What does the FCC's new cost catalog mean for satellite operators clearing the upper C-band?

The catalog that sets the reimbursement floor

The Wireless Telecommunications Bureau released the Upper C-band Transition Preliminary Cost Catalog as Attachment A to Public Notice DA 26-1049. It lists draft categories for the most common transition tasks and a range of presumptively reasonable expenses for each. The Commission engaged Teltrium, Inc. to build the catalog using comments from the docket, public pricing data, and confidential interviews with vendors, satellite operators, and earth station operators. The catalog is not a comprehensive list of every reimbursable action. Claimants may still submit costs for items not included, and the Upper C-band Clearinghouse will review those claims on their merits. The Bureau explicitly asks whether additional transition tasks and categories should be added and whether the Lower C-band Final Cost Catalog from 2020 needs further updates beyond inflation adjustments.

Two paths, one deadline

Incumbents can choose actual cost reimbursement or a lump sum payment on a per-site basis. The lump sum election is irrevocable. Operators who take it assume full responsibility for their own transition work from that point forward and must still meet the Transition Deadline for the Partial Economic Area where the site sits. The catalog provides specific lump sum categories and amounts in Appendix A, based on average estimated reasonable costs including potential migration to Ku-band. The Bureau asks whether the methodology and amounts reflect appropriate inputs for each class of earth station and whether adjustments are needed for other factors. It also seeks comment on the specific filing and certification procedures used in connection with the Lower C-band transition and whether to repurpose them here or adjust them, given the shift to a per-site lump sum approach.

One day to comment

Comments are due October 20, 2026. Reply comments are due November 9, 2026. The notice appeared in the Federal Register on October 19. That leaves a single calendar day for interested parties to review the draft categories, the estimated ranges, and the lump sum amounts before the initial comment deadline. This is the window.

What the catalog does not decide

The catalog does not constrain the Clearinghouse from exercising independent judgment on what constitutes optional upgrades or non-compensable costs. It does not set final reimbursement amounts. It does not determine which specific sites must transition by which date — those deadlines are defined elsewhere in the Upper C-band R&O (FCC 26-46, July 24, 2026). How many earth stations remain in operation, how many will elect the lump sum, and what the final cleared spectrum will look like in each PEA are not addressed in this notice.