[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 180 (Monday, September 17, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Pages 57085-57086]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-22907]
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FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION
[AU Docket No. 12-25; DA 12-1446]
Mobility Fund Phase I Auction; Release of Files with Recalculated
Road Miles for Auction 901; Mock Auction Rescheduled for September 21,
2012
AGENCY: Federal Communications Commission.
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: In this document, the Wireless Telecommunications and Wireline
Competition Bureaus announce updated data files of census blocks
eligible for the Mobility Fund Phase I support to be offered in Auction
901, which is to be held on September 27, 2012, and the change of the
mock auction date from September 25, 2012 to September 21, 2012.
DATES: The mock auction is rescheduled for September 21, 2012. Auction
901 is scheduled to be held on September 27, 2012.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Wireless Telecommunications Bureau,
Auctions and Spectrum Access Division: Lisa Stover at (717) 338-2868.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This is a summary of the Auction 901 Updated
Data Files and Mock Auction Date Change Public Notice released on
September 7, 2012. The Auction 901 Updated Data Files and Mock Auction
Date Change Public Notice and its associated attachment as well as
related Commission documents may be purchased from the Commission's
duplicating contractor, Best Copy and Printing, Inc. (BCPI), 445 12th
Street SW., Room CY-B402, Washington, DC 20554, telephone 202-488-5300,
fax 202-488-5563, or you may contact BCPI at its Web site: http://www.BCPIWEB.com. When ordering documents from BCPI, please provide the
appropriate FCC document number, for example, DA 12-1446. The Auction
901 Updated Data Files and Mock Auction Date Change Public Notice and
related documents also are available on the Internet at the
Commission's Web site: http://wireless.fcc.gov/auctions/901/ or by
using the search function for AU Docket No. 12-25 on the Commission's
Electronic Comment Filing System (ECFS) web page at http://www.fcc.gov/cgb/ecfs/.
1. In the Auction 901 Procedures Public Notice, 77 FR 32092, May
31, 2012, the Bureaus identified census blocks eligible for the
Mobility Fund Phase I support to be offered in Auction 901. The Bureaus
also released files containing detailed information about these census
blocks in a number of data formats, and a file with information about
the more than 14,000 biddable geographic areas for Auction 901. These
biddable items include: (1) The census tract-level aggregations of
eligible census blocks, (2) separate aggregations of Tribal blocks and
non-Tribal blocks for tracts that contain some eligible blocks that are
in a Tribal land and other eligible blocks that are not in a Tribal
land, and (3) individual eligible census blocks in Alaska. The Bureaus
now announce the availability of updated versions of these files, which
are available via the link for ``Attachment A Files'' at http://wireless.fcc.gov/auctions/901/. An updated summary of the eligible
census blocks is attached to the Auction 901 Updated Data Files and
Mock Auction Date Change Public Notice.
2. These files do not change the set of eligible census blocks or
biddable items. The only changes made are to the road miles listed for
certain of the eligible census blocks and their associated biddable
items. Comparing the recalculated road miles released today to the
previously-released data, the Bureaus note that: (1) More than 80% of
the biddable items have either no change in road miles or a change of
less than 1 mile; and (2) Fewer than 200 of the more than 14,000
biddable items have changes of at least 1 road mile and more than 25%
of the previous total road miles.
3. The Bureaus recently became aware of some anomalies in the
calculated
[[Page 57086]]
road miles for certain of the eligible census blocks, and as a result
the Bureaus have reviewed their procedures for calculating road miles.
The Bureaus' review indicates that the previously-posted files
overstated the eligible road miles in certain cases. Newly-calculated
files are available on the Auction 901 Web site (http://wireless.fcc.gov/auctions/901/) via the link for ``Attachment A
Files.''
4. Based on the Bureaus' review, they have determined that the
overstatement resulted from an error in processing the relevant census
data files relating to road miles. By way of background, as stated in
the Auction 901 Comment Public Notice, 77 FR 7152, February 10, 2012,
in calculating the number of road miles associated with each eligible
census block, the Bureaus used the sum of linear road miles within the
block plus half of the sum of linear road miles that form a border with
an adjacent block. The Bureaus included half of the sum of the border
roads so these linear miles are not double counted and are
appropriately attributed to each eligible block. In order to make this
calculation, they considered data in census TIGER files that defines
census block borders, other geographic borders, and linear features
such as roads. Due to an error in joining these data files, the
Bureaus' previous files overstated the calculation of road miles within
certain census blocks.
5. The Bureaus' review also indicated that, based on the different
ways in which various software treats fractions, the Bureaus could
improve the consistency of their data by standardizing their rounding
procedures. So the Bureaus now round all road mile numbers to
hundredths of miles (two decimal places). As a result, the road mile
figures in some cases may be slightly different than the previously-
released data due to the new rounding procedures.
6. The Bureaus also reschedule the upcoming mock auction for
Auction 901. The mock auction, initially scheduled for September 25,
2012, will instead take place on September 21, 2012. The mock auction
will enable qualified bidders to become familiar with the FCC Auction
System and to practice submitting bids. Auction 901 will proceed as
scheduled on
Thursday, September 27, 2012. Consistent with its usual practice,
the Commission intends to announce qualified bidders and distribute
registration materials by overnight mail approximately ten days before
the auction. All other previously-announced auction procedures and
requirements remain the same.
Federal Communications Commission.
Gary D. Michaels,
Deputy Chief, Auctions and Spectrum Access Division, WTB.
[FR Doc. 2012-22907 Filed 9-14-12; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6712-01-P