiliates of its controlling interests, 
currently owes or was ever delinquent in the payment of non-tax debt 
owed to any Federal agency.
    62. Optional Applicant Status Identification. An applicant owned by 
members of minority groups and/or women, as defined in Sec.  
1.2110(c)(3), or that is a rural telephone company, as defined in Sec.  
1.2110(c)(4), may identify itself as such in filling out its FCC Form 
175. This applicant status information is optional and collected for 
statistical purposes only because it assists the Commission in 
monitoring the participation of various groups in its auctions.
    63. Noncommercial Educational Status Election. If an FCC Form 175 
filed during the Auction 109 filing window identifying the 
application's proposed station as noncommercial educational (NCE) is 
mutually exclusive with any application filed during that window for a 
commercial station, the NCE application will be returned as 
unacceptable for filing and the applicant will not be provided with any 
further opportunity to become eligible to bid in this auction. Short-
form applications that do not identify the facilities proposed in the 
FCC Form 175 as NCE will be considered, as a matter of law, 
applications for commercial broadcast stations. For this reason, each 
prospective applicant in this auction should consider carefully whether 
it wishes to propose NCE operation for any AM or FM station acquired in 
this auction. This NCE election cannot be reversed after the initial 
application filing deadline.
    64. Only Minor Modifications to FCC Form 175 Allowed. After the 
initial application filing deadline, an applicant will be permitted to 
make only minor modifications to its short-form application. Examples 
of minor changes include the deletion or addition of authorized bidders 
(to a maximum of three), revision of addresses and telephone numbers of 
the applicant, its responsible party, and its contact person, or change 
in the applicant's selected bidding option (electronic or telephonic). 
A major modification to an FCC Form 175 (e.g., change of construction 
permit selection, change in the required certifications, change in 
control of the applicant such as any change in ownership or control 
that would constitute an assignment or transfer of control of the 
applicant) will not be permitted after the initial FCC Form 175 filing 
deadline. If an applicant makes a major amendment, as defined by Sec.  
1.2105(b)(2), the major amendment may result in the disqualification of 
the applicant from participating in bidding. Questions about FCC Form 
175 amendments should be directed to the Auctions Division at (202) 
418-0660.
    65. Duty to Maintain Accuracy and Completeness of FCC Form 175. 
Each applicant has a continuing obligation to maintain the accuracy and 
completeness of information furnished in its pending application in a 
competitive bidding proceeding. An auction applicant must furnish 
additional or corrected information to the Commission within five days 
after a significant occurrence, or amend its FCC Form 175 no more than 
five days after the applicant becomes aware of the need for the 
amendment. In accordance with the Commission's rules, an applicant's 
obligation to make modifications to a pending auction application in 
order to provide additional or corrected information continues beyond 
the five-day period, even if the report is not made within the five-day 
period. An applicant is obligated to amend its pending application even 
if a reported change is considered to be a major modification that may 
result in the dismissal of its application.
    66. Modifying an FCC Form 175. During the initial filing window, an 
applicant will be able to make any necessary modifications to its FCC 
Form 175 in the Auction Application System.

[[Page 20301]]

An applicant that has certified and submitted its FCC Form 175 before 
the close of the initial filing window may continue to make 
modifications as often as necessary until the close of that window; 
however, the applicant must re-certify and re-submit its FCC Form 175 
before the close of the initial filing window to confirm and effect its 
latest application changes. After each submission, a confirmation page 
will be displayed stating the submission time and submission date. 
Additional information on the procedures for modifying an FCC Form 175 
appear in Attachment B to the Auction 109 Procedures Public Notice.
    67. As with filing the FCC Form 175, any amendment(s) to the 
application and related statements of fact must be certified by an 
authorized representative of the applicant with authority to bind the 
applicant. Submission of any such amendment or related statement of 
fact constitutes a representation by the person certifying that he or 
she is an authorized representative with such authority and that the 
contents of the amendment or statement of fact are true and correct.

III. Preparing for Bidding in Auction 109

    68. Due Diligence. Each potential bidder is solely responsible for 
investigating and evaluating all technical and marketplace factors that 
may have a bearing on the value of the construction permit(s) it is 
seeking in this auction. The FCC makes no representations or warranties 
about the use of this spectrum or these construction permits for 
particular services. Applicants should be aware that an FCC auction 
represents an opportunity to become an FCC permittee in a broadcast 
service, subject to certain conditions and regulations. This includes 
the established authority of the Commission to alter the terms of 
existing licenses by rulemaking, which is equally applicable to 
licenses awarded by auction. An FCC auction does not constitute an 
endorsement by the FCC of any particular service, technology, or 
product, nor does an FCC construction permit or license constitute a 
guarantee of business success.
    69. An applicant should perform its due diligence research and 
analysis before proceeding, as it would with any new business venture. 
In particular, each potential bidder should perform technical analyses 
and/or refresh its previous analyses to assure itself that, should it 
become a winning bidder for any Auction 109 construction permit, it 
will be able to build and operate facilities that will fully comply 
with all applicable technical and legal requirements. For example, 
potential applicants should note the short-spacing restrictions for FM 
allotment MM-FM1192-B, Channel 300B, at Sacramento, California. Each 
applicant should inspect any prospective transmitter sites located in, 
or near, the service area for which it plans to bid, to confirm the 
availability of such sites, and to familiarize itself with the 
Commission's rules regarding any applicable Federal, state, and local 
requirements.
    70. The Media Bureau has protected the parameters of the four 
previously-licensed AM stations that were on the relevant frequencies 
in the St. Louis area. Because protections only extend to those 
previously licensed station parameters, the winning bidders will be 
limited in their opportunities to modify these AM construction permits. 
For example, to the extent that any of these four previously licensed 
stations had contour overlap with nearby stations in violation of Sec.  
73.37 or Sec.  73.187 of the rules, the winning bidder for that AM 
construction permit will be limited to the parameters of the previously 
licensed station on that frequency, and will not be permitted to make 
such overlap worse. Furthermore, to the extent that any of the four 
previously licensed AM stations exceeded the root-sum-square (RSS) 
contribution limits in Sec.  73.182 of the rules, a winning bidder will 
be limited to the nighttime RSS contributions of the previously-
licensed St. Louis area AM station. Generally, a winning bidder may 
avail itself of any grandfathered situation involving the relevant 
previously licensed St. Louis area AM station.
    71. Each applicant should continue to conduct its own research 
throughout Auction 109 in order to determine the existence of pending 
or future administrative or judicial proceedings that might affect its 
decision to continue participating in the auction. Each Auction 109 
applicant is responsible for assessing the likelihood of the various 
possible outcomes and for considering the potential impact on 
construction permits available in this auction. The due diligence 
considerations mentioned in the Auction 109 Procedures Public Notice do 
not comprise an exhaustive list of steps that should be undertaken 
prior to participating in this auction. As always, the burden is on the 
potential bidder to determine how much research to undertake, depending 
upon specific facts and circumstances related to its interests.
    72. Applicants are solely responsible for identifying associated 
risks and for investigating and evaluating the degree to which such 
matters may affect their ability to bid on, otherwise acquire, or make 
use of the construction permits available in Auction 109. Each 
potential bidder is responsible for undertaking research to ensure that 
any permits won in this auction will be suitable for its business plans 
and needs. Each potential bidder must undertake its own assessment of 
the relevance and importance of information gathered as part of its due 
diligence efforts.
    73. The Commission makes no representations or guarantees regarding 
the accuracy or completeness of information in its databases or any 
third-party databases, including, for example, court docketing systems. 
To the extent the Commission's databases may not include all 
information deemed necessary or desirable by an applicant, it must 
obtain or verify such information from independent sources or assume 
the risk of any incompleteness or inaccuracy in said databases. 
Furthermore, the Commission makes no representations or guarantees 
regarding the accuracy or completeness of information that has been 
provided by incumbent licensees and incorporated into its databases.
    74. Bidder Education--Online Tutorial on Auction Process. An 
educational auction tutorial is available on the Auction 109 web page. 
This online tutorial provides information about pre-auction procedures, 
the FCC auction application system, completing short-form applications, 
auction conduct, the FCC auction bidding system, auction rules, and 
broadcast services rules. The online auction tutorial is accessible on 
the Education tab of the Auction 109 website at www.fcc.gov/auction/109. This tutorial will remain available and accessible anytime for 
reference in connection with the procedures outlined in the Auction 109 
Procedures Public Notice.
    75. Short-Form Application Filing Deadline. In order to be eligible 
to bid in Auction 109, in addition to other requirements, an applicant 
must first follow the procedures to submit a short-form application 
(FCC Form 175) for the relevant auction electronically via the FCC 
Auction Application System, following the instructions set forth in 
Attachment B to the Auction 109 Procedures Public Notice. The short-
form application will become available with the opening of the initial 
filing window and must be submitted prior to 6:00 p.m. ET on May 11, 
2021. Late applications will not be accepted. No filing fee is required 
to be paid at the time of filing a short-form application.
    76. Applications may be filed at any time beginning at noon ET on 
April 28,

