tlnitnl ~tatrs ~rnotr 
WASHINGTON, DC 20510 
The Honorable Tom Wheeler 
Chairman 
Federal Communications Commission 
445 12'h Street, SW 
Washington, DC 20536 
Dear Chairman Wheeler: 
September 8, 2014 
Thank you for meeting with us in July. We thoroughly appreciated the opportunity to discuss 
communications issues facing Montana. We look forward to continuing our dialogue on issues 
such as rural call blocking, E-rate modernization and high cost loop support. While each of 
those issues remains important, we write today to share our thoughts on Phase II of the Connect 
America Fund (CAF II). 
The importance of reliable access to broadband Internet for rural communities continues to 
grow. With robust broadband service, the smallest town can compete and connect with the rest 
of the world. The Internet is a critical tool to build businesses, apply for jobs, enhance 
educational opportunities and connect friends and families. CAF II is an outstanding opportunity 
to continue to improve access to high-speed broadband for Montanans living in unserved areas, 
especially since it incentivizes broadband deployment at speeds of 10 Mbps, more than double 
speeds of previous rounds. 
It is essential that the final details of the program live up to its promise. While more than 
doubling the speed requirements for CAF II is welcome news, we are concerned that the 
program's overall mission could be endangered if the final rules do not ensure that eligible 
census blocks are correctly identified, partially unserved census blocks can receive funding and 
an appropriate amount of time and support are granted to make sure carriers can construct high­
capacity networks. 
As CAF II procedures are finalized, we urge the Commission to meticulously survey census 
blocks to make sure that all eligible unserved areas qualify for funding. Additionally, CAF II 
eligibility must be updated to account for partially-served census blocks as too many households 
missed out on CAF 1.2 funding due to the insufficient challenge process. Finally, the 
Commission should continue to be open to feedback about how best to balance the need to 
quickly develop broadband capacity in unserved areas with the funding and time required to 
complete build outs. 
We look forward to continuing to work with you and the Commission on efforts to deploy 
broadband to the most rural areas of our nation. Thank you for your consideration. 
Sincerely, 
- 7/ialsf v.U Tester 
nited States Senator United States Senator