§  25.165   Surety bonds.

   (a) For all space station licenses issued after September 20, 2004,
   other than licenses for DBS space stations, SDARS space stations, space
   stations licensed in accordance with § 25.122 or § 25.123, and
   replacement space stations as defined in paragraph (e) of this section,
   the licensee must post a bond within 30 days of the grant of its
   license. Space station licensed in accordance with § 25.122 or § 25.123
   must post a bond within one year plus 30 days of the grant of the
   license. Failure to post a bond will render the license null and void
   automatically.

   (1) An NGSO licensee must have on file a surety bond requiring payment
   in the event of default as defined in paragraph (c) of this section, in
   an amount, at a minimum, determined according to the following formula,
   with the resulting dollar amount rounded to the nearest $10,000: A =
   $1,000,000 + $4,000,000 * D/2192, where A is the amount to be paid and
   D is the lesser of 2192 or the number of days that elapsed from the
   date of license grant until the date when the license was surrendered.

   (2) A GSO licensee must have on file a surety bond requiring payment in
   the event of default as defined in paragraph (c) of this section, in an
   amount, at a minimum, determined according to the following formula,
   with the resulting dollar amount rounded to the nearest $10,000: A =
   $1,000,000 + $2,000,000 * D/1827, where A is the amount to be paid and
   D is the lesser of 1827 or the number of days that elapsed from the
   date of license grant until the date when the license was surrendered.

   (3) Licensees of satellite systems including both NGSO space stations
   and GSO space stations that will operate in the same frequency bands
   must file a surety bond requiring payment in the event of default as
   defined in paragraph (c) of this section, in an amount, at a minimum,
   to be determined according to the formula in paragraph (a)(1) of this
   section.

   (b) The licensee must use a surety company deemed acceptable within the
   meaning of 31 U.S.C. 9304 et seq. (See, e.g., Department of Treasury
   Fiscal Service, Companies Holding Certificates of Authority as
   Acceptable Sureties on Federal Bonds and As Acceptable Reinsurance
   Companies,  57 FR 29356 , July 1, 1992.) The bond must name the U.S.
   Treasury as beneficiary in the event of the licensee's default. The
   licensee must provide the Commission with a copy of the performance
   bond, including all details and conditions.

   (c) A licensee will be considered to be in default with respect to a
   bond filed pursuant to paragraph (a) of this section if it surrenders
   the license before meeting an applicable milestone requirement in
   § 25.164(a) or (b)(1) or if it fails to satisfy any such milestone.

   (d) A licensee will be relieved of its bond obligation under paragraph
   (a) of this section upon a Commission finding that the licensee has
   satisfied the applicable milestone requirement(s) in § 25.164(a) and
   (b)(1) for the authorization.

   (e) A replacement space station is one that:

   (1) Is authorized to operate at an orbital location within ±0.15° of
   the assigned location of a GSO space station to be replaced or is
   authorized for NGSO operation and will replace an existing NGSO space
   station in its authorized orbit, except for space stations authorized
   under § 25.122 or § 25.123;

   (2) Is authorized to operate in the same frequency bands, and with the
   same coverage area as the space station to be replaced; and

   (3) Is scheduled to be launched so that it will be brought into use at
   approximately the same time as, but no later than, the existing space
   station is retired.

   (f) An applicant that has submitted a Coordination Request pursuant to
   § 25.110(b)(3)(i) or an Appendix 30B filing pursuant to
   § 25.110(b)(3)(ii) must obtain a surety bond in the amount of $500,000
   in accordance with the requirements in paragraph (b) of this section
   for licensees. The application will be returned as defective pursuant
   to § 25.112 if a copy of the required bond is not filed with the
   Commission within 30 days after release of a public notice announcing
   that the Commission has submitted the Coordination Request or Appendix
   30B filing to the ITU.

   (g) An applicant will be considered to be in default with respect to a
   bond filed pursuant to paragraph (f) of this section if the applicant
   fails to submit a complete, acceptable license application pursuant to
   § 25.110(b)(3)(iii) for the operation proposed in the initial
   application materials filed pursuant to § 25.110(b)(3)(i) or (b)(3)(ii)
   within two years of the date of submission of the initial application
   materials.

   [ 68 FR 51507 , Aug. 27, 2003, as amended at  69 FR 51587 , Aug. 20, 2004;
    81 FR 55335 , Aug. 18, 2016;  82 FR 59986 , Dec. 18, 2017;  85 FR 43735 ,
   July 20, 2020]

   

Reporting Requirements For Space Station Operators