**WRITTEN STATEMENT**

**of**

**Michael K. Powell**

**Chairman**

**Federal Communications Commission**

**on**

**Implementing the 9-11 Commission's Recommendation to Expeditiously
Provide Spectrum to Public Safety Organizations**

**Before the**

**Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation**

**United States Senate**

**September 8, 2004**

Good afternoon, Mr. Chairman and distinguished Members of the Committee.
It is my pleasure to come before you to discuss some of the most
pressing issues facing our country today: protecting our homeland and
getting more spectrum into the hands of our nation's public safety
community so that first responders can more effectively do what they do
best---save lives and protect the homeland.

Although the tragic events of 9/11 focused America's attention on public
safety communications, the Commission\'s involvement in this area is
long-standing and expansive. Years ago the Commission recognized that
the ability of public safety systems to communicate seamlessly at
incident sites with minimal on-site coordination was critical to saving
lives and property. The Commission also recognized its responsibility to
work with the industries we regulate to ensure their reliability and
security. When I became Chairman of the FCC, I intensified our efforts
in both of these areas. Then came the horrific events of September 11.
Within days I, together with Governor Pataki, visited Verizon's central
offices at 140 West Street to survey the damage and discuss restoration.
That visit intensified my already solid resolve to use the considerable
resources of the FCC to further Homeland Security. I designated Homeland
Security as one of the Commission's six core strategic goals, with
particular attention to two broad fronts: private sector readiness for
the industries we regulate and public safety communications. Both of
these areas were also identified by the 9/11 Commission as requiring
specific focus.

**[Private Sector Readiness]{.underline}**

Shortly after the attacks, I created the FCC's Homeland Security Policy
Council (HSPC) and later the Office of Homeland Security and charged
these organizations with coordinating the Commission's internal and
external homeland security agendas. One of the HSPC's first missions was
to provide leadership in working with the industries we regulate to
evaluate and strengthen the communications infrastructure and ensure
rapid restoration in the event of disruption. As a result, we created
the Media Security and Reliability Council (MSRC), bringing together the
broadcast and multichannel video programming distribution entities for
the purpose of focusing on Homeland Security issues. We also
re-chartered the Network Reliability and Interoperability Council (NRIC)
-- which already had a solid 10 year history of promoting network
security and reliability -- to focus on homeland security issues for the
wireline, wireless, and satellite industries. Both of these Federal
Advisory Committees have had great success in developing and promoting
the implementation of hundreds of industry Best Practices. We are now
working to drive the implementation of these Best Practices by the
industry. As we have said, if a business has a plan but does not
practice it, it really does not have a plan. However, implementation
also requires practical experience and the Commission is actively
partnering with the private sector to test out and fine tune our Best
Practices in the real world.

For example, the Florida Association of Broadcasters, in cooperation
with MSRC, recently tested Best Practices in a full day exercise in
Tampa, Florida, and similar exercises are being planned. Likewise, just
last week we observed a Cingular Wireless full day exercise in which
over 100 employees tested the company's business continuity and disaster
recovery plans. I also note that we have had the ready participation of
other government partners in these efforts, including the Department of
Homeland Security and several of its components. Secretary Ridge and
other senior DHS staff have joined us at several joint initiatives,
underscoring to industry participants the importance of private sector
readiness. NTIA, NOAA, OSTP, and NARUC, to name just a few, have also
been our partners in implementing various initiatives, both in terms of
policy development and outreach.

**[Public Safety Communications]{.underline}**

In addition to our industry efforts, we have also aggressively sought
more spectrum for public safety, promoted interoperability, and tried to
ensure that public safety operators can operate free from harmful
interference. Recently, the Commission's 800 MHz decision resulted in an
additional 4.5 MHz of 800 MHz-band spectrum becoming available for
public safety and critical infrastructure licensees.[^1] Also as part of
that proceeding, the Commission reclaimed another 4 MHz of spectrum at
700 MHz that also may be put to use in advancing public safety
communications. The Commission also recently designated 50 MHz of
spectrum at 4.9 GHz (4949-4990 MHz) for public safety use. This spectrum
at 4.9 GHz is part of a transfer of Federal Government spectrum to
private sector use and will accommodate a variety of new broadband
applications while also fostering interoperability.

