FCC Proposes Record Fine For Lifeline Claims Violations

摘要

The FCC has proposed imposing a fine of more than $63 million on Ohio-based wireless reseller American Broadband and Telecommunications Co. "for apparent repeated, systematic, and large-scale violations" of the Commission's Lifeline program rules, including the creation of Lifeline subscriber accounts for deceased individuals and failing to de-enroll subscribers it knew or should have known were ineligible. The FCC said the proposed fine of $63,465,500 was the largest it has ever proposed for violations of a Universal Service program's rules. The fine was based on 42,309 apparently improper Lifeline claims in August 2016, which occurred after the company had told the Commission it had addressed the problems in its systems and processes to comply with FCC rules, the agency said in a press release.