48814 Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 164 / Friday, August 24, 2007 / Rules and Regulations 

1See Deficit Reduction Act of 2005, Pub. L. 109– 

171, 120 Stat. 4 (2006) (‘‘DRA’’). Title III of the DRA 

is the DTV Act. 2See Service Rules for the 698–749, 747–762 and 

777–792 MHz Bands, WT Docket No. 06–150, 

Revision of the Commission’s rules to Ensure 

Compatibility with Enhanced 911 Emergency 

Calling Systems and Section 68.4(a) of the 

Commission’s rules Governing Hearing AidCompatible Telephones, CC Docket No. 94–102, WT 

Docket No. 01–309, Notice of Proposed Rule 

Making, Fourth Further Notice of Proposed Rule 

Making, and Second Further Notice of Proposed 

Rule Making, 71 FR 48506 (2006) (700 MHz 

Commercial Services NPRM). 3See Former Nextel Communications, Inc. Upper 

700 MHz Guard Band Licenses and Revisions to 

Part 27 of the Commission’s Rules, Development of 

Operational, Technical and Spectrum Requirements 

for Meeting Federal, State and Local Public Safety 

Communications Requirements Through the Year 

2010, WT Docket Nos. 06–169 and 96–86, Notice of 

Proposed Rule Making, 71 FR 57455 (2006) (700 

MHz Guard Bands NPRM). 4See Implementing a Nationwide, Broadband, 

Interoperable Public Safety Network in the 700 

MHz Band, Development of Operational, Technical 

and Spectrum Requirements for Meeting Federal, 

State and Local Public Safety Communications 

Requirements Through the Year 2010, PS Docket 

No. 06–229, WT Docket No. 96–86, Ninth Notice of 

Proposed Rulemaking, 72 FR 1201 (2007) (2006) 

(700 MHz Public Safety Ninth NPRM); Development 

of Operational, Technical and Spectrum 

Requirements for Meeting Federal, State and Local 

Public Safety Communications Requirements 

Through the Year 2010, WT Docket No. 96–86, 

Eighth Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, 71 FR 

17786 (2006) (700 MHz Public Safety Eighth 

NPRM). 

5Service Rules for the 698–746, 747–762 and 

777–792 MHz Bands, WT Docket No. 06–150, 

Revision of the Commission’s rules to Ensure 

Compatibility with Enhanced 911 Emergency 

Calling Systems, CC Docket No. 94–102, Section 

68.4(a) of the Commission’s rules Governing 

Hearing Aid-Compatible Telephones, WT Docket 

No. 01–309, Biennial Regulatory Review— 

Amendment of Parts 1, 22, 24, 27, and 90 to 

Streamline and Harmonize Various Rules Affecting 

Wireless Radio Services, WT Docket 03–264, 

Former Nextel Communications, Inc. Upper 700 

MHz Guard Band Licenses and Revisions to Part 27 

of the Commission’s rules, WT Docket No. 06–169, 

Implementing a Nationwide, Broadband, 

Interoperable Public Safety Network in the 700 

MHz Band, PS Docket No. 06–229, Development of 

Operational, Technical and Spectrum Requirements 

for Meeting Federal, State and Local Public Safety 

Communications Requirements Through the Year 

2010, WT Docket No. 96–86, Report and Order and 

Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, 22 FCC 

Rcd 8064 (2007) (700 MHz Report and Order and 

700 MHz Further NPRM, respectively). 

FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS 

COMMISSION 

47 CFR Parts 0, 1, 2, 27, and 90 

[WT Docket No. 06–150; CC Docket No. 94– 

102, WT Docket No. 01–309, WT Docket No. 

03–264, WT Docket No. 06–169; PS Docket 

No. 06–229; WT Docket No. 96–86; WT 

Docket No. 07–166; FCC No. 07–132] 

Service Rules for the 698–806 MHz 

Band, Revision of the Commission’s 

Rules Regarding Public Safety 

Spectrum Requirements, and a 

Declaratory Ruling on Reporting 

Requirement under the Commission’s 

Anti-Collusion Rule 

AGENCY: Federal Communications 

Commission. 

