Unlicensed

Sen Roger Wicker (R-MS) sent a letter urging the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) to work cooperatively to resolve spectrum policy issues and update the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on spectrum coordination, which has not been updated since 2003. "With your recent confirmations by the Senate, it is now time to take steps toward improving the cooperation and collaboration between your agencies that is essential to spectrum management and the future of US spectrum policy," says Thune.

The digital divide facing tribal communities is stark and has remained pronounced despite the best efforts of advocacy groups and tribes themselves to help Indigenous people get online.

The Federal Communications Commission proposed an enhanced competition incentive program to encourage licensees to offer opportunities for small carriers and Tribal Nations to obtain spectrum via lease, partition, or

In October 2021, the Federal Communications Commission officially

Public Interest Spectrum Coalition (including Public Knowledge, New America, the Benton Institute for Broadband & Society, Access Humboldt, Center for Rural Strategies, Tribal Digital Village, the Institute for Local Self Reliance, and the Schools, Health, Libraries & Broadband Coalition) filed comments with the Federal Communications Commission in response to the FCC’s Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on regulatory fees for 2021. The filing outlines why the Commission should reject its flawed and confusing proposal to require unlicensed spectrum users to pay regulatory fees.

The Federal Communications Commission, backed by the Department of Justice, told the US Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit that it was reasonable for the FCC to reclaim a swath of 5.9 GHz licensed vehicular communications spectrum for unlicensed WiFi and it had the authority to do so.

Despite the pandemic, the Federal Communications Commission advanced major spectrum policy and auctions in 2020. Yet despite continued successes of commercial spectrum auctions in which market actors pay for the right to use the public’s resources, policymakers persist in giving away valuable resources to Big Tech. 5G licensed mid-band spectrum is projected to deliver $191.8 billion to the US economy over 7 years. Wi-Fi revenues over unlicensed spectrum over 6 years are projected to bring $153.76 billion. When adjusted on an annual per MHz basis, 5G spectrum is $0.59 and Wi-Fi, $0.13.

The push to allow the 12 GHz band of spectrum to be used for 5G is taking on new significance, as broader infrastructure spending talks continue and SpaceX’s Starlink satellite broadband service prepares for a nationwide rollout. The 5G for 12 GHz Coalition, which represents more than 30 telecom companies, trade groups and public interest groups that want to open up the 12 GHz satellite airwaves for two-way 5G connections, told the FCC that it should move forward with a rulemaking to expand access to the band.

Facebook-led Terragraph is a technology designed to bridge the last mile gap between the subscriber and the service provider’s closest fiber node. Terragraph's fixed wireless service delivers multi-gigabit-speed data using 60 GHz unlicensed millimeter wave spectrum. The technology works by using its transmitters, which are typically deployed on street lights or rooftops, to create a distributed network. It can extend a fiber network wirelessly through these nodes to provide last-mile connectivity.

Rep Brett Guthrie (KY-02) introduced the Simplifying Management, Reallocation, and Transfer of Spectrum Act, or SMART Spectrum Act (H.R.5486). The SMART Spectrum Act would create an information sharing capability at the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) to allow more commercial use of spectrum licensed for federal government use. The federal government is currently not fully utilizing all of the spectrum licenses that are allocated for federal use.