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PUBLIC NOTICE Federal Communications Commission 445 12th Street, SW News Media Information: 202-418-0500 Internet: www.fcc.gov Washington, DC 20554 TTY: 888-835-5322 FCC 20-18 Released: March 2, 2020 AUCTION OF PRIORITY ACCESS LICENSES FOR THE 3550-3650 MHz BAND NOTICE AND FILING REQUIREMENTS, MINIMUM OPENING BIDS, UPFRONT PAYMENTS, AND OTHER PROCEDURES FOR AUCTION 105 BIDDING IN AUCTION 105 SCHEDULED TO BEGIN JUNE 25, 2020 AU Docket No. 19-244 TABLE OF CONTENTS Heading Paragraph # I. GENERAL INFORMATION .................................................................................................................1 A. Introduction.......................................................................................................................................1 B. Background and Relevant Authority ................................................................................................3 C. Description of Licenses to Be Offered in Auction 105.....................................................................7 D. Auction Specifics ............................................................................................................................10 1. Auction Title and Start Date.....................................................................................................10 2. Auction Dates and Deadlines ...................................................................................................12 3. Requirements for Participation.................................................................................................13 II. APPLYING TO PARTICIPATE IN AUCTION 105 ...........................................................................14 A. General Information Regarding Short-Form Applications .............................................................14 B. License Area Selection ...................................................................................................................24 C. Disclosure of Agreements and Bidding Arrangements...................................................................25 D. Ownership Disclosure Requirements..............................................................................................33 E. Foreign Ownership Disclosure Requirements ................................................................................35 F. Information Procedures During the Auction Process .....................................................................36 G. Prohibited Communications and Compliance with Antitrust Laws ...............................................42 1. Entities Subject to Section 1.2105(c) .......................................................................................43 2. Prohibition Applies Until Down Payment Deadline ................................................................45 3. Scope of Prohibition of Communications; Prohibition of Joint Bidding Agreements.............46 4. Communicating with Third Parties ..........................................................................................55 5. Section 1.2105(c) Certifications...............................................................................................59 6. Duty to Report Prohibited Communications ............................................................................60 7. Procedures for Reporting Prohibited Communications............................................................61 8. Winning Bidders Must Disclose Terms of Agreements...........................................................64 9. Additional Information Concerning Prohibition of Certain Communications in Commission Auctions ..............................................................................................................65 10. Antitrust Laws ..........................................................................................................................66 H. Provisions for Small Businesses and Rural Service Providers .......................................................68 1. Small Business Bidding Credit.................................................................................................71 Federal Communications Commission FCC 20-18 2. Rural Service Provider Bidding Credit.....................................................................................75 3. Caps on Bidding Credits...........................................................................................................77 4. Attributable Interests ................................................................................................................79 I. Provisions Regarding Former and Current Defaulters....................................................................89 J. Optional Applicant Status Identification ........................................................................................94 K. Modifications to FCC Form 175.....................................................................................................95 1. Only Minor Modifications Allowed.........................................................................................95 2. Duty to Maintain Accuracy and Completeness of FCC Form 175 ..........................................96 3. Modifying an FCC Form 175...................................................................................................97 III. PREPARING FOR BIDDING IN AUCTION 105 .............................................................................104 A. Due Diligence ...............................................................................................................................104 B. Licensing Considerations..............................................................................................................109 1. Incumbency and Sharing Issues .............................................................................................109 2. International Coordination......................................................................................................117 3. Environmental Review Requirements....................................................................................119 4. Spectrum Aggregation Limits ................................................................................................120 C. Bidder Education ..........................................................................................................................121 D. Short-Form Applications: Due Before 6:00 p.m. ET on April 9, 2020 .......................................124 E. Application Processing and Minor Modifications ........................................................................127 1. Public Notice of Applicants’ Initial Application Status and Opportunity for Minor Modifications..........................................................................................................................127 2. Public Notice of Applicants’ Final Application Status After Upfront Payment Deadline..................................................................................................................................130 F. Upfront Payments .........................................................................................................................131 1. Making Upfront Payments by Wire Transfer for Auction 105 ..............................................132 2. Completing and Submitting FCC Form 159 ..........................................................................138 3. Upfront Payments and Bidding Eligibility.............................................................................140 G. Auction Registration .....................................................................................................................146 H. Remote Electronic Bidding via the FCC Auction Bidding System..............................................149 I. Mock Auction ...............................................................................................................................152 J. Auction Delay, Suspension, or Cancellation ................................................................................153 K. Fraud Alert ....................................................................................................................................154 IV. BIDDING PROCEDURES .................................................................................................................157 A. Clock Auction Design...................................................................................................................157 B. Generic License Blocks with County-Level Bidding ...................................................................161 C. Bidding Rounds ............................................................................................................................168 D. Stopping Rule................................................................................................................................173 E. Availability of Bidding Information .............................................................................................175 F. Activity Rule, Activity Upper Limit, and Reducing Eligibility....................................................178 G. Acceptable Bids ............................................................................................................................189 1. Minimum Opening Bids and Reserve Price ...........................................................................189 2. Clock Price Increments...........................................................................................................193