FCC Commissioners Appeal to Congress to 'Restore' Spectrum Auction Authority

FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel and the other three commissioners appealed directly to the leaders of the House and Senate Commerce committees to “restore” the commission’s lapsed spectrum auction authority. The FCC’s mandate expired in March amid a Senate impasse on two competing bills to extend the remit that turned on related negotiations on a larger spectrum legislative package that Sen. Mike Rounds, R-S.D., feared would result in a deal that would repurpose parts of the 3.1-3.45 GHz band for commercial use before DOD finishes a study of its systems on the frequency (see 2303090074). “Restoring this authority will provide the United States with the strongest foundation to compete in a global economy, counter Chinese technology leadership ambitions, and safeguard our national security,” Rosenworcel and the other commissioners said in a letter released Wednesday to Senate Commerce Chair Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., House Commerce Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers, R-Wash., and their ranking members. The U.S. “cannot afford to wait. The global community will soon convene for another World Radiocommunication Conference,” Nov. 20-Dec. 15 in Dubai, “to determine the future of spectrum policy, and we must send a strong signal in advance of that meeting of our continued commitment to lead in coming generations of wireless technologies.” In previous years, Congress has always acted to extend the Commission’s auction authority without interruption,” the commissioners said. They said they need the authority so "we can once again use this authority in service of consumers, businesses, and national security.”