February 26, 2020 – The FCC’s Wireline Competition Bureau and Office of Economics and Analytics have announced the commencement of an information collection on the use of Huawei Technologies Company and ZTE Corporation equipment and services in U.S. communications networks.[1]

Every eligible Telecommunications Carrier (ETC) must file this information online with the FCC on or before April 22, 2020. Even those ETCs that do not use Huawei or ZTE equipment or services are required to report that they do not use such equipment or services. The portal for ETCs to submit information is available at www.fcc.gov/supplychain. Detailed instructions on how to file the information are available at https://us-fcc.app.box.com/v/SupplyChainInstructions.

In the FCC’s November 2019 Supply Chain Order, the FCC adopted a rule that prospectively prohibits the use of Universal Service Fund support to purchase or obtain any equipment or services produced or provided by a covered company posing a national security threat to the integrity of U.S. communications networks or the U.S. communications supply chain.[2] Huawei and ZTE were initially designated as covered companies and established a process for designating additional covered companies in the future.

Also, the FCC directed the WCB and OEA to conduct an information collection to determine the extent to which potentially prohibited equipment exists in current networks and the costs associated with removing such equipment and replacing it with equivalent equipment. The information collection is expected to guide the next steps in the national security proceeding. The Office of Management and Budget approved the information collection on February 12, 2020.

Information Collection – Reporting Requirements

Every ETC must report the extent to which their networks contain or use potentially prohibited equipment or services provided by Huawei, ZTE, or their subsidiaries, parents, or affiliates, and the costs associated with removing such equipment and replacing it with equivalent equipment. Those ETCs with prohibited Huawei and ZTE equipment must provide the following:

Affirm that their network contains or relies on potentially prohibited equipment;

What that equipment is and what those services are;

Provide the costs of purchasing and installing potentially prohibited equipment or services, separately for both equipment and services currently in use and equipment and equipment and services no longer in use;

Provide the estimated costs of removing and replacing potentially prohibited equipment or services; and

Certify their response.

ETCs that do not use Huawei or ZTE equipment or services are required to report that they do not use such equipment, software, or services.

Other service providers that are not ETCs may participate in the information collection on a voluntary basis should they have ETC designation petitions pending or intend to file such in the future. Similarly, other Universal Service Fund recipients who are not ETCs may participate in the information collection on a voluntary basis.

ETCs must have an FCC username registration associated with an FCC Registration Number in CORES to log in and complete the data submission. The portal for ETCs to submit information is available at www.fcc.gov/supplychain. Detailed instructions on how to file the information are available at https://us-fcc.app.box.com/v/SupplyChainInstructions.

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[1] Wireline Competition Bureau And Office Of Economics And Analytics Open Reporting Portal For Supply Chain Security Information Collection, Requires Eligible Telecommunications Carriers to Report Existing Huawei and ZTE Equipment and Services and Replacement Costs, WC Docket No. 18-89, Public Notice, DA 20-166 (Feb. 26, 2020).

[2] Protecting Against National Security Threats to the Communications Supply Chain Through FCC Programs, WC Docket No. 18-89, Huawei Designation, PS Docket No. 19-351, ZTE Designation, PS Docket No. 19-352, Report And Order, Further Notice Of Proposed Rulemaking, And Order, FCC 19-121 (Nov. 26, 2019), https://www.fcc.gov/document/protecting-national-security-through-fcc-programs-0.