Sec.  24.203   Construction requirements.

   (a) Licensees of 30 MHz blocks must serve with a signal level sufficient to
   provide adequate service to at least one-third of the population in their
   licensed area within five years of being licensed and two-thirds of the
   population in their licensed area within ten years of being licensed.
   Licensees may, in the alternative, provide substantial service to their
   licensed area within the appropriate five- and ten-year benchmarks.
   Licensees may choose to define population using the 1990 census or the 2000
   census. Failure by any licensee to meet these requirements will result in
   forfeiture or non-renewal of the license and the licensee will be ineligible
   to regain it.

   (b) Licensees of 10 MHz blocks except for the 1910–1915 MHz and 1990–1995
   MHz, including 10 MHz C block licenses reconfigured pursuant to Amendment of
   the Commission's Rules Regarding Installment Payment Financing for Personal
   Communications Services (PCS) Licensees, WT Docket No. 97–82, Sixth Report
   and Order, FCC 00–313, and 15 MHz blocks resulting from the disaggregation
   option as provided in the Commission's Rules Regarding Installment Payment
   Financing for Personal Communications Services (PCS) Licensees, Second
   Report and Order and Further Notice of Proposed Rule Making, WT Docket
   97–82, 12 FCC Rcd 16436 (1997), as modified by Order on Reconsideration of
   the Second Report and Order, WT Docket 97–82, 13 FCC Rcd 8345 (1998), must
   serve with a signal level sufficient to provide adequate service to at least
   one-quarter of the population in their licensed area within five years of
   being licensed, or make a showing of substantial service in their licensed
   area within five years of being licensed. Population is defined as the 1990
   population census. Licensees may elect to use the 2000 population census to
   determine the five-year construction requirement. Failure by any licensee to
   meet these requirements will result in forfeiture of the license and the
   licensee will be ineligible to regain it.

   (c) Licensees must file maps and other supporting documents showing
   compliance with the respective construction requirements within the
   appropriate five- and ten-year benchmarks of the date of their initial
   licenses.

   (d) Licensees in the paired 1910–1915 MHz and 1990–1995 MHz bands must make
   a showing of “substantial service” in their license area within ten years of
   the date of initial license issuance or renewal. “Substantial service” is
   defined as service which is sound, favorable, and substantially above a
   level of mediocre service which just might minimally warrant renewal.
   Failure by any licensee to meet this requirement will result in forfeiture
   of the license and the licensee will be ineligible to regain it.

   [ 58 FR 59183 , Nov. 8, 1993, as amended at  64 FR 26890 , May 18, 1999;  65 FR 53636 , Sept. 5, 2000;  69 FR 67835 , Nov. 22, 2004;  69 FR 75171 , Dec. 15,
   2004]