Finally, consistent with the Balanced Budget Act of 1997, the Commission
identified and allocated an additional 24 MHz of spectrum in the 700 MHz
band for public safety use. The Commission also chartered a Public
Safety Advisory Committee to develop a band plan designed to maximize
the value of the spectrum to first responders. To better facilitate use
of the 700 MHz public safety spectrum, the Commission adopted mandatory
interoperability, restricting use of 2.6 MHz of the band to public
safety entities that have equipment permitting inter-system use. This
step tracks similar actions regarding other bands, including 5 channels
in the 800 MHz band, 5 channels in the 150 MHz band (VHF band), and 4
channels in the 450 MHz band (VHF band).

We have put in place a broad range of other mechanisms that also promote
interoperability. We will require that, as of January 1, 2005, newly
certified public safety mobile radio units must be capable of
transmitting and receiving on the nationwide public safety
interoperability band in which it is operating. We have provided for
innovative licensing methods that, for example, promote state-level
management of interoperable channels or promote spectrum sharing by
state and local entities with Federal entities or with non-public safety
entities. In addition, we have granted waivers of our rules as necessary
to make spectrum available to multiple public safety agencies in a given
area, and to permit sharing arrangements between public safety agencies
and critical infrastructure entities. We have also promoted new
technologies that promote interoperability, such as cognitive radio.
This technology, which has the capability to sense environment and
change power and frequency, makes it possible for radios from different
systems to operate seamlessly without prior coordination.

I note again our extremely beneficial federal partnerships in working on
these spectrum issues, including NTIA and DHS' Project SAFECOM, and our
fellow participants in the President's Spectrum Policy Initiative. A
more complete description of our spectrum related work and of other
Homeland Security initiatives is set forth in Appendix A of my written
statement.

Our work at 700 MHz brings us to the principal focus of today's hearing
-- how to quickly recover critical spectrum for public safety that is
currently encumbered by the television broadcasters.

**[Completing the DTV Transition]{.underline}**

Nearly four years ago, upon becoming Chairman, I recognized the need to
spur the pace of the digital television transition to achieve Congress'
twin goals of bringing the benefits of digital television to the
American people and the reclamation and reallocation of broadcast
spectrum for public safety use and new wireless services. Today, thanks
in large part to the efforts of the FCC, Congress and every segment of
the television industry, we have shifted that national dialogue from
wondering *whether* the DTV transition will ever end to actively
exploring *when and how* it will end.

In 2001, I established a DTV Task Force to coordinate and prioritize the
Commission's efforts. In early 2002, we issued the "Powell Plan," which
challenged all industries involved in the transition to take specific,
concrete steps to move the transition forward. I am proud to say that
virtually every industry stepped up and met the challenge. In mid-2002,
the Commission mandated over-the-air digital tuners in new televisions,
so that the public could receive over-the-air digital broadcast signals
on all newly purchased sets. In 2003, the Commission adopted cable
plug-and-play rules, giving some consumers the option of receiving
digital cable services without the need of a set-top-box. Also in 2003,
we adopted the "broadcast flag" to give content providers greater
assurance that their high-value broadcast content would be protected
from indiscriminate redistribution on the Internet.

New life has been pumped into the DTV transition. As of this summer,
1,445 DTV stations were on the air, compared to fewer than 200 just
three years ago. High-definition content is booming. Cable has gone from
virtually no HDTV programming to offering HDTV service to 84 million
homes nationwide. And the first half of 2004 saw record sales of DTV
products, with CEA reporting 2.8 million units sold in the first six
months of this year and over 11 million units sold over the last several
years -- the vast majority of these sales taking place in the last two
years.

