Oppositions are due March 25 to the December Boulder (Colorado) Emergency Telephone Service Authority petition asking the FCC to reconsider part of November rules, replies 10 days later in docket 07-114, says Tuesday's Federal Register. The rules require carriers to provide height above ellipsoid data from wireless calls to 911, within 3 meters accuracy for 80 percent of calls, starting in the largest markets in April 2021 (see 1911220034).

The FCC’s proposed 5G Fund should “take into account extreme circumstances present on remote Tribal lands,” Smith Bagley said in meetings with aides to FCC commissioners. Only 14 of its 154 towers on tribal lands are connected to the internet via fiber, the company said, posted Monday in docket 20-32: “Towers served by multiple point-to-point microwave hops cannot deliver throughput and latency performance needed to support high-quality 4G and 5G service offerings.”

The Hearing Loss Association of America and Rehabilitation Engineering Research Center on Technology for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing at Gallaudet University support an FCC proposal to update hearing aid standards, based on American National Standards Institute (ANSI) 2019 standards. The groups' representatives met with FCC staffers working on the issue, said a posting Friday in docket 20-3. “Consumers should be informed on the packaging material that the handset has been tested to the standard and meets the volume control requirements it specifies." The advocates urged the FCC to “continue to require in-store testing of handsets for consumers with hearing devices.”

With an order on the 6 GHz band considered likely at the April FCC meeting (see 2003050058), Stan Connally, Southern Co. executive vice president-operations, told FCC Chairman Ajit Pai the utility remains concerned about harmful interference to its operations. Connally “applauded the Chairman’s appreciation of and support for the need to ensure that incumbent licensed 6 GHz operations are sufficiently protected from potential interference by unlicensed operations,” said a posting Friday in docket 18-295. Comcast representatives met Pai aide Nick Degani. “The Commission can and should authorize low power, indoor use throughout the band without the need for automated frequency coordination,” the cable company said. CTIA representatives met with Pai aide Aaron Goldberger. The group “provided further evidence of how untethered, low power indoor devices will cause harmful interference to Fixed Service operations in the band and urged the Commission to issue a Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking to consider licensing the upper portion of the band,” CTIA said. Verizon, Sprint, Ericsson and U.S. Cellular executives attended. Pai told three House lawmakers, including Communications Subcommittee member Rep. Jerry McNerney, D-Calif., he agrees “that the FCC must protect incumbent users” in the 6 GHz band “from harmful interference.” The Office of Engineering and Technology has “spent considerable time reviewing the substantial record that has been compiled in this proceeding and meeting with interested stakeholders,” he said in separate letters to McNerney and Reps. Don Bacon, R-Neb., and Morgan Griffith, R-Va., released Friday. “The Commission’s ultimate decision will be grounded in sound engineering analysis. I remain optimistic that we will be able to develop a set of technical rules that will both safeguard incumbent users and allow for unlicensed operations.” McNerney and Griffith in February jointly supported the commission’s 6 GHz sharing proposal (see 2002120055). Bacon wrote Pai in November to urge the agency to ensure its sharing proposal didn’t cause harmful interference.

Local governments, electric co-ops and school systems said the FCC should grant a Lower Colorado River Authority request to extend the construction deadline for its 900 MHz frequencies. An earlier extension expired Dec. 31, and the authority asked for until Dec. 31, 2024 (see 2002030053). Comments were due Wednesday. “Many of us are located in very rural areas where there are no other viable communications options,” said a filing in docket 17-200, posted Thursday.

Boeing representatives said the FCC should authorize “unlicensed devices that are able to operate in the 6 GHz band on aircraft in flight above 10,000 feet without the use of automated frequency coordination.” They met with aides to Chairman Ajit Pai and Commissioner Geoffrey Starks, said a Thursday posting in docket 18-295. Boeing has demonstrated that “allowing unlicensed 6 GHz devices on aircraft will not result in harmful interference to incumbent 6 GHz licensees,” they said. Commissioners may vote on a coming order in April (see 2003050058).

Sprint has completed the 800 MHz rebanding in Southern California and two licensees remain to be retuned. The only public safety licensee is El Paso, Texas. License acquisitions must retune in parts of Texas, Arkansas, New Mexico and Oklahoma, Sprint said in FCC docket 02-55, posted Wednesday. In October, commissioners approved 5-0 streamlined rules and procedures for the final stage of the rebanding (see 1910250036).

The FCC Office of Engineering and Technology sought comment Wednesday on a September petition by engineering company Robert Bosch for a waiver of agency rules to allow use of a parking lot occupancy sensor system, which uses the 2.4 GHz band (see 1909230034). Comments are due April 3, replies April 20, in docket 20-65.

TDS and U.S. Cellular said they won’t participate in a Morgan Stanley investor conference Thursday because of travel concerns due to the coronavirus: "The decision was made out of caution related to company travel amid growing public health concerns," they said Wednesday. Morgan Stanley didn't comment. Fox said similar about Wednesday's conference(see 2003030053).

Northeastern University wireless IoT institute researchers said drones need more spectrum, including in 960-1164 MHz and 5030-5091 MHz. The FCC sought comment last year (see 2001280034). Based on experiments, the researchers concluded “there is spectrum scarcity in the existing cellular spectrum,” said a posting Wednesday in docket 19-356. “Adding additional use-cases of [unmanned aerial system] operation is going to stretch available resources.” Making other frequencies available “will reduce the dependency on legacy spectrum,” they said. Work remains on how to protect other users, especially in the lower band that's used for air-traffic control, they said.