1. (a) Arkansas High Cost Fund support shall be distributed, on a monthly basis, directly to eligible local exchange carriers as provided for in Acts 2007, No. 385.

2. (b)

   1. (1) The Arkansas High Cost Fund administrator shall provide funding for Category I, Category II, Category III, and Category IV Companies using the formulas set forth in Acts 2007, No. 385.
   2. (2) If an applicant seeks funding for Category I funding, the administrator shall use the Category I funding formula to provide funding up to the amount of the cap.
   3. (3) Funding for Category II, III, and IV Companies shall be made using the specific formulas as set forth in Acts 2007, No. 385, for those size categories.
   4. (4) If the funding request in any size category exceeds the funding available, the administrator shall prorate the payment to the ETCs receiving funding using the formula in Acts 2007, No. 385, to prorate payments.
   5. (5) In addition, for Category IV Companies, the administrator shall use the transition funding formula to establish the funding level for each ETC in Category IV.
3. (c) Receipt of funds from the Arkansas High Cost Fund shall not be conditioned upon any rate case or earnings investigation by the Arkansas Public Service Commission.

Codification Notes: This section was promulgated as Rule 5.01 of the Arkansas High Cost Fund Rules prior to codification in the Code of Arkansas Rules. "ETC" means eligible telecommunications carrier.