DISH’s Alleged Fraud in FCC Spectrum Auction: Biden DOJ Seeks Dismissal
Rep. Claudia Tenney, R-N.Y., weighs in on New York City Mayor Eric Adams’ latest indictment charges and its potential impact on the state’s government.
Fraud against the government is a significant issue, with the misappropriation of federal funds, such as the case of Somali-owned child care centers in Minnesota, representing just the tip of the iceberg. According to estimates from the Government Accountability Office, the federal government loses between $233 billion and $521 billion annually to fraud.
Fraud involving federal set-aside programs poses a particularly serious threat. These programs are designed to reserve government benefits exclusively for small, disadvantaged businesses, ensuring they can compete on a level playing field against larger companies. Unfortunately, some ineligible large companies exploit these programs by having small, disadvantaged businesses act as fronts while they perform the actual work.
To combat these abuses, the Trump administration took significant steps to address fraud in federal set-aside programs. For instance, in June 2025, the Small Business Administration launched a comprehensive initiative targeting its 8(a) Business Development Program, focusing on high-dollar and limited-competition contracts. Similarly, the Treasury Department initiated its own investigation into preference-based contracts, many of which were awarded under the Biden Administration’s equity-in-procurement initiative.
Charlie Ergen, Chairman, President and CEO of DISH Network, at a press conference to launch Google TV. Over 5,000 software developers watched the demo at the Google I/O Conference in San Francisco, CA. Attendees saw the newest advances in web, smartp
The Justice Department has an opportunity to address similar alleged fraud linked to a spectrum auction conducted by the Federal Communications Commission in 2015. In this auction, DISH allegedly created two sham entities to exploit a 25% discount on spectrum licenses—a discount meant for bona fide very small businesses to help them enter the wireless market against larger competitors. Evidence suggests that DISH’s sham entities won $13.3 billion worth of licenses but only paid three-quarters of that amount due to the falsely claimed discount.
These alleged fraudulent activities are currently under scrutiny following a complaint filed by Vermont National Telephone Company under the False Claims Act. This complaint seeks to remedy the damages inflicted on the federal government by DISH and its alleged sham entities. Under the Trump Administration, both the DOJ and the FCC expressed interest in the case, and the D.C. Circuit found that Vermont National had sufficiently alleged a cause of action under the False Claims Act, allowing the case to proceed to trial.
Merrick Garland served as Attorney General under President Biden. (Fox News Channel / Fox News)
As the close of discovery approaches, the Biden Justice Department unexpectedly announced its intention to seek dismissal of Vermont National’s case. This decision came shortly after Charlie Ergen, DISH’s CEO, and his wife contributed over $100,000 to President Biden’s re-election efforts and just days after the Biden Administration awarded DISH a $50 million grant.
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Allowing the dismissal of Vermont National’s False Claims Act case after nearly a decade would effectively reward, as Sen. Chuck Grassley noted, the “rot infesting the Biden/Garland DOJ.” Such a dismissal would not only undermine the integrity of the justice system but also discourage whistleblowers from pursuing similar fraud claims in the future.
Permitting Vermont National’s case to proceed would align with President Trump’s administration-wide efforts to eliminate fraud in government programs. It would hold DISH accountable for its alleged fraudulent actions in the FCC spectrum auction and could potentially add billions of dollars to the U.S. Treasury.
Rep. Claudia Tenney, R-N.Y., weighs in on New York City Mayor Eric Adams’ latest indictment charges and its potential impact on the state’s government.
Fraud against the government is a significant issue, with the misappropriation of federal funds, such as the case of Somali-owned child care centers in Minnesota, representing just the tip of the iceberg. According to estimates from the Government Accountability Office, the federal government loses between $233 billion and $521 billion annually to fraud.
Fraud involving federal set-aside programs poses a particularly serious threat. These programs are designed to reserve government benefits exclusively for small, disadvantaged businesses, ensuring they can compete on a level playing field against larger companies. Unfortunately, some ineligible large companies exploit these programs by having small, disadvantaged businesses act as fronts while they perform the actual work.
To combat these abuses, the Trump administration took significant steps to address fraud in federal set-aside programs. For instance, in June 2025, the Small Business Administration launched a comprehensive initiative targeting its 8(a) Business Development Program, focusing on high-dollar and limited-competition contracts. Similarly, the Treasury Department initiated its own investigation into preference-based contracts, many of which were awarded under the Biden Administration’s equity-in-procurement initiative.
Charlie Ergen, Chairman, President and CEO of DISH Network, at a press conference to launch Google TV. Over 5,000 software developers watched the demo at the Google I/O Conference in San Francisco, CA. Attendees saw the newest advances in web, smartp
The Justice Department has an opportunity to address similar alleged fraud linked to a spectrum auction conducted by the Federal Communications Commission in 2015. In this auction, DISH allegedly created two sham entities to exploit a 25% discount on spectrum licenses—a discount meant for bona fide very small businesses to help them enter the wireless market against larger competitors. Evidence suggests that DISH’s sham entities won $13.3 billion worth of licenses but only paid three-quarters of that amount due to the falsely claimed discount.
These alleged fraudulent activities are currently under scrutiny following a complaint filed by Vermont National Telephone Company under the False Claims Act. This complaint seeks to remedy the damages inflicted on the federal government by DISH and its alleged sham entities. Under the Trump Administration, both the DOJ and the FCC expressed interest in the case, and the D.C. Circuit found that Vermont National had sufficiently alleged a cause of action under the False Claims Act, allowing the case to proceed to trial.
Merrick Garland served as Attorney General under President Biden. (Fox News Channel / Fox News)
As the close of discovery approaches, the Biden Justice Department unexpectedly announced its intention to seek dismissal of Vermont National’s case. This decision came shortly after Charlie Ergen, DISH’s CEO, and his wife contributed over $100,000 to President Biden’s re-election efforts and just days after the Biden Administration awarded DISH a $50 million grant.
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP
Allowing the dismissal of Vermont National’s False Claims Act case after nearly a decade would effectively reward, as Sen. Chuck Grassley noted, the “rot infesting the Biden/Garland DOJ.” Such a dismissal would not only undermine the integrity of the justice system but also discourage whistleblowers from pursuing similar fraud claims in the future.
Permitting Vermont National’s case to proceed would align with President Trump’s administration-wide efforts to eliminate fraud in government programs. It would hold DISH accountable for its alleged fraudulent actions in the FCC spectrum auction and could potentially add billions of dollars to the U.S. Treasury.
