Thanks to Ann Higgins for sending me another great article that sheds more light on the ARRA review process. To recap what we learned at the TISP meeting earlier this week, the State has been asked to look at the grants in Minnesota. They have until October 14 to comment on the proposals. The volunteer reviewers seem to be in limbo. So that’s what the left hand seems to be doing.

According to the article in Telephony Online (Let the Stimulus Challenge Begin!), the applications are also now open (for the next 30 days or so) to the scrutiny of the incumbents serving any proposed areas. Apparently the incumbents can challenge based on meeting any one of three criteria: 40% penetration of broadband, an advertised 3 megabit-per-second service or broadband passing 50% of homes in the census block. (It doesn’t seem as if that’s confirmed but then very little of this process seems to be confirmed.)

So the right hand seems to be dealing with incumbent disputes. The applicants are worried that if the feds decide that a portion of a proposed area is covered that the application will be disqualified. They are worried that the same onus to prove the areas were unserved will not be required to prove that they are served.

So what’s an applicant to do? Prepare for disputes. It will help them if there is a dispute if worse comes to worst, it will help them offer a stronger application for the next round of funding.