[[Page 20302]]

2021, until the filing window closes at 6:00 p.m. ET on May 11, 2021. 
Applicants are strongly encouraged to file early and are responsible 
for allowing adequate time to file their applications. There are no 
limits or restrictions on the number of times an application can be 
updated or amended until the initial filing deadline on May 11, 2021.
    77. An applicant must always click on the CERTIFY & SUBMIT button 
on the Certify & Submit screen to successfully submit its FCC Form 175 
and any modifications; otherwise the application or changes to the 
application will not be received or reviewed by Commission staff. 
Additional information about accessing, completing, and viewing the FCC 
Form 175 is included in Attachment B to the Auction 109 Procedures 
Public Notice. Applicants requiring technical assistance should contact 
FCC Auctions Technical Support at (877) 480-3201, option nine; (202) 
4141250; or (202) 414-1255 (text telephony (TTY)). Hours of service are 
Monday through Friday, from 8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. ET. In order to 
provide better service to the public, all calls to Technical Support 
are recorded.
    78. Correction of Application Deficiencies by Minor Modifications. 
After the deadline for filing auction applications, Commission staff 
will review all timely submitted applications for Auction 109 to 
determine whether each applicant has complied with the application 
requirements and whether it has provided all required information 
concerning its qualifications for bidding. After this review is 
completed, OEA and MB will issue a public notice announcing applicants' 
initial application status by identifying (1) those that are complete; 
(2) those that are rejected; and (3) those that are incomplete or 
deficient because of minor defects that may be corrected. This public 
notice also will establish an application resubmission filing window, 
during which an applicant may make permissible minor modifications to 
its application to address identified deficiencies. The public notice 
will include the deadline for resubmitting corrected applications, and 
a paper copy will be sent by overnight delivery to the contact address 
listed in the FCC Form 175 for each applicant. In addition, each 
applicant with an incomplete application will be sent information on 
the nature of the deficiencies in its application, along with the name 
and phone number of a Commission staff member who can answer questions 
specific to the application. To become a qualified bidder, an applicant 
must have a complete application (i.e., have timely corrected any 
identified deficiencies) and make a timely and sufficient upfront 
payment. Qualified bidders will be identified by public notice at least 
10 days prior to the mock auction.
    79. After the application filing deadline on May 11, 2021, 
applicants can make only minor corrections or updates to their 
applications. They will not be permitted to make major modifications.
    80. Commission staff will communicate only with an applicant's 
contact person or certifying official, as designated on the short-form 
application, unless the applicant's certifying official or contact 
representative notifies the Commission in writing that applicant's 
counsel or other representative is authorized to speak on behalf of the 
applicant. Authorizations may be sent by email to [email protected].
    81. Public Notice of Final Application Status After Upfront Payment 
Deadline. After Commission staff review resubmitted applications for 
Auction 109 and evaluate upfront payment submissions, Commission staff 
will release a public notice identifying applicants that have become 
qualified bidders. A public notice announcing qualified bidders will be 
issued before bidding in the auction begins. Qualified bidders are 
those applicants with submitted FCC Forms 175 that are deemed timely 
filed and complete, and which have made a timely and sufficient upfront 
payment (as described below).
    82. Upfront Payments. In order to be eligible to bid in this 
auction, a sufficient upfront payment and a complete and accurate FCC 
Remittance Advice Form (FCC Form 159, February 2003 edition) must be 
submitted before 6:00 p.m. ET on June 16, 2021, following the 
procedures outlined below and the instructions in Attachment C to the 
Auction 109 Procedures Public Notice. After completing its short-form 
application, an applicant will have access to an electronic version of 
the FCC Form 159. This FCC Form 159 can be printed and the completed 
form must be sent by fax to the FCC at (202) 418-2843, or by email to 
[email protected].
    83. Making Upfront Payments by Wire Transfer. All upfront payments 
must be made by wire transfer. No other payment method is acceptable. 
All payments must be made in U.S. dollars. Upfront payments for Auction 
109 go to a U.S. Treasury account number specific to Auction 109 and 
different from the accounts used in previous FCC auctions. Do not use a 
beneficiary account number from a previous auction. Wire transfer 
information is specified in the Making Upfront Payments by Wire 
Transfer section of the Auction 109 Procedures Public Notice.
    84. Each applicant is responsible for ensuring timely submission of 
its upfront payment and for timely filing of an accurate and complete 
Form 159. To avoid untimely payments, an applicant should discuss 
arrangements and deadlines with its financial institution (including 
that financial institution's specific wire transfer requirements) 
several days before they plan to make the wire transfer, and well ahead 
of the due date, as well as allowing sufficient time for the wire 
transfer to be initiated and completed prior to the deadline. The 
Commission repeatedly has cautioned auction participants about the 
importance of planning ahead to prepare for unforeseen last-minute 
difficulties in making payments by wire transfer. Each applicant is 
responsible for obtaining confirmation from its financial institution 
that its wire transfer to the U.S. Treasury was successful and from 
Commission staff that its upfront payment was timely received and that 
it was deposited into the proper account. As a regulatory requirement, 
the U.S. Treasury screens all payments from all financial institutions 
before deposits are made available to specified accounts. If wires are 
suspended, the U.S. Treasury may direct questions regarding any 
transfer to the financial institution initiating the wire. Each 
applicant must take care to assure that any questions directed to its 
financial institution(s) are addressed promptly. To receive 
confirmation from Commission staff requesting receipt and deposit of 
wire transfers, contact Scott Radcliffe of the Office of Managing 
Director's Revenue & Receivables Operations Group/Auctions at (202) 
418-7518, or Theresa Meeks at (202) 418-2945.
    85. Failure to deliver a sufficient upfront payment as instructed 
in the Auction 109 Procedures Public Notice by the 6:00 p.m. deadline 
on June 16, 2021, will result in dismissal of the short-form 
application and disqualification from participation in the auction.
    86. Completing and Submitting FCC Form 159. An accurate and 
complete FCC Form 159 (February 2003 edition) must be sent to the FCC 
to accompany each upfront payment. At least one hour before placing the 
order for the wire transfer (but on the same business day), applicants 
must fax a completed Form 159 to the FCC at (202) 418-2843. 
Alternatively, the completed form can be scanned and sent as an 
attachment to an email to [email protected].