The importance of completing the DTV transition is apparent when
considering the immense benefits:

-   A major increase in the amount of spectrum available to public
    safety officials throughout the country. This spectrum will assist
    first responders during national and local emergencies and will
    increase the ability of public safety across jurisdictions to
    interoperate. The importance of this spectrum reclamation is
    greatest in major metropolitan areas, where the need is most because
    of spectrum shortages and the threats against our citizens the
    greatest.

-   High definition and other high value digital television programming
    for consumers.

-   New and innovative wireless broadband services in the 700 MHz
    spectrum band such as Wifi, Wimax, and 3G wireless show enormous
    promise for the American consumer.

-   Overall economic growth through productivity gains, increased
    investment and the creation of new businesses and jobs, especially
    in the small business sector.

-   Increased revenues to the Federal Treasury with the auction of the
    reclaimed spectrum.

It is in recogniztion of these substantial public benefits that I
directed the FCC's Media Bureau to develop a bold framework to bring the
DTV transition to an end. As you know, we have developed a plan that
would return this spectrum nationwide by early 2009.

A full description of our plan can be found in Media Bureau Chief Ken
Ferree's testimony before this Committee on June 9, 2004, but as I
summarize here, the plan contains the following essential points:

-   Switch broadcasters' carriage rights on cable and satellite from
    their analog signals to their digital signals on a fixed date,
    currently January 1, 2009.

-   Cable operators would be required to make the digital must-carry
    signals available to all subscribers by either:

> \(1\) down-converting a single digital broadcast stream from digital
> to analog at the cable head-end so that all subscribers, including
> analog-only subscribers, can continue to view the programming; or
>
> \(2\) passing through the digital must-carry signals to subscribers'
> homes, where the system has converted to "all digital" transmission
> and all subscribers have the ability to receive and display the
> digital signals (either on a digital set or down-converted by a
> set-top box for display on an analog set).[^2]

-   As a result, the statutory 85 percent threshold for ending the
    transition could be met nationwide on January 1, 2009 because:

(1) All cable households (almost 70% of TV households nationwide) will
    count towards the 85 percent threshold in each market.

(2) All satellite households in local-into-local markets that receive
    the local broadcast package will count towards the 85 percent
    threshold in those markets.

(3) All households that purchased a new television set covered by the
    FCC's DTV tuner mandate will count towards the 85 percent threshold.

(4) All households that purchased a new "plug and play" DTV set, the
    first of which were introduced this year, will count towards the 85
    percent threshold (by FCC rule, all "plug and play" sets must
    contain an over-the-air DTV tuner).

A nationwide, hard date for the end of the DTV transition would benefit
everyone. Right now, we have no clear idea when the transition will be
over in any particular market and not even a clear idea how we are
supposed to count TV households towards the 85 percent threshold. Many
broadcasters suggest counting every television set in American
households which would extend the transition for decades. With a date
certain, public safety officials and advanced wireless providers waiting
for broadcasters to vacate the 700 MHz band would know when they will be
able to begin operations. In particular, the value of interoperability
across public safety jurisdictions would only be obtained if all of the
jurisdictions complete the transition at the same time. Otherwise while
one town could use 700 MHz spectrum for public safety communications,
the adjacent community could still be waiting months or even years for
the digital penetration level to reach 85% and the spectrum to be
cleared of broadcasters. In the unfortunate event of a disaster in the
interim, the two communities' first responders could not speak to one
another. With a date certain, all neighboring communities could activate
their interoperable 700 MHz systems at the same time and ensure a
coordinated response.

In addition to the benefits to public safety, a date certain also
provides consumers with a clear understanding of when analog broadcast
signals will be terminated. Consumers can then factor that into their
buying decisions today. Broadcasters would know precisely how long they
will be required to run side-by-side analog and digital facilities and
can make budget and maintenance decisions accordingly. Consumer
electronics manufacturers and retailers would know when they will no
longer need to produce, market, and support analog equipment and can
more aggressively produce digital products, including converter boxes.
And manufacturers of public safety and commercial wireless equipment
would know that they will be able to achieve national economies of scale
to justify equipment development and production.

