**GAO-04-1028**                      Published: Sep 30, 2004. Publicly Released: Sep 30, 2004.                  

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## Highlights

The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) within the Department of Commerce manages the federal government's use of the radio frequency spectrum with coordination and policy input from the Interdepartment Radio Advisory Committee (IRAC), comprised of 20 federal agencies that use spectrum. In recent years, the use of spectrum in wireless applications has expanded dramatically, leading occasionally to contentious disputes between government and commercial users over access to spectrum. Considering IRAC's key role in spectrum management, Congress asked us to (1) describe the evolution of IRAC and (2) obtain IRAC agency representatives' assessment of IRAC's spectrum coordination and policy advice, role as an advisor, and whether IRAC needs to be reformed.

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## Topics

Human Capital

Agency missionsWirelessInformation technologyInternal controlsRadio frequency allocationSpectrumSpectrum managementTelecommunicationsRadioFederal agencies