[[Page 20303]]

On the fax cover sheet, write: Wire Transfer--Auction Payment for 
Auction 109.
    87. Upfront Payments and Bidding Eligibility. OEA and MB adopted 
the upfront payment amount proposed for each construction permit in 
Attachment A of the Auction 109 Comment Public Notice, except that the 
upfront payment amount for Allotment MM-FM1237-C1, Big Lake, Texas is 
reduced because the minimum opening bid for that permit should be lower 
than the amount initially proposed, as discussed below. The specific 
upfront payment amounts and bidding units for each construction permit 
in Auction 109 are specified in Attachment A to the Auction 109 
Procedures Public Notice.
    88. An applicant must make an upfront payment sufficient to obtain 
bidding eligibility on the construction permits on which it will bid. 
OEA and MB proposed in the Auction 109 Comment Public Notice that the 
amount of the upfront payment would determine a bidder's initial 
bidding eligibility, the maximum number of bidding units on which a 
bidder may place bids in any single round. Under that proposal, in 
order to bid on a particular construction permit, a qualified bidder 
must have selected the construction permit on its FCC Form 175 and must 
have a current eligibility level that meets or exceeds the number of 
bidding units assigned to that construction permit. At a minimum, 
therefore, an applicant's total upfront payment must be enough to 
establish eligibility to bid on at least one of the construction 
permits selected on its FCC Form 175, or else the applicant will not be 
qualified to participate in the auction. An applicant does not have to 
make an upfront payment to cover all construction permits the applicant 
selected on its FCC Form 175, but only enough to cover the maximum 
number of bidding units that are associated with construction permits 
on which they wish to place bids and hold provisionally winning bids in 
any given round. The total upfront payment does not affect the total 
dollar amount the bidder may bid on any given construction permit.
    89. OEA and MB received no comments on the proposal that the 
upfront payment amount would determine a bidder's initial eligibility. 
Therefore, OEA and MB adopted this proposal. Each applicant's upfront 
payment amount will determine that bidder's initial bidding 
eligibility.
    90. In calculating its upfront payment amount, an applicant should 
determine the maximum number of bidding units on which it may wish to 
be active (bid on or hold provisionally winning bids on) in any single 
round, and submit an upfront payment amount covering that number of 
bidding units. In order to make this calculation, an applicant should 
add together the bidding units for all construction permits on which it 
seeks to be active in any given round. Applicants should check their 
calculations carefully, as there is no provision for increasing a 
bidder's eligibility after the upfront payment deadline.
    91. An applicant that is a former defaulter, as described above, 
must pay an upfront payment 50% greater than that required of an 
applicant that is not a former defaulter. For purposes of this rule, 
defaults and delinquencies of the applicant itself and its controlling 
interests are included. If an applicant is a former defaulter, it must 
calculate its upfront payment for all of its selected construction 
permits by multiplying the number of bidding units on which it wishes 
to be active (bid on or hold provisionally winning bids on) during a 
given round by 1.5. In order to calculate the number of bidding units 
to assign to former defaulters, the Commission will divide the upfront 
payment received by 1.5 and round the result up to the nearest bidding 
unit. If an applicant fails to submit a sufficient upfront payment to 
establish eligibility to bid on at least one of the construction 
permits selected on its FCC Form 175, the applicant will not be 
eligible to participate in bidding in the auction. This applicant will 
retain its status as an applicant in Auction 109 and will remain 
subject to 47 CFR 1.2105(c), 73.5002(d).
    92. Auction Registration. All qualified bidders for Auction 109 are 
automatically registered for the auction. Registration materials will 
be distributed prior to the auction by overnight mail. The mailing will 
be sent only to the contact person at the contact address listed in the 
FCC Form 175 and will include the SecurID[supreg] tokens that will be 
required to place bids, the web address and instructions for accessing 
and logging in to the auction bidding system, FCC assigned username 
(User ID) for each authorized bidder, and the Auction Bidder Line phone 
number.
    93. Qualified bidders that do not receive this registration mailing 
will not be able to submit bids. Therefore, if this mailing is not 
received by the contact representative for a qualified bidder by noon 
on Tuesday, July 20, 2021, call the Auctions Hotline at (717) 338-2868. 
In no event, however, will the FCC send auction registration materials 
to anyone other than the contact person listed on the applicant's FCC 
Form 175 or respond to a request for replacement registration materials 
from anyone other than the authorized bidder, contact person, or 
certifying official listed on the applicant's FCC Form 175. Receipt of 
this registration mailing is critical to participating in the auction, 
and each qualified bidder is responsible for ensuring it has received 
all of the registration materials.
    94. In the event that SecurID[supreg] tokens are lost or damaged, 
only a person who has been designated as an authorized bidder, the 
contact person, or the certifying official on the applicant's short-
form application may request replacements. To request replacement of 
these items, call the Auction Bidder Line at the telephone number 
provided in the registration materials or the Auctions Hotline at (717) 
338-2868.
    95. The SecurID[supreg] tokens can be recycled, and bidders should 
return the tokens to the FCC. Pre-addressed envelopes will be provided 
to return the tokens once bidding in the auction has ended.
    96. Remote Electronic Bidding via the FCC Auction Bidding System. 
The Commission will conduct this auction over the internet, and 
telephonic bidding will be available as well. Only qualified bidders 
are permitted to bid. Each applicant should indicate its bidding 
preference--electronic or telephonic--on its FCC Form 175. In either 
case, each authorized bidder must have its own SecurID[supreg] token, 
which the Commission will provide at no charge. Each qualified bidder 
will be issued three SecurID[supreg] tokens. For security purposes, the 
SecurID[supreg] tokens, bidding system web address, FCC assigned 
username, and the telephonic bidding telephone number are only mailed 
to the contact person at the contact address listed on the FCC Form 
175. Each SecurID[supreg] token is tailored to a specific auction. 
SecurID[supreg] tokens issued for other auctions or obtained from a 
source other than the FCC will not work for Auction 109.
    97. The Commission makes no warranties whatsoever, and shall not be 
deemed to have made any warranties, with respect to the FCC Auction 
Application System and the auction bidding system, including any 
implied warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular 
purpose. In no event shall the Commission, or any of its officers, 
employees, or agents, be liable for any damages whatsoever (including, 
but not limited to, loss of business profits, business interruption, 
loss of use, loss of revenue, loss of business information, or any 
other loss) arising out of or relating to the existence, furnishing, 
functioning, or use of the

[[Page 20304]]

FCC Auction Application System or the FCC auction bidding systems that 
are accessible to qualified bidders in connection with this auction. 
Moreover, no obligation or liability will arise out of the Commission's 
technical, programming, or other advice or service provided in 
connection with the FCC auction systems.
    98. To the extent an issue arises with the auction bidding system 
itself, the Commission will take all appropriate measures to resolve 
such issues quickly and equitably. Should an issue arise that is 
outside the auction bidding system or attributable to a bidder, 
including, but not limited to, a bidder's hardware, software, or 
internet access problem that prevents the bidder from submitting a bid 
prior to the end of a round, the Commission shall have no obligation to 
resolve or remedy such an issue on behalf of the bidder. Similarly, if 
an issue arises due to bidder error using the auction bidding system, 
the Commission shall have no obligation to resolve or remedy such an 
issue on behalf of the bidder. Accordingly, after the close of a 
bidding round, the results of bid processing will not be altered absent 
evidence of any failure in the auction bidding system.
    99. Mock Auction. All qualified bidders will be eligible to 
participate in a mock auction on Friday, July 23, 2021. The mock 
auction will enable bidders to become familiar with the FCC auction 
bidding system prior to the auction. All bidders should participate in 
the mock auction. Details will be announced by public notice.
    100. Fraud Alert. As is the case with many business investment 
opportunities, some unscrupulous entrepreneurs may attempt to use 
Auction 109 to deceive and defraud unsuspecting investors. Information 
about deceptive telemarketing investment schemes is available from the 
FCC as well as the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), Securities and 
Exchange Commission (SEC) and the National Fraud Information Center. 
Additional sources of information for potential bidders and investors 
are described in the Auction 109 Procedures Public Notice.
    101. Environmental Review Requirements. Permittees or licensees 
must comply with the Commission's rules for environmental review under 
the National Environmental Policy Act, the National Historic 
Preservation Act, and other Federal environmental statutes. The 
construction of a broadcast facility is a Federal action, and the 
permittee or licensee must comply with the Commission's environmental 
rules for each such facility. These environmental rules require, among 
other things, that the permittee or licensee consult with expert 
agencies having environmental responsibilities, including the U.S. Fish 
and Wildlife Service, the State Historic Preservation Office, the U.S. 
Army Corps of Engineers, and the Federal Emergency Management Agency 
(through the local authority with jurisdiction over floodplains). In 
assessing the effect of facility construction on historic properties, 
the permittee or licensee must follow the provisions of the FCC's 
Nationwide Programmatic Agreement Regarding the Section 106 National 
Historic Preservation Act Review Process. The permittee or licensee 
must prepare environmental assessments for any facility that may have a 
significant impact in or on wilderness areas, wildlife preserves, 
threatened or endangered species, or designated critical habitats, 
historical or archaeological sites, Indian religious sites, 
floodplains, and surface features. In addition, the permittee or 
licensee must prepare environmental assessments for facilities that 
include high intensity white lights in residential neighborhoods or 
excessive radio frequency emission.

