The FCC Wednesday announced post-rebanding availability of 800 MHz channels in all National Public Safety Planning Advisory Committee regions. The Wireless and Public Safety bureaus listed 14 regions where rebanding is “newly complete” and counties on the U.S-Mexico border region where the freeze is now lifted. In the newly opened regions, “channels in the interleaved segment of the band that have been vacated by Sprint … are now available for licensing to public safety entities and, later, to critical infrastructure entities,” the notice said: “Unoccupied channels in the Expansion Band and Guard Band are available for licensing.” Commissioners approved an 4-0 order in April finding rebanding is complete (see 2104220056). “It's been a long time coming, but we are generally pleased with this decision since rebanding … had been completed for a while,” emailed Mark Crosby, president of the Enterprise Wireless Alliance.
ATIS told the FCC it’s developing guidance for wireless emergency alerts, responding to a September letter from then-Chairman Ajit Pai (see 2009100010). “ATIS agrees with the Commission that there is benefit” here, said a filing posted Tuesday in docket 15-91. “WEA 3.0 Operational Considerations for Commercial Mobile Service Providers” is expected to be ready for balloting in Q3, the group said. The new “document will provide additional information on the purpose of the flexible operational settings,” ATIS said.
Portland, Oregon; San Francisco and other cities urged the Supreme Court to hear their challenge to a 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals' decision upholding much of 2018 FCC small-cell orders (see 2103230052). The FCC and DOJ told SCOTUS there’s no reason to take the case (see 2106030066). “Far from being a straightforward agency statutory interpretation that Respondents claim, the Order raises significant statutory and constitutional issues,” the cities replied Tuesday in docket 20-1354. The 9th Circuit is “in conflict with other circuits and at odds with this Court’s precedent,” they said: That court adopted a “’prohibition’ standard with no limiting principle, favoring wireless provider business preferences.”
Speakers made clear at a recent New Street conference that business-to-business innovation will be important to making 5G profitable for providers, the firm's James Ratzer told investors Monday. Experts “were unanimous in the view that the pace of 5G B2B innovation has stepped up significantly, with a thousand flowers set to bloom across a huge range of vertical markets, end-user applications and value chain configurations,” he said: “This is important if 5G is to become more than just an enabler of cheap capacity at higher connection speeds.”
Smith Bagley asked the FCC for a six-month extension of the Lifeline rule waiver scheduled to expire June 30, said a petition posted Monday in docket 11-42 (see 2102250022). The provider said its 3,000 Lifeline subscribers on tribal lands may be de-enrolled during the second half of 2021 if recertification rules go into effect and would be unable to re-enroll "for several more months" due to COVID-19-related travel restrictions.
CTA representatives flagged concerns with draft rules proposing to bar certification of equipment from companies found to be a national security risk. The worries were expressed in calls with FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr and aides to the other commissioners, said a filing posted Monday in docket 21-232 (see 2106090063). CTA “discussed potential complications for U.S. technology companies raised by the draft NPRM, including possible impacts on global trade commitments, should the equipment authorization regime be dramatically changed in its goals or operation,” the group said: “Broad changes to the equipment authorization regime for devices currently exempt could be disruptive and impose substantial burdens on manufacturers well beyond the few covered entities.”
CTIA and carriers spoke with FCC, NTIA and DOD officials to push for more complete information before the 3.45 GHz auction. Information is sought on the “coordination framework and auction products with more granularity,” said a filing posted Monday in docket 19-348. “Bidders need access to detailed information about coordination, encumbrances, and the available auction products as soon as possible to make informed decisions,” CTIA said. AT&T, T-Mobile, UScellular and Verizon spoke with officials including Ron Repasi, FCC Office of Engineering and Technology acting chief; Vernita Harris, director-DOD Spectrum Policy and Programs Directorate; and Derek Khlopin, NTIA senior adviser.
The FCC said Friday it’s rescheduling its June 29 virtual open radio access network showcase to July 14-15 and adding a day “to accommodate the large number of interested participants.”
The FCC reminded wireless radio service licensing systems Friday that their move to all-electronic filing is effective June 29 (see 2012280023).
Water and waste management company Suez North America agreed to pay a $104,000 fine and implement a compliance plan for taking control of spectrum licenses without FCC authorization, said a Friday Enforcement Bureau order. The violations stem from its buy of United Water Resources, Heritage Hills Water Works and other assets. The New Jersey company didn’t comment. “This action will reinforce the Commission’s commitment to ensuring that the transfer and assignment of wireless authorizations is limited to instances where there has been a prior determination that the transfer or assignment is in the public’s interest, convenience, and necessity,” the bureau said. Suez "and its subsidiaries self-reported this matter to the FCC when we learned of this administrative oversight," a spokesperson emailed: "The company will ensure that all future change of control transactions or tuck-in acquisitions comply with FCC rules and regulations."