Goto Section: 54.672 | 54.679 | Table of Contents
FCC 54.675
Revised as of December 3, 2019
Goto Year:2019 |
2021
§ 54.675 Cap.
(a) Amount of the annual cap. The aggregate annual cap on federal
universal service support for health care providers shall be $571
million per funding year, of which up to $150 million per funding year
will be available to support upfront payments and multi-year
commitments under the Healthcare Connect Fund.
(1) Inflation increase. In funding year 2018 and the subsequent funding
years, the $571 million cap on federal universal support in the Rural
Health Care Program shall be automatically increased annually to take
into account increases in the rate of inflation as calculated in
paragraph (a)(2) of this section.
(2) Increase calculation. To measure increases in the rate of inflation
for the purposes of this paragraph (a), the Commission shall use the
Gross Domestic Product Chain-type Price Index (GDP-CPI). To compute the
annual increase as required by this paragraph (a), the percentage
increase in the GDP-CPI from the previous year will be used. For
instance, the annual increase in the GDP-CPI from 2017 to 2018 would be
used for the 2018 funding year. The increase shall be rounded to the
nearest 0.1 percent by rounding 0.05 percent and above to the next
higher 0.1 percent and otherwise rounding to the next lower 0.1
percent. This percentage increase shall be added to the amount of the
annual funding cap from the previous funding year. If the yearly
average GDP-CPI decreases or stays the same, the annual funding cap
shall remain the same as the previous year.
(3) Public notice. When the calculation of the yearly average GDP-CPI
is determined, the Wireline Competition Bureau shall publish a public
notice in the Federal Register within 60 days announcing any increase
of the annual funding cap based on the rate of inflation.
(4) Amount of unused funds. All funds collected that are unused shall
be carried forward into subsequent funding years for use in the Rural
Health Care Program in accordance with the public interest and
notwithstanding the annual cap. The Administrator shall report to the
Commission, on a quarterly basis, funding that is unused from prior
years of the Rural Health Care Program.
(5) Application of unused funds. On an annual basis, in the second
quarter of each calendar year, all funds that are collected and that
are unused from prior years shall be available for use in the next full
funding year of the Rural Health Care Program in accordance with the
public interest and notwithstanding the annual cap as described in this
paragraph (a).
(b) Funding year. A funding year for purposes of the health care
providers cap shall be the period July 1 through June 30.
(c) Requests. Funds shall be available as follows:
(1) Generally, funds shall be available to eligible health care
providers on a first-come-first-served basis, with requests accepted
beginning on the first of January prior to each funding year.
(2) For the Telecommunications Program and the Healthcare Connect Fund,
the Administrator shall implement a filing window period that treats
all eligible health care providers filing within the window period as
if their applications were simultaneously received.
(3) [Reserved]
(4) The deadline to submit a funding commitment request under the
Telecommunications Program and the Healthcare Connect Fund is June 30
for the funding year that begins on the previous July 1.
(d) Annual filing requirement. Health care providers shall file new
funding requests for each funding year, except for health care
providers who have received a multi-year funding commitment under
§ 54.644.
(e) Long-term contracts. If health care providers enter into long-term
contracts for eligible services, the Administrator shall only commit
funds to cover the portion of such a long-term contract scheduled to be
delivered during the funding year for which universal service support
is sought, except for multi-year funding commitments as described in
§ 54.644.
(f) Pro-rata reductions for Telecommunications Program support. The
Administrator shall act in accordance with this section when a filing
window period for the Telecommunications Program and the Healthcare
Connect Fund, as described in paragraph (c)(2) of this section, is in
effect. When a filing window period described in paragraph (c)(2) of
this section closes, the Administrator shall calculate the total demand
for Telecommunications Program and Healthcare Connect Fund support
submitted by all applicants during the filing window period. If the
total demand during a filing window period exceeds the total remaining
support available for the funding year, the Administrator shall take
the following steps:
(1) The Administrator shall divide the total remaining funds available
for the funding year by the total amount of Telecommunications Program
and Healthcare Connect Fund support requested by each applicant that
has filed during the window period, to produce a pro-rata factor.
(2) The Administrator shall calculate the amount of Telecommunications
Program and Healthcare Connect Fund support requested by each applicant
that has filed during the filing window.
(3) The Administrator shall multiply the pro-rata factor by the total
dollar amount requested by each applicant filing during the window
period. Administrator shall then commit funds to each applicant for
Telecommunications Program and Healthcare Connect Fund support
consistent with this calculation.
[ 78 FR 13992 , Mar. 1, 2013, as amended at 83 FR 30584 , June 29 2018]
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Goto Section: 54.672 | 54.679
Goto Year: 2019 |
2021
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