Warner Blames Lack of Urgency for Public Safety Network Delay
Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., urged Congress to quicken the pace on bipartisan spectrum and public safety network bills. Congress’ sense of urgency about building a public safety network must be raised if it’s to pass any legislation, he told an Information Technology & Innovation Foundation conference Tuesday. Meanwhile, Warner’s spectrum relocation bill is held up by questions about paying for the bill and the roles of agencies, he said.
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Warner said it may be easier to pass legislation on devices for the public safety network than legislation related to spectrum for the network. Warner’s S-3731 would set up a $70 million NTIA grant competition for devices. Some believe the devices bill may have a better shot of passing in the short term than public safety bills that would decide the fate of the 700 MHz D-block (CD Sept 7 p4). There’s “nothing partisan” about public safety issues, but Congress hasn’t made them a high national priority, Warner said. Educating lawmakers is key, he said.: “Most of my colleagues … would be stunned” to learn that public safety lacks an interoperable network.
The challenge to passing Warner’s bill on devices is more “intramural within the industry” than a fight between political parties, he said. “Certain providers” dominate the “lucrative” public safety device market, he said. “It’s incumbents’ resistant to change."
Warner thought his spectrum relocation bill was “low-hanging fruit,” particularly since it’s “broadly bipartisan,” he said. S-3490 is “still kind of close” to passage, he said. Asked about the bill’s chances this year, Warner said after some hesitation that he remained optimistic. The bill was passed unanimously out of the Senate Commerce Committee, but Warner said he has “learned that doesn’t mean much.” Warner believes previous concerns by the defense and intelligence communities have mostly been addressed.
The U.S. must set up an “innovation growth agenda,” with “mobile broadband” as a key component, Warner said. The U.S. lags behind other nations, he said. To catch up, it should write policies that facilitate “a robust competitive private sector,” he said. It’s good that the FCC is moving forward on TV white spaces, Warner said. On broadcaster spectrum more generally, Warner said there’s “no technical impediment” to relocating spectrum in a way that doesn’t interfere with broadcaster’s ability to provide service, Warner said. Compensating broadcasters for spectrum they give up would leave everyone a winner, he said.