Updated May 20, 2020
On January 30, 2020, the Federal Communications Commission adopted the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund Report and Order, which establishes the framework for the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund (RDOF), a $20.4 billion fund to bring high speed fixed broadband service to rural homes and small businesses.
On May 19, 2020 the Commission released a Draft Public Notice establishing procedures for the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund Auction which will be considered at the June 9, 2020 FCC Open Meeting.
What you need to know:
- $20.4 billion will be awarded using reverse auctions in two phases.
- The Phase I auction (Auction 904), totaling $16 billion
- Colorado has approximately 99,000 preliminary eligible locations totaling $690 million in eligible funding.
- Proposed timeline (as outlined in Draft Public Notice which will be considered at the June 9, 2020 FCC Open Meeting):
- July 1-15, 2020: Short-Form Application (FCC Form 183) Filing Window
- October 26, 2020: Mock Auction Begins
- October 29, 2020: Auction Begins
Useful Links:
- FCC’s Auction 904 RDOF web page: https://www.fcc.gov/auction/904
- View all Public Notices, Letters, Orders, and News Releases related to RDOF: https://www.fcc.gov/auction/904/releases
Data
Initial Eligible Areas – Colorado (data processed by the CBO):
To provide an overview of preliminary eligible areas in Colorado, the CBO has processed the initial eligible areas and created the following:
Initial Eligible Areas (data from FCC):
Public Notice announcing the release of the preliminary list: https://docs.fcc.gov/public/attachments/DA-20-275A1.pdf
The preliminary list of the eligible census block, associated Census Block Groups and Tracts, and Reserve Prices are available in CSV and Shapefile format here: www.fcc.gov/auction/904
The Initial Eligible Areas are also viewable in the FCC’s online map of Auction 904 Initial Eligible Areas
Supporting Data:
- Census Block data: www.census.gov/geographies/mapping-files/time-series/geo/tiger-line-file.2019.html
- Address Dataset for Colorado: data.colorado.gov/State/Statewide-Aggregate-Addresses-in-Colorado-2019-Pub/n7je-akky
- Colorado Broadband Dataset: data.colorado.gov/Telecommunications/Colorado-Broadband-Coverage/d8uf-vegq
Education:
FCC RDOF Phase I Auction Webinar For Government Officials (May 20, 2020)
CBO RDOF Auction 904 Ask the Experts Webinar (May 12, 2020)
Click here to download Slides. Visit the event page for more information