IV. Bidding

    102. The first round of bidding for Auction 109 will begin on 
Tuesday, July 27, 2021. Unless otherwise announced, bidding on all 
construction permits will be conducted on each business day until 
bidding has stopped on all construction permits. The initial bidding 
schedule will be announced in a public notice listing the qualified 
bidders, which is released at least one week before the start of 
bidding in the auction.

A. Auction Structure

    103. Simultaneous Multiple Round Auction. In the Auction 109 
Comment Public Notice, OEA and MB proposed to auction all construction 
permits listed in Attachment A of this Auction 109 Procedures Public 
Notice in a single auction using the Commission's standard simultaneous 
multiple-round auction format. This type of auction offers every 
construction permit for bid at the same time and consists of successive 
bidding rounds in which qualified bidders may place bids on individual 
construction permits. OEA and MB received no comment on this proposal, 
and this proposal was adopted. Unless otherwise announced, bids will be 
accepted on all construction permits in each round of the auction until 
bidding stops on every construction permit.
    104. FCC Auction Bidding System. All bidding will take place 
remotely either over the internet through the FCC auction bidding 
system or by telephone using the telephonic bidding option. Please note 
that telephonic bid assistants are required to use a script when 
entering bids placed by telephone. Telephonic bidders are therefore 
reminded to allow sufficient time to bid by placing their calls well in 
advance of the close of a round. The length of a call to place a 
telephonic bid may vary; please allow a minimum of ten minutes. All 
telephone calls are recorded.
    105. An Auction 109 bidder's ability to bid on specific 
construction permits is determined by two factors: (1) The construction 
permits selected by that applicant in its FCC Form 175 and (2) the 
bidder's bidding eligibility measured in bidding units. The FCC auction 
bidding system will allow bidders to submit bids on only those 
construction permits the bidder selected on its FCC Form 175.
    106. In order to access the bidding function of the FCC auction 
bidding system, bidders must be logged in during a bidding round using 
the passcode generated by the SecurID[supreg] token and a personal 
identification number (PIN) created by the bidder. Bidders are strongly 
encouraged to print a round summary for each round after they have 
completed all of their activity for that round.
    107. Round Structure. The initial schedule of bidding rounds will 
be announced in the public notice listing the qualified bidders in the 
auction. Each bidding round is followed by the release of round 
results. Multiple bidding rounds may be conducted each day.
    108. In the Auction 109 Comment Public Notice, OEA and MB proposed 
to retain the discretion to change the bidding schedule in order to 
foster an auction pace that reasonably balances speed with the bidders' 
need to study round results and adjust their bidding strategies. OEA 
and MB received no comment on these proposals and adopted them for 
Auction 109. OEA and MB may change the amount of time for the bidding 
rounds, the amount of time between rounds, or the number of rounds per 
day, depending upon bidding activity and other factors, by prior 
announcement.
    109. Eligibility and Activity Rules. In Auction 109, upfront 
payments will be used to determine initial (maximum) bidding 
eligibility (as measured in bidding units) for Auction 109. The amount 
of the upfront payment submitted by a bidder determines initial bidding 
eligibility, the maximum

[[Page 20305]]

number of bidding units on which a bidder may be active (bid or hold 
provisionally winning bids) in a given round. Each construction permit 
is assigned a specific number of bidding units as listed in Attachment 
A to the Auction 109 Procedures Public Notice. Bidding units assigned 
to each construction permit do not change as prices rise during the 
auction. Upfront payments are not attributed to specific construction 
permits. Rather, a bidder may place bids on any of the construction 
permits selected on its FCC Form 175 as long as the total number of 
bidding units associated with those construction permits does not 
exceed the bidder's current eligibility. Eligibility cannot be 
increased during the auction; it can only remain the same or decrease. 
Thus, in calculating its upfront payment amount, an applicant must 
determine the maximum number of bidding units on which it may wish to 
bid or hold provisionally winning bids in any single round, and submit 
an upfront payment amount covering that total number of bidding units. 
At a minimum, an applicant's upfront payment must cover the bidding 
units for at least one of the construction permits it selected on its 
short-form application. The total upfront payment does not affect the 
total dollar amount a bidder may bid on any given construction permit. 
OEA and MB received no comments on the bidding eligibility proposals, 
and these proposals are adopted.
    110. To ensure that an auction closes within a reasonable period of 
time, an activity rule requires bidders to bid actively throughout the 
auction, rather than wait until late in the auction before 
participating. Bidders are required to be active (bid or hold 
provisionally winning bids) on a specified percentage of their current 
bidding eligibility during each round of the auction. A bidder's 
activity level in a round is the sum of the bidding units associated 
with construction permits covered by the bidder's new bids in the 
current round and provisionally winning bids from the previous round.
    111. The minimum required activity is expressed as a percentage of 
the bidder's current eligibility, and it increases by stage as the 
auction progresses. Failure to maintain the requisite activity level 
will result in the use of an activity rule waiver, if any remain, or a 
reduction in the bidder's eligibility, possibly curtailing or 
eliminating the bidder's ability to place additional bids in the 
auction.
    112. In response to a commenter's suggestion that the auction 
should begin with an activity requirement lower than that proposed in 
the Auction 109 Comment Public Notice, OEA and MB adopted a more 
flexible activity requirement in the Auction 109 Procedures Public 
Notice. Accordingly, OEA and MB initially adopt two activity 
requirements: An 80% requirement for the beginning of the auction and a 
95% requirement that will be used later in the auction. These 
requirements will be implemented using auction stages, as described 
below.
    113. Auction Stages. OEA and MB will conduct the auction in at 
least two stages as described below. Under this approach, a bidder 
desiring to maintain its current bidding eligibility will be required 
to be active on construction permits representing at least 80% of its 
current eligibility during each round of Stage One, and on at least 95% 
of its current bidding eligibility in Stage Two.
    114. Stage One: During the first stage of the auction, a bidder 
desiring to maintain its current bidding eligibility will be required 
to be active on construction permits representing at least 80% of its 
current bidding eligibility in each bidding round. Failure to maintain 
the required activity level will result in the use of an activity rule 
waiver or, if the bidder has no activity rule waivers remaining, a 
reduction in the bidder's bidding eligibility in the next round. During 
Stage One, reduced eligibility for the next round will be calculated by 
multiplying the bidder's current round activity (the sum of bidding 
units of the bidder's provisionally winning bids and bids during the 
current round) by five-fourths (\5/4\).
    115. Stage Two: During the second stage of the auction, a bidder 
desiring to maintain its current bidding eligibility is required to be 
active on 95% of its current bidding eligibility. Failure to maintain 
the required activity level will result in the use of an activity rule 
waiver or, if the bidder has no activity rule waivers remaining, a 
reduction in the bidder's bidding eligibility in the next round. During 
Stage Two, reduced eligibility for the next round will be calculated by 
multiplying the bidder's current round activity (the sum of bidding 
units of the bidder's provisionally winning bids and bids during the 
current round) by twenty-nineteenths (20/19).
    116. Stage Transitions. OEA and MB intend to advance the auction 
from Stage One to Stage Two after considering a variety of measures of 
auction activity including, but not limited to, the percentages of 
construction permits (as measured in bidding units) on which there are 
new bids, the number of new bids, and the increase in revenue.
    117. The auction will start in Stage One. Prior to moving from 
Stage One to Stage Two or to any subsequent stages, OEA and MB will 
alert bidders by announcement in the bidding system. Because activity 
requirements increase in Stage Two, bidders must carefully check their 
activity during the first round following a stage transition to ensure 
that they are meeting the increased activity requirement. In past 
auctions, some bidders have inadvertently lost bidding eligibility or 
used an activity rule waiver because they did not re-verify their 
activity at stage transitions.
    118. OEA and MB have the discretion to further alter the activity 
requirements before and/or during the auction as circumstances warrant. 
In addition to transitioning to Stage Two, OEA and MB retain the 
discretion to change the activity requirements during the auction by 
other means, including adding an additional stage with a higher 
activity requirement, not transitioning to Stage Two, and transitioning 
to Stage Two with an activity requirement that is higher or lower than 
95%. This determination will be based on a variety of measures of 
auction activity, including, but not limited to, the number of new bids 
and the percentages of construction permits (as measured in bidding 
units) on which there are new bids.
    119. Activity Rule Waivers. For Auction 109, OEA and MB adopted the 
proposal to provide each bidder in the auction with three activity rule 
waivers, which are principally a mechanism for a bidder to avoid the 
loss of bidding eligibility in the event that exigent circumstances 
prevent it from bidding in a particular round.
    120. Use of an activity rule waiver preserves the bidder's 
eligibility despite its activity in the current round being below the 
required minimum activity level. An activity rule waiver applies to an 
entire round of bidding and not to a particular construction permit. A 
bidder may use an activity rule waiver in any round of the auction as 
long as the bidder has not used all of its waivers.
    121. The FCC auction bidding system will assume that a bidder that 
does not meet the activity requirement would prefer to use an activity 
rule waiver (if available) rather than lose bidding eligibility. 
Therefore, the system will automatically apply a waiver at the end of 
any bidding round in which a bidder's activity level is below the 
minimum required unless (1) the bidder has no activity rule waiver 
remaining, or (2) the bidder overrides the automatic

