The timeline is intended to identify generally what tasks the agency needs to accomplish in order to complete its review in cases involving complex or difficult issues, the normal order in which these tasks can be most efficiently performed, and the time normally needed to complete them. Any such general timeline necessarily oversimplifies the process. Statutes and regulations require different procedures for different types of licenses or authorizations, and the circumstances of individual cases will differ (for example, the actions taken by other government agencies considering the antitrust, national security, or law enforcement issues relating to the transaction). The timeline should therefore be viewed as a flexible tool, not an effort to force the review of all diverse transactions into one inflexible mold. For these reasons, the timeline clock may need to be started and stopped several times during the process. A record of these actions for AT&T and Leap is provided below.
Day 0 was August 28, 2013
| Clock Stopped | Clock Restarted |
Days Stopped |
Reason for Stop | |
| Day | Date | |||
| 180 | 3/13/14 | Memorandum Opinion and Order Approving Applications with Conditions | ||
| 33 | 9/30/13 | 10/18/13 | 17 | Informal Transaction Shot Clocks Suspended During Lapse in Funding |