Of course, questions will be asked about what is the "right" hard
deadline for the transition. In choosing 2009 as a target date for our
plan, we focused on three potential benefits. First, because the
Commission's tuner mandate becomes fully effective on July 1, 2007,
having a deadline of 2009 will add millions more digital sets to the
marketplace before analog signals are turned off. The tuner mandate and
other market forces will also further drive down the costs of
digital-to-analog converters during that time for those households still
relying on analog broadcast television. Further, a 2009 deadline would
provide time to prepare the public on the impending end of the
transition so they could take steps to prepare themselves in the natural
course of replacing old sets. Finally, under the current 85 percent
statutory test, the added DTV sets with tuners and the expansion of DBS
local-into-local markets will help ensure that most of the country meets
the 85% threshold, providing for a nationwide end to the transition
rather than a piecemeal result. The ultimate benefit of the 2009
deadline, in conjunction with steps we already have taken, will be to
reduce to a minimum the number of consumers reliant on analog broadcast
television.

Whenever the transition ends, however, we recognize that there will be
consumers that still tune into analog over-the-air television. Between
now and the end of the DTV transition, I want to work with Congress and
industry, collectively, to ensure that those television households that
currently rely on over-the-air broadcasting will be able to receive the
digital over-the-air signals. While these consumers are sometimes
referred to as "the 15%," we believe that with the FCC's digital tuner
and "plug and play" mandates, together with a robust consumer education
campaign about the impending end of analog broadcast transmissions by a
date certain, will mean that the number of television viewers who still
rely exclusively on analog over-the-air service could be well under 15
percent by 2009. Whether the date is 2009 or 2029 -- we have to find an
answer for the remaining over-the-air viewers. Thus, Congress can and
should consider ways to subsidize the purchase of digital-to-analog
converters for at least those low-income households relying exclusively
on over-the-air broadcast television service. For example, Congress
could directly subsidize converter boxes from auction proceeds or
provide tax credits or vouchers. To help Congress address this issue,
the Commission recently issued an inquiry to determine who the viewers
are that rely on over-the-air broadcasting for their television and on
potential solutions for ensuring continuity of service as we reclaim the
analog broadcast spectrum. We will advise Congress on what we learn from
this inquiry and I look forward to working with you to devise a solution
to ensure that all Americans enjoy the benefits of the transition.

**[The HERO Act]{.underline}**

The desire to expedite public safety's use of the 700 MHz spectrum also
led Representatives Harman and Weldon to introduce the HERO Act. I
commend the bi-partisan group of co-sponsors of the HERO Act for their
recognition of the value that the spectrum in the 700 MHz band brings to
the public safety community. As the Commission's actions on homeland
security demonstrate, we understand the compelling urgency of protecting
our citizens and our homeland. We believe our proposal to complete the
DTV transition is consistent with the HERO Act and could serve as an
alternative approach or as a necessary companion to ensuring the
efficient, effective assignment of spectrum to the public safety
community.

The HERO Act would effectively require broadcasters in the public safety
channels (*i.e.* TV channels 63, 64, 68 and 69) to vacate and return
their analog spectrum by December 31, 2006. Currently, forty stations
operate on these four channels (36 in analog and 4 in digital). In
addition, some consideration would be needed as to whether adjacent
channels to the public safety bands also should be cleared to avoid
interference to public safety operations. In those adjacent channels
(*i.e.* TV channels 62, 65 and 67), there are thirty-five broadcast
stations operating (29 in analog and 6 in digital).

Should Congress pass the HERO Act or something like it, one could
envision at least three scenarios for those stations that must vacate:
(1) The stations could be required simply to turn off their signals; (2)
The Commission could try to find new channels for these stations; or (3)
Either of the above two options could be triggered only if public safety
officials provide notice to the stations that they will be ready to use
those channels on January 1, 2007 (therefore if there is no public
safety need, perhaps in rural communities where spectrum shortages are
not as acute, broadcasters can continue to utilize the band until the
end of the DTV transition).