ACTION: Final rule. 

SUMMARY: In this document, the Federal 

Communications Commission (FCC) 

adopts final rules governing wireless 

licenses in the 698–806 MHz Band (i.e., 

the 700 MHz Band). This spectrum is 

currently occupied by television 

broadcasters and is being made 

available for wireless services, including 

public safety and commercial services, 

as a result of the digital television 

(‘‘DTV’’) transition. 

DATES: Effective October 23, 2007, 

except for the amendments to §§ 27.14, 

27.15, 27.50, and 90.176 which contain 

information collection requirements that 

have not been approved by the Office of 

Management and Budget (OMB). The 

Commission will publish a document in 

the Federal Register announcing the 

effective date. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Paul 

Moon at (202) 418–1793, 

paul.moon@fcc.gov, Mobility Division, 

Wireless Telecommunications Bureau; 

Peter Trachtenberg at (202) 418–7369, at 

peter.trachtenberg@fcc.gov, Spectrum 

and Competition Policy Division, 

Wireless Telecommunications Bureau; 

Jeff Cohen at (202) 418–0799, 

jeff.cohen@fcc.gov, Public Safety and 

Homeland Security Bureau. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This is a 

summary of the Commission’s Second 

Report and Order, WT Docket No. 06– 

150; CC Docket No. 94–102, WT Docket 

No. 01–309, WT Docket No. 03–264, WT 

Docket No. 06–169; PS Docket No. 06– 

229; WT Docket No. 96–86; WT Docket 

No. 07–166; FCC No. 07–132, adopted 

July 31, 2007 and released August 10, 

2007. The full text of the Second Report 

and Order is available for public 

inspection on the Commission’s Internet 

site at http://www.fcc.gov. It is also 

available for inspection and copying 

during regular business hours in the 

FCC Reference Center (Room CY–A257), 

445 12th Street, SW., Washington, DC 

20554. The full text of this document 

also may be purchased from the 

Commission’s duplication contractor, 

Best Copy and Printing Inc., Portals II, 

445 12th St., SW., Room CY–B402, 

Washington, DC 20554; telephone (202) 

488–5300; fax (202) 488–5563; e-mail 

FCC@BCPIWEB.COM. 

Synopsis 

In this Second Report and Order, the 

Commission establishes rules governing 

wireless licenses in the 698–806 MHz 

Band (herein, the ‘‘700 MHz Band’’). 

This spectrum currently is occupied by 

television broadcasters in TV Channels 

52–69. It is being made available for 

wireless services, including public 

safety and commercial services, as a 

result of the digital television (‘‘DTV’’) 

transition. In passing the Digital 

Television Transition and Public Safety 

Act of 2005 (‘‘DTV Act’’), Congress 

accelerated the DTV transition by 

providing a date certain, February 17, 

2009, for the end of the transition.1 The 

Commission has been considering rules 

related to the use of this spectrum in 

three ongoing proceedings: (1) The 700 

MHz Commercial Services proceeding, 

71 FR 48506 (2006),2 (2) the 700 MHz 

Guard Bands proceeding, 71 FR 57455,3

and (3) the 700 MHz Public Safety 

proceeding, 72 FR 1201 (2007); 71 FR 

17786 (2006).4 Recognizing the 

interrelationship of these proceedings, 

the Commission recently combined 

these proceedings and in April 2007 

issued a single Report and Order and 

Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking 

(the 700 MHz Report and Order, 72 FR 

27688 (2007), and 700 MHz Further/ 

NPRM, FR 24238 (2007), respectively) 

addressing all three proceedings.5

Accordingly, the Commission addresses 

the rules regarding access to 700 MHz 

Band spectrum and the provision of 

service across the country, as well as 

opportunities for broadband service for 

Public Safety users in this Second 

Report and Order. 

