Hughes Asks FCC to Revisit CAF II Weighting; Pennsylvania Seeks More Help

petition for reconsideration posted Thursday. Hughes said there's no reason for so heavily favoring higher speeds and lower latency when consumer satisfaction data shows satellite broadband being "in the same range" as terrestrial, it said. It recommended a bid weighting matrix with a latency penalty of no more than 10 and a maximum weight of 25 for 10/1 Mbps service, 15 for 25/3 service and 10 for 100/20 service, with gigabit service getting no additional weight. Lower weights are favored in a reverse auction of subsidy support. A satellite operator petition for reconsideration was expected (see 1704170035). Pennsylvania government entities also asked the FCC to reconsider one aspect of the ruling on CAF II support for the state previously declined by Verizon as the incumbent telco. The commission should modify the rules for Pennsylvania bids only to add "a negative weight to the recently-proposed auction formula to reflect additional resources brought to the auction through the state," said a petition from the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission and the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development. Granting the relief request "would allow carriers operating in the state to access up to the remaining $139.62 million in total CAF Phase II model-based support funding" ($23.27 million in annual support over the six years) originally offered to Verizon's ILEC areas in the state, their petition said.