Whatever choice is made will have consequences. If, for example,
stations are forced to shut down service, the public -- especially those
who rely exclusively on over-the-air broadcasting -- will lose some
level of broadcasting service. Also, if stations are relocated to new
channels during the transition, there will be instances of significant
interference to themselves and their new neighbors. Finally, stations
that are compelled to shut down or move will incur financial costs.

If Congress determines that the pressing needs of public safety require
an earlier transition deadline for certain channels, the Commission
stands ready to implement such a plan. We would strongly recommend,
however, also endorsing a hard deadline for the overall transition to
help insure the success of the HERO Act plan. If Congress adopts the
HERO Act, we would urge Congress to instruct the Commission whether
those stations should simply be turned off or relocated. Moreover, the
challenges of implementing the HERO Act would be ameliorated if Congress
were to make clear that they will be short-lived -- by coupling the
early reclamation of the public safety spectrum with a hard date for the
end of the overall DTV transition. As noted above, the end of the DTV
transition will bring tremendous benefits not only to public safety, but
to consumers and the broader national economy. In considering such a
hard date for the end of the DTV transition, I urge Congress to consider
steps to ensure that we limit the disruption of broadcast services to
the public, especially for those who rely exclusively on over-the-air
broadcast television.

**[Conclusion]{.underline}**

The last three years have brought unique challenges to the United States
and our citizens as the government has taken extensive action both here
and abroad to protect our citizens. For its part, the Federal
Communications Commission has worked diligently with the private sector
and sought to allocate additional "saving lives" spectrum to public
safety during this time. More work, however, needs to be done and
whether it is actions such as the recent 800 MHz Order or our proposal
to reclaim vital public safety spectrum in conjunction with the DTV
transition, this Commission remains committed to our duty to protect the
American people. Thank you for the opportunity to come before you today
and speak about this issue of highest national importance.

**Appendix A**

**Federal Communications Commission's Efforts Regarding Homeland
Security**

The Federal Communications Commission was created, in part, "for the
purpose of the national defense, \[and\] for the purpose of promoting
safety of life and property through the use of wire and radio
communications." 47 U.S.C § 151. Thus matters that today fall under the
rubric of "Homeland Security" have in fact always been part of the FCC's
focus. Without question, however, we redoubled our efforts after 9/11,
particularly on two fronts. First, we focused anew on providing
leadership in ensuring private sector preparedness for national and
local emergencies, both natural and man-made. Second, we sought to
aggressively meet the needs of the public safety community by allocating
additional spectrum for public safety use, by promoting interoperability
between public safety jurisdictions, by alleviating interference caused
to public safety systems, and by promoting the development of new
technologies that support Homeland Security. Just recently, the chilling
and sober Report of the 9/11 Commission validated that these were
appropriate -- and critical -- areas of focus for the FCC.

**[The 9/11 Commission Report]{.underline}**

The 9/11 Commission correctly puts a spotlight on the necessity of
private-sector preparedness for an emergency such as the large scale
terrorist attack we sustained on 9/11. Private sector readiness in the
wireline and wireless communications sectors and the broadcast and cable
media sectors are especially important in times of national and local
emergencies. The private sector in the communications industry must do
all it can to strengthen our nation's vital communications systems and,
with the assistance of the government at all levels, must be prepared to
quickly restore damaged communications systems. We witnessed the need
for this preparedness on 9/11, most notably in New York. The attacks
took down many of the television broadcast signals emanating from atop
the World Trade Center. Verizon's central office in downtown Manhattan
sustained severe damage; phone and data service was lost to much of
lower Manhattan; cell phone services in New York were overloaded
preventing the completion of calls. Though many in the communications
and media sectors worked day and night to restore vital communications
services to the public, it became clear that there was a need for better
preparedness in securing our nation's critical infrastructure.

