Hi Deb,
My suggestion would be to submit your application without waiting for the FBI clearance. You don't need them for the start of the process, and your age is frozen at application time, so if you are getting close to the 45 limit you should apply and worry about the PCC later in the process.
As for getting the FBI clearance itself I'm not sure why it took so long to get your husbands or why yours failed completely. When I did it we got ours back in 3-4 weeks, and you can give the FBI a target date to shoot for on the envelope and they say they will try to meet it. Mine came back faster that we requested! They did say that you should send each request in independently, and not group multiple in the same envelope. Here's a link to the FBI page that describes the process:
Ours both came back with the "no response" type answer, which means we did not have a record at the FBI and hence were clear. That's what I think you should have got back as well.
Again, don't wait on the PCC to submit your app. Also, getting the PCC early simply will mean that you have less time to validate anyway as the PCC is only good for 1 year and that year sets your validation deadline. So if you get a PCC now you would have to enter Australia to validate your visa prior to this date next year. If the process drags out a bit then you could be stuck with a short validation time.
Cheers, Brian
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