Reminder: Federal Communications Commission - October Filings

Kelley Drye Client Advisory

Please be reminded of the upcoming due dates for the Reports listed below:

OEA Establishes Extended Form 477 Deadlines

The new filing deadline for Form 477 data as of June 30, 2021 is October 1, 2021 for filers affected by Hurricane Ida in Louisiana and Mississippi and September 15, 2021 for all other filers.

In light of the Category 4 hurricane that struck the Gulf Coast on August 29th, the FCC extended the deadline to October 1, 2021 for the submission of Form 477 data as of June 30, 2021 for affected filers in Louisiana and Mississippi.

In this context, ​“affected” filers are those entities required to file Form 477 that operate facilities, or, in a significant manner essential to the business operation, rely on personnel, records, or financial institutions located in the parishes of Louisiana or the counties of Mississippi that the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has designated as eligible for Individual or Public Assistance for the purposes of federal disaster relief.

Information on how to file Form 477 is available on the FCC’s Form 477 Resources for Filers webpage at www​.fcc​.gov/​f​o​rm477. For Form 477 filing assistance, please call 1-877-480-3201 or 1-717- 338-2824 (tty), or submit an e-support request online at https://​esup​port​.fcc​.gov/​r​e​q​u​e​s​t.htm

Form 499-Q: Quarterly Telecommunications Reporting Worksheet

Carriers providing interstate and international telecommunications that are required to contribute to federal universal service support mechanisms must report their revenues for each calendar quarter by filing Form 499-Q with the Universal Service Administrative Company (USAC) on a quarterly basis.

The next Form 499-Q is due Monday November 1, 2021 and must be submitted electronically using USAC’s E-File system.  A contributor must file a revised Form 499-Q within 45 calendar days of the November 1 deadline (or the next business day thereafter) if it discovers an error in the data it reported.

The November Form 499-Q filing covers historical end user revenue data for July 1 through September 30 of the current year and projected end user and wholesale data for January 1 through March 1 of the next year.  Providers of interconnected Voice over Internet Protocol service and commercial mobile radio service that rely upon traffic studies to report their revenues on the Form 499-Q must submit the traffic studies with the Form 499-Q filing.

Note that the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) actively enforces the Form 499-Q filing and accompanying Universal Service Fund (USF) contribution requirement, and may impose monetary penalties for failure to file or make timely USF contributions.

Reminder

  • Starting September 28th, 2021, providers may not accept call traffic directly from a voice service provider that is not listed in the Robocall Mitigation Database.
  • The second application filing window for the Emergency Connectivity Fund opens on September 28th, 2021.
  • Form 499 filers are required to submit a revised Form 499-A if there is any change in any of the following types of information:  Filer identification; regulatory contact information; agent for service of process or FCC registration information.  Such updates are due within 10 business days of the change.
  • Voice service providers are required to update their filings in the Robocall Mitigation Database if there is any change in their robocall mitigation certifications required by 47 C.F.R. § 64.6305(b)(2)-(4), including changes in the robocall mitigation program or contact information.  Such updates are due within 10 business days of the change.

Attorneys in Kelley Drye & Warren’s Communications Practice Group are experienced in addressing universal service filing and carrier contribution issues and are available to assist clients with determining how to report their revenues for universal service purposes, as well as with the filing of FCC Form 499-Q.  For more information, please contact your current Kelley Drye attorney or any member of the Communications Practice Group.