Also as discussed in some detail in *The 9/11 Commission Report*, we
learned on 9/11 of the inability of public safety officials to, at
times, effectively communicate with each other at each of the three
attack sites. The communications problems, stemming largely from a lack
of interoperability among public safety communications systems and from
interference caused by users overloading the spectrum, were exacerbated
by the fact that first responders were deployed to the sites from
multiple agencies and multiple jurisdictions at the federal, state and
local level. This led the 9/11 Commission to conclude that "\[t\]he
occurrence of this problem at three very different sites is strong
evidence that compatible and adequate communications among public safety
organizations at the local, state, and federal level remains an
important problem." *See The 9/11 Commission Report, Final Report of the
National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States* at 397.

**[The FCC Responds to 9/11]{.underline}**

***Private Sector Preparedness***

Shortly after the attacks, the FCC created the FCC's Homeland Security
Policy Council (HSPC) and later the Office of Homeland Security and
charged these entities with coordinating the Commission's internal and
external homeland security agendas. One of the first missions of the
HSPC was to provide leadership in working with the private sector in
evaluating and strengthening the nation's communications infrastructure
and ensuring rapid restoration of that infrastructure in the event of
disruption. Taking lessons learned from 9/11, we created the Media
Security and Reliability Council (MSRC), a Federal Advisory Committee
(FACA), to study, develop and report on best practices designed to
assure the optimal reliability, robustness and security of broadcast and
multichannel video programming distribution entities. Similarly, we
rechartered another one of our FACAs, the Network Reliability and
Interoperability Council (NRIC), to focus on homeland security by
ensuring the security and sustainability of public telecommunications
networks in the event of a terrorist attack or natural disaster.

Over the last three years, MSRC and NRIC have produced an unprecedented
and unequaled set of recommendations for the media and
telecommunications industries to ensure private sector preparedness
against a potential terrorist attack. MSRC's 100-plus voluntary Best
Practices focus on public communications and safety, communications
infrastructure security, access and restoration for our nation's media
outlets. Information on these Best Practices has been disseminated
through panels, a joint workshop with the Department of Homeland
Security and the distribution of over 13,000 brochures at industry
conventions and other events. In addition, the Florida Association of
Broadcasters, in cooperation with MSRC's Public Communications and
Safety Working Group, tested the Best Practices and sought input from
local emergency managers and officials at a workshop in Tampa, Florida.
Similar workshops are currently being planned for the near future.

NRIC's 800-plus Best Practices focus on physical security,
cyber-security, business continuity and public safety. Information on
the Best Practices is disseminated through numerous workshops, panels
and at the international level through teleconferences. Moreover, over
600 stakeholders have received a DVD about NRIC Best Practices. In
short, the FCC has engaged in an unprecedented level of outreach to the
private sector to ensure our nation's telecommunications and media
infrastructure remain safe and operational during national and local
emergencies.

The Commission recently acted to support the ongoing work of NRIC by
expanding our service disruption reporting rules to include wireless and
satellite carriers as well as E911 services, all of which are vital to
public safety. By requiring mandatory outage reports of carriers we
enable prompt discovery of outages and assure that first responders,
government leaders, and citizens will be able to quickly regain access
to the services they depend on. We also assure that the work of NRIC
will continue to be guided by trends in network reliability and security
that are based on objective data.

***Meeting the Needs of Public Safety***

The FCC has demonstrated its commitment to ensuring that public safety
operators have sufficient spectrum that is free from harmful
interference and supports public safety interoperability. The Commission
currently has designated 97 MHz of spectrum from 10 different bands for
public safety use. Most recently, the Commission adopted a solution to
the ongoing and growing problem of interference faced by 800 MHz public
safety radio systems. In addition to the interference and
interoperability aspects of the 800 MHz Order, the Commission's decision
will result in an additional 4.5 MHz of 800 MHz-band spectrum becoming
available for public safety and critical infrastructure licensees. In
addition, the Commission reclaimed another 4 MHz of spectrum at 700 MHz
that also may be put to use in advancing public safety communications.