[[Page 20306]]

application of a waiver by reducing eligibility, therefore meeting the 
activity requirement. If the bidder has no waivers remaining and does 
not satisfy the required activity level, the bidder's current 
eligibility will be permanently reduced, possibly curtailing or 
eliminating the ability to place additional bids in the auction.
    122. A bidder with insufficient activity may wish to reduce its 
bidding eligibility rather than use an activity rule waiver. If so, the 
bidder must affirmatively override the automatic waiver mechanism 
during the bidding round by using the reduce eligibility function in 
the FCC auction bidding system. In this case, the bidder's eligibility 
would be permanently reduced to bring it into compliance with the 
activity rule described above. Reducing eligibility is an irreversible 
action once the round has closed, and a bidder cannot regain its lost 
bidding eligibility.
    123. Finally, a bidder may apply an activity rule waiver 
proactively as a means to keep the auction open without placing a bid. 
If a bidder proactively applies an activity rule waiver (using the 
proactive waiver function in the FCC auction bidding system) during a 
bidding round in which no bids are placed, the auction will remain open 
and the bidder's eligibility will be preserved. An automatic waiver 
applied by the FCC auction bidding system in a round in which there is 
no new bid or a proactive waiver will not keep the auction open.
    124. Auction Stopping Rule. For Auction 109, OEA and MB proposed to 
employ a simultaneous stopping rule approach, which means all 
construction permits remain available for bidding until bidding stops 
on every construction permit. Specifically, bidding will close on all 
construction permits after the first round in which no bidder submits 
any new bid or applies a proactive waiver.
    125. OEA and MB also sought comment on alternative versions of the 
simultaneous stopping rule for Auction 109:
    Option 1. The auction would close for all construction permits 
after the first round in which no bidder applies a proactive waiver or 
places any new bid on any construction permit on which it is not the 
provisionally winning bidder. Thus, absent any other bidding activity, 
a bidder placing a new bid on a construction permit for which it is the 
provisionally winning bidder would not keep the auction open under this 
modified stopping rule.
    Option 2. The auction would close for all construction permits 
after the first round in which no bidder applies a waiver or places any 
new bid on any construction permit that already has a provisionally 
winning bid. Thus, absent any other bidding activity, a bidder placing 
a new bid on an FCC-held construction permit (a construction permit 
that does not have a provisionally winning bid) would not keep the 
auction open under this modified stopping rule.
    Option 3. The auction would close using a modified version of the 
simultaneous stopping rule that combines Option 1 and Option 2 above.
    Option 4. The auction would close after a specified number of 
additional rounds (special stopping rule) to be announced in advance in 
the FCC auction bidding system. If OEA and MB invoke this special 
stopping rule, bids will be accepted in the specified final round(s), 
after which the auction will close.
    Option 5. The auction would remain open even if no bidder places 
any new bid or applies a waiver. In this event, the effect will be the 
same as if a bidder had applied a waiver. Thus, the activity rule will 
apply as usual, and a bidder with insufficient activity will either 
lose bidding eligibility or use a waiver.
    126. OEA and MB proposed to exercise these options only in certain 
circumstances, for example, where the auction is proceeding unusually 
slowly or quickly, there is minimal overall bidding activity, or it 
appears likely that the auction will not close within a reasonable 
period of time or will close prematurely. Before exercising these 
options, OEA and MB are likely to attempt to change the pace of the 
auction. For example, OEA and MB may adjust the pace of bidding by 
changing the number of bidding rounds per day and/or the minimum 
acceptable bids. OEA and MB proposed to retain the discretion to 
exercise any of these options with or without prior announcement during 
the auction. OEA and MB received one comment regarding stopping rule 
Option 2. The commenter cautioned against the use of Option 2, but 
indicated that this option should remain available. OEA and MB adopted 
these approaches for Auction 109.
    127. Auction Delay, Suspension, or Cancellation. By public notice 
or by announcement through the FCC auction bidding system, OEA and MB 
may delay, suspend, or cancel bidding in the auction in the event of 
natural disaster, technical obstacle, network interruption, 
administrative or weather necessity, evidence of an auction security 
breach or unlawful bidding activity, or for any other reason that 
affects the fair and efficient conduct of competitive bidding. In such 
cases, OEA and MB, in their sole discretion, may elect to resume the 
auction starting from the beginning of the current round or from some 
previous round, or cancel the auction in its entirety. This authority 
will be exercised solely at the discretion of OEA and MB, and not as a 
substitute for situations in which bidders may wish to apply their 
activity rule waivers.

B. Bidding Procedures

    128. Minimum Opening Bids and Acceptable Bid Amounts. Consistent 
with the mandate of section 309(j) of the Act, the Commission directed 
OEA and MB to seek comment on the use of a minimum opening bid and/or 
reserve price prior to the start of each auction.
    129. In the Auction 109 Comment Public Notice, OEA and MB did not 
propose to establish separate reserve prices for the construction 
permits in Auction 109, and OEA and MB found no basis for establishing 
any separate reserve price in the Auction 109 Procedures Public Notice. 
This is consistent with policy applied in earlier broadcast spectrum 
auctions. OEA and MB, however, proposed to establish minimum opening 
bids for each construction permit in Auction 109, reasoning that a 
minimum opening bid, which has been used in other auctions, is an 
effective tool for accelerating the competitive bidding process. The 
bidding system will not accept bids lower than the minimum opening bids 
for each construction permit. Based on experience in past auctions, 
setting minimum opening bid amounts judiciously is an effective tool 
for accelerating the competitive bidding process.
    130. OEA and MB adopted the minimum opening bid amounts proposed in 
the Auction 109 Comment Public Notice., except that the minimum opening 
bid for Allotment MM-FM1237-C1, Big Lake, Texas is lowered to $35,000 
after further analysis in response to one commenter's filing. The 
specific minimum opening bid and upfront payment amounts for each 
construction permit are set forth in Attachment A to the Auction 109 
Procedures Public Notice.
    131. In each round of Auction 109 a qualified bidder will be able 
to place a bid on a given construction permit in any of up to nine 
different amounts. The FCC auction bidding system interface will list 
the nine acceptable bid amounts for each construction permit.
    132. In the Auction 109 Comment Public Notice, to calculate the 
first of the acceptable bid amounts, OEA and MB proposed to use a 
minimum

