§ 90.813   Partitioned licenses and disaggregated spectrum.

   (a)   Eligibility.  Parties  seeking  approval  for  partitioning  and
   disaggregation shall request an authorization for partial assignment of a
   license pursuant to § 1.948 of this chapter.

   (b) Technical standards—(1) Partitioning. In the case of partitioning,
   requests for authorization for partial assignment of a license must include,
   as  attachments,  a  description of the partitioned service area and a
   calculation  of the population of the partitioned service area and the
   licensed geographic service area. The partitioned service area shall be
   defined  by coordinate points at every 3 degrees along the partitioned
   service area unless an FCC recognized service area is utilized (i.e., Major
   Trading Area, Basic Trading Area, Metropolitan Service Area, Rural Service
   Area  or  Economic  Area) or county lines are followed. The geographic
   coordinates  must be specified in degrees, minutes, and seconds to the
   nearest second of latitude and longitude and must be based upon the 1927
   North American Datum (NAD27). Applicants may supply geographical coordinates
   based on 1983 North American Datum (NAD83) in addition to those required
   (NAD27). In the case where an FCC recognized service area or county lines
   are utilized, applicants need only list the specific area(s) (through use of
   FCC designations or county names) that constitute the partitioned area.

   (2) Disaggregation. Spectrum may be disaggregated in any amount.

   (3) Combined partitioning and disaggregation. The Commission will consider
   requests for partial assignment of licenses that propose combinations of
   partitioning and disaggregation.

   (c) Installment payments—(1) Apportioning the balance on installment payment
   plans.  When a winning bidder elects to pay for its license through an
   installment payment plan pursuant to § 90.812, and partitions its licensed
   area or disaggregates spectrum to another party, the outstanding balance
   owed by the licensee on its installment payment plan (including accrued and
   unpaid interest) shall be apportioned between the licensee and partitionee
   or  disaggregatee.  Both  parties will be responsible for paying their
   proportionate share of the outstanding balance to the U.S. Treasury. In the
   case of partitioning, the balance shall be apportioned based upon the ratio
   of the population of the partitioned area to the population of the entire
   original license area calculated based upon the most recent census data. In
   the case of disaggregation, the balance shall be apportioned based upon the
   ratio of the amount of spectrum disaggregated to the amount of spectrum
   allocated to the licensed area.

   (2) Parties not qualified for installment payment plans. (i) The partitionee
   or  disaggregatee shall, as a condition of the approval of the partial
   assignment application, pay its entire pro rata amount within 30 days of
   Public Notice conditionally granting the partial assignment application.
   Failure to meet this condition will result in a rescission of the grant of
   the partial assignment application.

   (ii) The licensee shall be permitted to continue to pay its pro rata share
   of  the  outstanding balance and shall receive new financing documents
   (promissory note, security agreement) with a revised payment obligation,
   based on the remaining amount of time on the original installment payment
   schedule. These financing documents will replace the licensee's existing
   financing documents which shall be marked “superseded” and returned to the
   licensee upon receipt of the new financing documents. The original interest
   rate, established pursuant to § 1.2110(g)(3)(i) of this chapter at the time
   of the grant of the initial license in the market, shall continue to be
   applied to the licensee's portion of the remaining government obligation.
   The Commission will require, as a further condition to approval of the
   partial assignment application, that the licensee execute and return to the
   U.S. Treasury the new financing documents within 30 days of the Public
   Notice conditionally granting the partial assignment application. Failure to
   meet this condition will result in the automatic cancellation of the grant
   of the partial assignment application.

   (iii) A default on the licensee's payment obligation will only affect the
   licensee's portion of the market.

   (3) Parties qualified for installment payment plans. (i) Where both parties
   to  a partitioning or disaggregation agreement qualify for installment
   payments,  the  partitionee or disaggregatee will be permitted to make
   installment payments on its portion of the remaining government obligation,
   as calculated according to paragraph (d)(1) of this section.

   (ii) Each party will be required, as a condition to approval of the partial
   assignment application, to execute separate financing documents (promissory
   note, security agreement) agreeing to pay their pro rata portion of the
   balance  due  (including  accrued  and unpaid interest) based upon the
   installment  payment terms for which they qualify under the rules. The
   financing documents must be returned to the U.S. Treasury within thirty (30)
   days of the Public Notice conditionally granting the partial assignment
   application. Failure by either party to meet this condition will result in
   the  automatic  cancellation  of  the  grant of the partial assignment
   application. The interest rate, established pursuant to § 1.2110(g)(3)(i) of
   this chapter at the time of the grant of the initial license in the market,
   shall continue to be applied to both parties' portion of the balance due.
   Each party will receive a license for their portion of the partitioned
   market or disaggregated spectrum.

   (iii) A default on an obligation will only affect that portion of the market
   area held by the defaulting party.

   (iv) Partitionees and disaggregatees that qualify for installment payment
   plans may elect to pay some of their pro rata portion of the balance due in
   a lump sum payment to the U.S. Treasury and to pay the remaining portion of
   the balance due pursuant to an installment payment plan.

   (d) License term. The license term for a partitioned license area and for
   disaggregated spectrum shall be the remainder of the original licensee's
   license term as provided for in § 90.665(a).

   (e) Construction requirements—(1) Requirements for partitioning. Parties
   seeking authority to partition must meet one of the following construction
   requirements:

   (i)  The  partitionee  may certify that it will satisfy the applicable
   construction requirements set forth in § 90.665 for the partitioned license
   area; or

   (ii)  The  original  licensee may certify that it has or will meet the
   construction requirements set forth in § 90.665 for the entire market. In
   that case, the partitionee must only meet the requirements for renewal of
   its license for the partitioned license area.

   (iii)  Applications  requesting  partial  assignments  of  license for
   partitioning must include a certification by each geographic area 800 MHz
   SMR licenses in the lower 230 channels will be awarded to small entities, as
   that term is defined by the SBA.

   (iv) Partitionees must submit supporting documents showing compliance with
   the respective construction requirements within the appropriate time frames
   set forth in § 90.665.

   (v)  Failure  by  any  partitionee  to meet its respective performance
   requirements will result in the automatic cancellation of the partitioned or
   disaggregated license without further Commission action.

   (2)  Requirements  for  disaggregation.  Parties  seeking authority to
   disaggregate  must  submit with their partial assignment application a
   certification signed by both parties stating which of the parties will be
   responsible for meeting the construction requirements for the market as set
   forth in § 90.665. Parties may agree to share responsibility for meeting the
   construction requirements. Parties that accept responsibility for meeting
   the construction requirements and later fail to do so will be subject to
   license forfeiture without further Commission action.

   [ 62 FR 41219 , July 31, 1997, as amended at  67 FR 45376 , July 9, 2002;  68 FR 43001 , July 21, 2003]

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