FCC Circulates Order Denying Extension of COVID-19 Non-Usage Waiver
FCC Chairman Brendan Carr is circulating an order that would deny a set of 2024 applications for review regarding upward revisions for reimbursement of services provided in the last month of the Lifeline COVID-19 waiver period. While the FCC provided…
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a limited waiver during the pandemic of the non-usage rule -- which bars Lifeline providers from being subsidized for services that subscribers aren't using -- not extending the waiver after the relevant time period ended ultimately saves taxpayers millions, Carr said Friday. "While the Commission offered flexibility during the pendency of the COVID-19 pandemic, that does not mean we should allow providers to game the system for extra reimbursement, at the American public’s expense, after the need for this leniency had clearly -- and officially -- ended," he said. Assist Wireless, enTouch Wireless, Easy Wireless and iAccess Wireless in 2024 filed a set of applications for review of a Wireline Bureau order denying the companies an upward revision of their April 2021 Lifeline reimbursement claims. The circulating order would affirm the bureau's decision that the COVID-19 relief waiver for non-usage ended that month, and the companies aren't entitled to an additional month, the FCC said.