[[Page 20307]]

acceptable bid increment percentage of 10%. This means that the minimum 
acceptable bid amount for a construction permit will be approximately 
10% greater than the provisionally winning bid amount for the 
construction permit. To calculate the eight additional acceptable bid 
amounts, OEA and MB proposed in the Auction 109 Comment Public Notice 
to use an additional bid increment percentage of 5%. The Commission did 
not receive any comments on these proposals to use 10% and 5% 
respectively in the calculation of nine acceptable bid amounts for each 
construction permit. Based on OEA and MB experience in previous 
broadcast auctions, a minimum acceptable bid increment percentage of 
10% and an additional bid increment percentage of 5% are sufficient to 
ensure active bidding. Therefore, OEA and MB will begin the auction 
with a minimum acceptable bid increment percentage of 10% and an 
additional bid increment percentage of 5%.
    133. In Auction 109, the minimum acceptable bid amount for a 
construction permit will be equal to its minimum opening bid amount 
until there is a provisionally winning bid for the construction permit. 
After there is a provisionally winning bid for a construction permit, 
the minimum acceptable bid amount will be calculated by multiplying the 
provisionally winning bid amount by one plus the minimum acceptable bid 
percentage--i.e., provisionally winning bid amount * 1.10, rounded. In 
accordance with the Commission's standard rounding procedure for 
auctions, results of this calculation above $10,000 will be rounded to 
the nearest $1,000; results below $10,000 but above $1,000 will be 
rounded to the nearest $100; and results below $1000 will be rounded to 
the nearest $10.
    134. In Auction 109, the FCC auction bidding system will calculate 
the eight additional bid amounts by multiplying the minimum acceptable 
bid amount by the additional bid increment percentage of 5%, and that 
result (rounded) is the additional increment amount. The first 
additional acceptable bid amount equals the minimum acceptable bid 
amount plus the additional increment amount. The second additional 
acceptable bid amount equals the minimum acceptable bid amount plus two 
times the additional increment amount; the third additional acceptable 
bid amount is the minimum acceptable bid amount plus three times the 
additional increment amount; etc. Because the additional bid increment 
percentage is 5%, the calculation of the additional increment amount is 
(minimum acceptable bid amount) * (0.05), rounded. The first additional 
acceptable bid amount equals (minimum acceptable bid amount) + 
(additional increment amount); the second additional acceptable bid 
amount equals (minimum acceptable bid amount) + (2 * (additional 
increment amount)); the third additional acceptable bid amount equals 
(minimum acceptable bid amount) + (3 * (additional increment amount)); 
etc.
    135. OEA and MB proposed to retain the discretion to change the 
minimum acceptable bid amounts, the minimum acceptable bid increment 
percentage, the additional bid increment percentage, and the number of 
acceptable bid amounts if circumstances so dictate, consistent with 
past practice. OEA and MB also proposed to retain the discretion to do 
so on a construction permit-by-construction permit basis. OEA and MB 
also proposed to retain the discretion to limit (a) the amount by which 
a minimum acceptable bid for a construction permit may increase 
compared with the corresponding provisionally winning bid, and (b) the 
amount by which an additional bid amount may increase compared with the 
immediately preceding acceptable bid amount. For example, OEA and MB 
could set a $1,000 limit on increases in minimum acceptable bid amounts 
over provisionally winning bids. Thus, if calculating a minimum 
acceptable bid using the minimum acceptable bid increment percentage 
results in a minimum acceptable bid amount that is $1,200 higher than 
the provisionally winning bid on a construction permit, the minimum 
acceptable bid amount would instead be capped at $1,000 above the 
provisionally winning bid.
    136. The sole commenter to address this issue expressed support for 
the proposal to retain discretion to change the minimum acceptable bid 
amounts, yet suggested that OEA and MB should not exercise this 
discretion until several bidding rounds have concluded when more price 
information is available. OEA and MB did not receive any other comments 
on these proposals concerning changes of bid amounts. OEA and MB 
typically exercise this discretion based on monitoring of ongoing 
bidding and reserved such discretion in the Auction 109 Procedures 
Public Notice. If OEA and MB exercise this discretion, bidders will be 
alerted by announcement in the FCC auction bidding system during the 
auction.
    137. Provisionally Winning Bids. Consistent with practice in past 
auctions, the FCC auction bidding system at the end of each bidding 
round will determine a provisionally winning bid for each construction 
permit based on the highest bid amount received for that permit. A 
provisionally winning bid will remain the provisionally winning bid 
until there is a higher bid on the same construction permit at the 
close of a subsequent round. Provisionally winning bids at the end of 
the auction become the winning bids.
    138. OEA and MB will use a pseudo-random number generator to select 
a single provisionally winning bid in the event of identical high bid 
amounts being submitted on a construction permit in a given round 
(i.e., tied bids). Accordingly, the FCC auction bidding system will 
assign a pseudo-random number to each bid upon submission. The tied bid 
with the highest pseudo-random number wins the tiebreaker and becomes 
the provisionally winning bid. The remaining bidders, as well as the 
provisionally winning bidder, can submit higher bids in subsequent 
rounds. However, if the auction were to close with no other bids being 
placed, the winning bidder would be the one that placed the 
provisionally winning bid. If the construction permit receives any bids 
in a subsequent round, the provisionally winning bid again will be 
determined by the highest bid amount received for the construction 
permit. As a reminder, provisionally winning bids count toward activity 
for purposes of the activity rule.
    139. Bid Removal and Bid Withdrawal. In the Auction 109 Comment 
Public Notice, OEA and MB explained bid removal procedures in the FCC 
auction bidding system. Each qualified bidder has the option of 
removing any bids placed in a round provided that such bids are removed 
before the close of that bidding round. By removing a bid within a 
round, a bidder effectively unsubmits the bid. A bidder removing a bid 
placed in the same round is not subject to withdrawal payments. 
Removing a bid will affect a bidder's activity because a removed bid no 
longer counts toward bidding activity for the round. Once a round 
closes, a bidder may no longer remove a bid.
    140. Bidders in Auction 109 are prohibited from withdrawing any bid 
after close of the round in which that bid was placed. OEA and MB 
adopted the prohibition in recognition of the site-specific nature and 
wide geographic dispersion of the permits available in this auction, as 
well as experience with past auctions of broadcast construction 
permits. Bidders are cautioned to select bid amounts carefully because 
no bid withdrawals will be allowed in Auction

[[Page 20308]]

109, even if a bid was mistakenly or erroneously made.
    141. Bidding Results. Bids placed during a round will not be made 
public until the conclusion of that round. After a round closes, OEA 
and MB will compile reports of all bids placed, current provisionally 
winning bids, new minimum acceptable bid amounts for the following 
round, whether the construction permit is FCC-held, and bidder 
eligibility status (bidding eligibility and activity rule waiver), and 
post the reports for public access.
    142. Auction Announcements. The Commission staff will use auction 
announcements to report necessary information to bidders, such as 
schedule changes. All auction announcements will be available by 
clicking a link in the FCC auction bidding system.

V. Post-Auction Procedures

    143. Shortly after bidding has closed, the Commission will issue a 
public notice declaring the auction closed, identifying the winning 
bidders, and establishing the deadlines for submitting down payments, 
final payments, and the long-form applications.
    144. Down Payments. Within ten business days after release of the 
auction closing public notice, each winning bidder must submit 
sufficient funds (in addition to its upfront payment) to bring its 
total amount of money on deposit with the Commission for Auction 109 to 
20% of the net amount of its winning bid(s) (gross bid(s) less any 
applicable new entrant bidding credit(s)).
    145. Final Payments. Each winning bidder will be required to submit 
the balance of the net amount of its winning bid(s) within ten business 
days after the applicable deadline for submitting down payments.
    146. Long-Form Applications. The Commission's rules currently 
provide that within thirty days following the close of bidding and 
notification to the winning bidders, unless a longer period is 
specified by public notice, each winning bidder must electronically 
submit a separate, properly completed long-form application for each 
permit won, and required exhibits, along with the applicable 
application filing fee. Winning bidders for FM construction permits 
will electronically file FCC Form 2100, Schedule 301-FM, in the Media 
Bureau's Licensing and Management System (LMS). Winning bidders for AM 
construction permits will electronically file FCC Form 301 in the Media 
Bureau's Consolidated Data Base System (CDBS).
    147. A winning bidder is required to submit an application filing 
fee with each long-form application. 47 CFR 1.1104. The application 
filing fee must be paid in addition to the winning bid amount. The 
Commission recently adopted a new long-form application filing fee that 
includes an amount to recover costs for processing the short-form 
application. The amended Sec.  1.1104, which specifies filing fees for 
AM and FM long-form applications, is not yet in effect. The long-form 
application filing fee that is in effect when such form is filed will 
be the applicable fee.
    148. Winning bidders claiming new entrant status must include an 
exhibit demonstrating their eligibility for the bidding credit. Further 
instructions on these and other filing requirements will be provided to 
winning bidders in the auction closing public notice.
    149. Default and Disqualification. Any winning bidder that defaults 
or is disqualified after the close of the auction (i.e., fails to remit 
the required down payment within the prescribed period of time, fails 
to submit a timely long-form application, fails to make full and timely 
final payment, or is otherwise disqualified) is liable for a default 
payment as described in 47 CFR 1.2104(g)(2). This default payment 
consists of a deficiency payment, equal to the difference between the 
amount of the Auction 109 bidder's winning bid and the amount of the 
winning bid the next time a construction permit covering the same 
spectrum is won in an auction, plus an additional payment equal to a 
percentage of the defaulter's bid or of the subsequent winning bid, 
whichever is less.
    150. The percentage of the applicable bid to be assessed as an 
additional payment for defaults in a particular auction is established 
in advance of the auction. The additional default payment for Auction 
109 is 20% of the applicable bid.
    151. Finally, in the event of a default, the Commission has the 
discretion to re-auction the construction permit or offer it to the 
next highest bidder (in descending order) at its final bid amount. In 
addition, if a default or disqualification involves gross misconduct, 
misrepresentation, or bad faith by an applicant, the Commission may 
declare the applicant and its principals ineligible to bid in future 
auctions, and may take any other action that it deems necessary, 
including institution of proceedings to revoke any existing 
authorizations held by the applicant.
    152. Refund of Remaining Upfront Payment Balance. All refunds of 
upfront payment balances will be returned to the payer of record as 
identified on the FCC Form 159 unless the payer submits written 
authorization instructing otherwise. This written authorization must 
comply with the refund instructions provided in the Auction 109 
Procedures Public Notice.

