Senate Commerce Passes Spectrum Bill

Chairman John D. (Jay) Rockefeller IV and Ranking Member Kay Bailey Hutchison today led their Commerce Committee colleagues in sending S. 911, the Public Safety Spectrum and Wireless Innovation Act, to the full Senate for consideration.  The bill to build a nationwide communications network for first responders was overwhelmingly approved by the Commerce Committee by a 21-4 vote and is now one step closer to becoming law.

The bill allows broadcasters and other spectrum licensees to voluntarily return unused portions of the airwaves.  The freed up spectrum would be re-auctioned for commercial wireless broadband use in exchange for a portion of the proceeds through “incentive auctions.”  The costs to build the public safety network will be offset by the proceeds of incentive auctions, and the surplus revenue will go toward deficit reduction.

“Today’s vote and the strong endorsement of the public safety network get us closer to our goal—making things safer for Americans and first responders,” Chairman Rockefeller said.  “I am glad that we have cleared this bill out of the Committee, and I intend to have conversations with leadership immediately about timing for a vote by the full Senate.  I strongly encourage my colleagues in the House to also move forward with this legislation so that we can sign it into law by September, the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks.”

“The Commerce Committee has come together to move forward the most significant piece of telecommunications legislation in a decade.  It is imperative our communications infrastructure be ready to handle the growth and innovations of the future.  We have a bipartisan agreement that will build, without taxpayer funds, a 21st century public safety network that gives first responders the tools to do their jobs.  Our bill will spur job creation, generate hundreds of billions in economic activity, and drive research and development while bringing down the national deficit.  This is a commonsense approach to a national priority, and I hope the Senate will pass S. 911 without delay,” said Senator Hutchison.

Responses to the legislation’s passage came quickly:

NAB President-CEO Gordon Smith: “NAB appreciates the hard work of Chairman Rockefeller and ranking member Hutchison in shepherding through today’s legislation. As the process moves forward, NAB will work with policymakers to help ensure that broadcasters are able to deliver on the promise of free and local digital television made to tens of millions of viewers.”

Michael Petricone, SVP of government affairs, Consumer Electronics Association: “The Senate Commerce Committee’s action today marks a major milestone in ensuring that our nation’s spectrum resources are put to the highest use. Authorizing the FCC to conduct incentive auctions will result in millions of dollars for the U.S. Treasury, while securing our nation’s wireless future. We urge Congress to move forward on legislation to free up additional spectrum for wireless broadband as expeditiously as possible.”

Free Press Action Fund Policy Director Matt Wood: “For years, the public interest community, technology companies and the FCC have been working to promote the unlicensed use of otherwise available spectrum in the TV bands, because of the potential commercial and social benefits of ‘Super Wi-Fi’ networks and other innovative new services. As we stand on the verge of realizing these benefits, today’s spectrum legislation appropriately recognizes the value of preserving unlicensed access to this spectrum in every market.

“We are concerned, however, that the bill includes an unnecessary auction target that jeopardizes the viability of these plans. This unnecessary and avoidable restriction threatens the elimination of TV white spaces without ensuring adequate substitutes in beachfront spectrum. The legislation currently expresses a clear goal of maintaining adequate unlicensed spectrum, but the bill’s limits on FCC flexibility may make this goal impossible to achieve.

“We encourage legislators to remove this restriction as the bill continues through Congress, so that the FCC can facilitate the proper mix of auctioned, unlicensed, and broadcast use of this band.”

Matthew M. Polka, president-CEO, American Cable Association: ACA commends Chairman Rockefeller and Ranking Member Hutchison on their comprehensive approach that at once promotes spectrum efficiency, safeguards the interests of the public safety community and minimizes the impact of these policies on other parties, like smaller cable operators.  Inclusion of incentive auctions designed by the Federal Communications Commission is another positive feature, especially because it will provide funding to compensate cable operators for all costs associated with carrying TV stations that share spectrum or are repacked.  ACA is also pleased the Senate bill will not expand TV station must carry rights on cable systems beyond what’s provided in current law.”

Key Provisions of the Public Safety Spectrum and Wireless Innovation Act:

Establish a framework for the deployment of a nationwide, interoperable, wireless broadband network for public safety.

Allocate 10 megahertz of spectrum, known as the “D-block,” to public safety.

Direct the FCC to establish standards that allow public safety officials, when not using the network, to lease capacity on a secondary, but preemptible basis to non-public safety entities.

Provide the FCC with incentive auction authority, which allows existing spectrum licensees to voluntarily relinquish their airwaves in exchange for a portion of the proceeds of the commercial auction of their spectrum.  This provides new incentives for efficient use of spectrum.  In addition, the funds from these incentive auctions, in conjunction with funds from the auction of other specified spectrum bands, and funds earned from leasing the public safety network on a secondary basis, will be used to fund the construction and maintenance of the nationwide, interoperable, wireless broadband public safety network.

Direct the National Science Foundation and the National Institute of Standards and Technology to conduct cutting edge research into transformative wireless technologies.

Surplus revenue from spectrum auctions, estimated to be more than $10 billion, will be directed to the U.S. Treasury for deficit reduction.