Lawmakers to the White House: Safeguard Airwaves for Science

House Science Committee leaders are asking President Joe Biden’s council of science and tech advisers to write a report on ways to protect and boost spectrum access and quality for science and operational uses. “As demand for spectrum for mobile applications has increased drastically in recent years, spectrum-dependent scientific fields and operational functions such as weather forecasting are facing increasing threats,” Chair Eddie Bernice Johnson (D-TX) and ranking member Frank Lucas (R-OK) wrote in a letter to council co-chair Eric Lander. The duo says the findings from such a report should influence the US’s global stance on spectrum as well as empower the White House Office of Science and Tech Policy (which Lander directs) and the National Telecommunications and Information Administration “to advocate for science spectrum needs more effectively.” The letter underscores larger tensions with the wireless industry and the Federal Communications Commission. The House Science Committee has frequently sided against FCC decisions on these matters in recent years. Trump-era FCC leaders also regularly disputed claims about potential threats to weather forecasting and the like, and so did wireless heavyweights wanting to be able to use as much spectrum as possible to handle next-gen wireless demand for data in the 5G era.