VI. Procedural Matters

    153. Paperwork Reduction Act. The Office of Management and Budget 
(OMB) has approved the information collections in the Application to 
Participate in an FCC Auction, FCC Form 175, OMB Control No. 3060-0600. 
The Auction 109 Procedures Public Notice does not contain new or 
modified information collection requirements subject to the Paperwork 
Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA), Public Law 104-13. Therefore, it does not 
contain any new or modified information collection burden for small 
business concerns with fewer than 25 employees pursuant to the Small 
Business Paperwork Relief Act of 2002, Public Law 107-198.
    154. Congressional Review Act. The Commission will submit the 
Auction 109 Procedures Public Notice to the Administrator of the Office 
of Management and Budget Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs 
for concurrence as to whether these procedures are major or non-major 
under the Congressional Review Act, 5 U.S.C. 804(2). The Commission 
will send a copy of the Auction 109 Procedures Public Notice in a 
report to Congress and the Government Accountability Office pursuant to 
the Congressional Review Act, 5 U.S.C. 801(a)(1)(A).
    155. Supplemental Final Regulatory Flexibility Analysis. As 
required by the Regulatory Flexibility Act of 1980, as amended (RFA), 
the Commission prepared Initial Regulatory Flexibility Analyses (IRFAs) 
in connection with the Broadcast Competitive Bidding Notice of Proposed 
Rulemaking (NPRM), 62 FR 65392, December 12, 1997, and other Commission 
NPRMs (collectively, Competitive Bidding NPRMs) pursuant to which 
Auction 109 will be conducted. Final Regulatory Flexibility Analyses 
(FRFAs) likewise were prepared in the Broadcast Competitive Bidding 
Order, 63 FR 48615, September 11, 1998, and other Commission rulemaking 
orders (collectively, Competitive Bidding Orders) pursuant to which 
Auction 109 will be conducted. In this proceeding, a Supplemental 
Initial Regulatory Flexibility Analysis (Supplemental IRFA) was 
incorporated in the Auction 109 Comment Public Notice, 86 FR

[[Page 20309]]

12556, March 4, 2021. The Commission sought written public comment on 
the proposals in the Auction 109 Comment Public Notice, including 
comments on the Supplemental IRFA. This Supplemental Final Regulatory 
Flexibility Analysis (Supplemental FRFA) supplements the FRFAs in the 
Competitive Bidding Orders to reflect the actions taken in the Auction 
109 Procedure Public Notice and conforms to the RFA.
    156. Need for, and Objectives of, the Public Notice. The procedures 
for the conduct of Auction 109 as described in the Auction 109 
Procedures Public Notice implement the Commission's competitive bidding 
rules, which have been adopted by the Commission in multiple notice-
and-comment rulemaking proceedings. More specifically, the Auction 109 
Procedures Public Notice provides an overview of the procedures, terms, 
and conditions governing Auction 109, and the post-auction application 
and payment processes, as well as setting the minimum opening bid 
amount for each of the AM and FM broadcast construction permits that 
are subject to being assigned by competitive bidding.
    157. To promote the efficient and fair administration of the 
competitive bidding process for all Auction 109 participants, including 
small businesses, in the Auction 109 Procedures Public Notice OEA and 
MB announced the following procedures: (1) Use of a simultaneous 
multiple-round auction format, consisting of sequential bidding rounds 
with a simultaneous stopping procedure; (2) a specific upfront payment 
amount for each construction permit; (3) a specific minimum opening bid 
amount for each construction permit; (4) a specific number of bidding 
units for each construction permit; (5) a bidder's initial bidding 
eligibility will be based on the amount of that bidder's upfront 
payment; (6) a two-stage auction with an activity requirement in which 
a bidder is required to be active on 80% of its bidding eligibility in 
stage one and 95% of its bidding eligibility in stage two; (7) 
provision of three activity waivers for each qualified bidder to allow 
it to preserve bidding eligibility during the course of the auction; 
(8) use of minimum acceptable bid amounts and additional acceptable 
increments, along with the methodology for calculating such amounts; 
(9) a procedure for breaking ties if identical high bid amounts are 
submitted on one permit in a given round; (10) a prohibition on bid 
withdrawals; and (11) establishment of an additional default payment 
percentage of 20% of the applicable bid in the event that a winning 
bidder defaults or is disqualified after the auction.
    158. Summary of Significant Issues Raised by Public Comments in 
Response to the IRFA. There were no comments filed that specifically 
addressed the Supplemental IRFA.
    159. Response to Comments by the Chief Counsel for Advocacy of the 
Small Business Administration. Pursuant to the Small Business Jobs Act 
of 2010, which amended the RFA, the Commission is required to respond 
to any comment filed by the Chief Counsel for Advocacy of the Small 
Business Administration (SBA), and to provide a detailed statement of 
any change made to the proposed procedures as a result of those 
comments. The Chief Counsel did not file any comments in response to 
the procedures that were proposed in the Auction 109 Comment Public 
Notice.
    160. Description and Estimate of the Number of Small Entities to 
Which the Procedures Will Apply. The RFA directs agencies to provide a 
description of and, where feasible, an estimate of the number of small 
entities that may be affected by the rules adopted in the Auction 109 
Procedures Public Notice. The RFA generally defines the term small 
entity as having the same meaning as the terms small business, small 
organization, and small governmental jurisdiction. In addition, the 
term small business has the same meaning as the term small business 
concern under the Small Business Act. A small business concern is one 
which: (1) Is independently owned and operated; (2) is not dominant in 
its field of operation; and (3) satisfies any additional criteria 
established by the SBA.
    161. The specific competitive bidding procedures and minimum 
opening bid amounts described in the Auction 109 Procedures Public 
Notice will affect all applicants participating in Auction 109. The 
number of entities that may apply to participate in Auction 109 is 
unknown. Based on the number of applicants in prior FM auctions, OEA 
and MB estimate that the number of applicants for Auction 109 may range 
from approximately 130 to 260. This estimate is based on the number of 
applicants who filed short-form applications to participate in previous 
auctions of FM construction permits held to date, an average of 1.8 
short-form applications were filed per construction permit offered, 
with a median of 1.2 applications per permit. The actual number of 
applicants for Auction 109 could vary significantly as any individual's 
or entity's decision to participate may be affected by a number of 
factors beyond the Commission's knowledge.
    162. Radio Stations. This Economic Census category comprises 
establishments primarily engaged in broadcasting aural programs by 
radio to the public. Programming may originate in their own studio, 
from an affiliated network, or from external sources. According to the 
most recent rulemaking order to assess annual regulatory fees, 
Commission staff identified from the Media Bureau's licensing databases 
9,636 licensed radio facilities subject to annual regulatory fees as of 
October 1, 2019, excluding from this count radio stations exempt from 
required annual regulatory fees.
    163. The SBA has established a small business size standard for 
this category as firms having $41.5 million or less in annual receipts. 
Economic Census data for 2012 shows that 2,849 radio station firms 
operated during that year. Of that number, 2,806 firms operated with 
annual receipts of less than $25 million per year, 17 with annual 
receipts between $25 million and $49,999,999, and 26 with annual 
receipts of $50 million or more. Therefore, based on the SBA's size 
standard the majority of such entities are small entities.
    164. According to Commission staff review of the BIA/Kelsey, LLC's 
Media Access Pro Radio Database (BIA) as of January 26, 2021, nearly 
all AM and FM full-service radio stations (approximately 15,478 of 
15,483 total stations, or 99.97%) had revenues of $41.5 million or less 
and thus qualify as small entities under the SBA definition. The SBA 
size standard data, however, does not enable a meaningful estimate of 
the number of small entities who may participate in Auction 109.
    165. Also, in assessing whether a business entity qualifies as 
small under the SBA definition, business control affiliations must be 
included. This estimate therefore likely overstates the number of small 
entities that might be affected by this auction because the revenue 
figure on which it is based does not include or aggregate revenues from 
affiliated companies. Moreover, the definition of small business also 
requires that an entity not be dominant in its field of operation and 
that the entity be independently owned and operated. The estimate of 
small businesses to which Auction 109 competitive bidding procedures 
may apply does not exclude any radio station from the definition of a 
small business on these bases and is therefore over-inclusive to that 
extent. Furthermore, OEA and MB are unable at this time to define or 
quantify the criteria that would establish whether a specific radio