Furthermore, the Commission's allocation of 50 MHz of spectrum at 4.9
GHz (4949-4990 MHz) promises to permit the use of new advanced wireless
technologies by public safety entities. This spectrum is part of a
transfer of Federal Government spectrum to private sector use. The
Commission initially proposed to allocate the 4.9 GHz band for fixed and
non-aeronautical mobile services and to auction it to commercial users,
with no designation of the spectrum for public safety. However, in
response to the events of September 11 and requests from the public
safety community for additional spectrum for broadband data
communications, the Commission designated the 4.9 GHz band for public
safety use in February 2002 and adopted service rules in April 2003. The
4.9 GHz band will accommodate a variety of new broadband applications
such as high-speed digital technologies, broadband mobile operations,
fixed "hotspot" use, wireless local area networks and temporary fixed
links, while also fostering interoperability.

Consistent with the Balanced Budget Act of 1997, the Commission also
identified and allocated an additional 24 MHz of spectrum in the 700 MHz
band for public safety use. To better facilitate use of the 700 MHz
public safety spectrum, the Commission adopted mandatory
interoperability. The Commission also chartered a public safety advisory
committee to develop a band plan designed to maximize the value of the
spectrum to first responders. Of course, effective use of the 700 MHz
band for public safety purposes throughout the country must await the
end of the digital television transition when incumbent television
broadcast stations vacate the spectrum.

We have put in place a broad range of mechanisms that also promote
interoperability. For example, we have designated certain channels in
the public safety bands for public safety interoperability; a public
safety entity can use the frequencies only if it uses equipment that
promotes interoperable operations. We will require that, as of January
1, 2005, newly certified public safety mobile radio units must be
capable of transmitting and receiving on the nationwide public safety
interoperability band in which it is operating. We have provided for
innovative licensing methods that, for example, promote state-level
management of interoperable channels or promote spectrum sharing by
state and local entities with Federal entities or with non-public safety
entities. In addition, we have granted waivers of our rules as necessary
to make spectrum available to multiple public safety agencies in a given
area, and to permit sharing arrangements between public safety agencies
and critical infrastructure entities. We have also promoted new
technologies that promote interoperability, such as cognitive radio.
This technology, which has the capability to sense environment and
change power and frequency, makes it possible for radios from different
systems to operate seamlessly without prior coordination. We have
adopted rules to allow the operation of improved Radio Frequency
Identification Systems (RFID Systems), which will permit identification
of the entire contents of containers and a determination of whether
tampering has occurred; and authorized ultra-wideband capabilities for
first responders; allocated spectrum for Intelligent Transportation
Systems.

Finally, we have adopted rules broadening the scope of E911 services to
include mobile satellite services, certain telematic services, and
resold and prepaid calling card services, and we have initiated a
proceeding to determine whether IP-enabled voice services should be
required to comply with our E911 rules. We have also worked with the
National Communications System to provide Wireless Priority Access
service in an increasing number of cities.

In short, even before 9/11, the FCC was focused on ensuring the security
and reliability of the industries that we regulate and on the needs of
the public safety community. Since 9/11, we have worked tirelessly in
these areas and are confident that we have, within the appropriate
bounds of our jurisdiction, contributed in significant ways to the
Homeland Security of our nation.

[^1]: Although I am confident that our unanimous decision to adopt the
    800 MHz Order will withstand legal scrutiny, America\'s first
    responders should not remain at risk from the substantial delay that
    an appeal would entail. As we noted in the Order, interference to
    public safety radios can be a life and death proposition. The delay
    inherent in the appeals process and the associated risk to public
    safety could be avoided if our Order were to be codified.

[^2]: Satellite operators in local-into-local markets would follow
    similar requirements, although, since satellite is an all-digital
    service, down-conversion would be to standard-definition digital,
    not analog.