[[Page 20310]]

station is dominant in its field of operation. It is difficult to 
assess these criteria in the context of media entities and therefore 
estimates of small businesses to which they apply may be over-inclusive 
to this extent.
    166. OEA and MB are unable to accurately develop an estimate of how 
many of the entities in this auction would be small businesses based on 
the number of small entities that applied to participate in prior 
broadcast auctions because that information is not collected from 
applicants for broadcast auctions in which bidding credits are not 
based on an applicant's size (as is the case in auctions of licenses 
for wireless services).
    167. In 2013, the Commission estimated that 97% of radio 
broadcasters met the SBA's prior definition of small business concern, 
based on annual revenues of $7 million. The SBA has since increased 
that revenue threshold to $41.5 million, which suggests that an even 
greater percentage of radio broadcasters would fall within the SBA's 
definition. The Commission has estimated the number of licensed 
commercial AM radio stations to be 4,347 and the number of commercial 
FM radio stations to be 6,699, for a total number of 11,046 radio 
stations. As of January 2021, 4,347 AM stations and 6,694 FM stations 
had revenues of $41.5 million or less, according to Commission staff 
review of the BIA Database. Accordingly, based on this data, OEA and MB 
that the majority of Auction 109 applicants would likely meet the SBA's 
definition of a small business concern.
    168. Description of Projected Reporting, Recordkeeping, and Other 
Compliance Requirements for Small Entities. For Auction 109, no new 
reporting, recordkeeping, or other compliance requirements for small 
entities or other auction applicants were proposed. The Commission 
designed the auction application process itself to minimize reporting 
and compliance requirements for applicants, including small business 
applicants. For all spectrum auctions, in the first part of the 
Commission's two-phased auction application process, parties desiring 
to participate in an auction file streamlined, short-form applications 
in which they certify under penalty of perjury as to their 
qualifications. Eligibility to participate in bidding is based on an 
applicant's short-form application and certifications, as well as its 
upfront payment. In the second phase of the auction application 
process, there are additional compliance requirements for winning 
bidders. Thus, a small business that fails to become a winning bidder 
does not need to file a long-form application and provide the 
additional showings and more detailed demonstrations required of a 
winning bidder.
    169. Auction 109 applicants, including small entities, will become 
qualified to bid in Auction 109 only if they comply with the following: 
(1) Submission of a short-form application that is timely and is found 
to be substantially complete, and (2) timely submission of a sufficient 
upfront payment for at least one of the construction permits that the 
applicant selected on its FCC Form 175. In accordance with the terms of 
47 CFR 1.2105(b)(2), an applicant whose application is found to contain 
deficiencies will have a limited opportunity to bring its application 
into compliance with the Commission's competitive bidding rules during 
a resubmission window. In addition, each Auction 109 applicant must 
maintain the accuracy of its previously filed short-form application 
electronically using the FCC auction application system.
    170. In the second phase of the process, there are additional 
compliance requirements only applicable to winning bidders. As with 
other winning bidders, any small entity that is a winning bidder will 
be required to comply with the terms of the following rules, among 
others: (1) 47 CFR 1.2107(b), by submitting as a down payment within 10 
business days after release of the auction closing public notice 
sufficient funds (in addition to its upfront payment) to bring its 
total amount of money on deposit with the Commission for Auction 109 to 
20% of the amount of its winning bid or bids; (2) 47 CFR 1.2109(a), by 
submitting within 10 business days after the down payment deadline the 
balance of the amount for each of its winning bids; and (3) 47 CFR 
73.5005(a), by electronically filing a properly completed long-form 
application and required exhibits for each construction permit won 
through Auction 109.
    171. Further, as required by 47 CFR 1.2105(c), reports concerning 
prohibited communications must be filed with the Chief of the Auctions 
Division, as detailed in the Auctions 109 Procedures Public Notice.
    172. Steps Taken to Minimize the Significant Economic Impact on 
Small Entities, and Significant Alternatives Considered. The RFA 
requires an agency to describe any significant, specifically small 
business, alternatives that it has considered in reaching its proposed 
approach, which may include the following four alternatives (among 
others): (1) The establishment of differing compliance or reporting 
requirements or timetables that take into account the resources 
available to small entities; (2) the clarification, consolidation, or 
simplification of compliance and reporting requirements under the rule 
for such small entities; (3) the use of performance rather than design 
standards; and (4) an exemption from coverage of the rule, or any part 
thereof, for such small entities. See 5 U.S.C. 603(c)(1)-(4).
    173. OEA and MB intend that the procedures adopted in the Auctions 
109 Procedures Public Notice to facilitate participation in Auction 109 
will result in both operational and administrative cost savings for 
small entities and other auction participants. In light of the numerous 
resources that will be available from the Commission to small entities 
and other auction participants at no cost, the processes and procedures 
announced in the Auctions 109 Procedures Public Notice should minimize 
any economic impact of the auction processes and procedures on small 
entities and should result in both operational and administrative cost 
savings for small entities and other auction participants. For example, 
prior to the beginning of bidding in this auction, the Commission will 
hold a mock auction to allow qualified bidders the opportunity to 
familiarize themselves with both the processes and systems that will be 
used in Auction 109. During the auction, participants will be able to 
access and participate in bidding via the internet using a web-based 
system, or telephonically, providing two cost-effective methods of 
participation and avoiding the cost of travel for in-person 
participation. Further, small entities as well as other auction 
participants will be able to avail themselves of a telephone hotline 
for assistance with auction processes and procedures as well as a 
technical support telephone hotline to assist with issues such as 
access to or navigation within the electronic FCC Form 175 and use of 
the FCC's auction bidding system. In addition, all auction 
participants, including small business entities, will have access to 
various other sources of information and databases through the 
Commission that will aid in both their understanding and participation 
in the process. These mechanisms are made available to facilitate 
participation by all qualified bidders and may result in significant 
cost savings for small business entities that utilize these mechanisms. 
These resources, coupled with the description and communication of the 
bidding

[[Page 20311]]

procedures before bidding begins in Auction 109, should ensure that the 
auction will be administered predictably, efficiently and fairly, thus 
providing certainty for small entities as well as other auction 
participants.
    174. Notice to SBA. The Commission will send a copy of the Auctions 
109 Procedures Public Notice, including the Supplemental FRFA, to the 
Chief Counsel for Advocacy of the SBA.

Federal Communications Commission.
Erik Salovaara,
Assistant Chief, Auctions Division, Office of Economics and Analytics.
[FR Doc. 2021-08000 Filed 4-16-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6712-01-P