I. Discussion 

A. Commercial 700 MHz Band, 

Including 700 MHz Guard Bands 

1. Band Plan 

a. Commercial Spectrum (Excluding 

Guard Bands Spectrum) 

1. In the 700 MHz Report and Order, 

the Commission determined that a 

balanced mix of geographic service area 

licenses—CMAs, EAs, and REAGs— 

would be appropriate for the 

commercial 700 MHz Band licenses that 

will be auctioned. The Commission 

reaffirms that determination for all of 

this commercial spectrum except for 

that associated with the 10-megahertz 

commercial license (comprised of 

paired 5-megahertz blocks) which will 

be auctioned on a nationwide basis for 

use as part of the 700 MHz Public/ 

Private Partnership with the Public 

Safety Broadband Licensee. The 

Commission further determines that a 

mix of spectrum block sizes, including 

one large 22-megahertz block 

(comprised of paired 11-megahertz 

blocks), is appropriate for the 700 MHz 

Band licenses that remain to be 

auctioned. 


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2. The Commission will license three 

commercial blocks of paired spectrum—

one 12-megahertz block (comprised of 

paired 6-megahertz blocks) licensed on 

a CMA basis, one 12-megahertz block 

(comprised of paired 6-megahertz 

blocks) on an EA basis, and one 22- 

megahertz block (comprised of paired 

11-megahertz blocks) on a REAG basis—

as well as one 6-megahertz block of 

unpaired spectrum on an EA basis. 

First, the Commission will license one 

additional 12-Megahertz Spectrum 

Block (comprised of paired 6-Megahertz 

blocks) in the 700 MHz Band on a CMA 

basis, to be located in the B Block of the 

Lower 700 MHz Band immediately 

adjacent to the existing CMA-based 

licenses. Second, the Commission will 

license a 22-megahertz block (comprised 

of paired 11-Megahertz blocks) on a 

REAG basis located in the C Block in the 

Upper 700 MHz Band. Third, the 

Commission will license a 12-Megahertz 

block (comprised of paired 6-megahertz 

blocks) on an EA basis located in Block 

A of the Lower 700 MHz Band. Finally, 

the Commission adopts EAs for the 

unpaired 6-megahertz E Block of the 

Lower 700 MHz Band. 

b. Guard Bands Spectrum 

3. The Commission adopts a revised 

band plan for the 700 MHz Guard Bands 

spectrum and the Upper 700 MHz Band, 

which includes features of Cyren Call’s 

additional band plan proposal and the 

July 6, 2007 Guard Bands Proposal. 

Additionally, the Commission 

determines that it lacks legal authority 

to adopt the Broadband Optimization 

Plan (BOP), Critical Infrastructure 

Industries (CII), or the Ericsson 

proposals because they propose a 

reallocation of commercial spectrum to 

public safety, and assignment of 

commercial licenses from the 

Commission’s auction inventory 

without competitive bidding. The 

Commission also rejects the most recent 

Ericsson band plan proposal, as well as 

the Access Spectrum/Pegasus 

Alternative Proposal and the Cyren Call 

proposals to the extent they are 

inconsistent with the Commission’s 

actions in this Second Report and 

Order. 

(a) Revisions to Upper 700 MHz Band 

Plan for Guard Bands 

4. The Commission adopts the July 6, 

2007 Guard Bands Proposal based on 

the agreement of all Guard Band 

licensees except PTPMS II, whose two 

Guard Band B Block licenses the 

Commission grandfathers, and whose 

one Guard Band A Block license the 

Commission repacks into the 

reconfigured Guard Band A Block. The 

Commission concludes that the existing 

Guard Band B Block is no longer needed 

as a guard band to protect the adjacent 

700 MHz public safety users, and to the 

extent possible, should be consolidated 

with the remaining commercial 

spectrum for more efficient and effective 

use. The Commission finds that the 

public interest is best served by 

adoption of features of the Cyren Call 

and July 6, 2007 proposals because it 

removes the ‘‘repacked’’ Guard Band A 

Block from the critical juncture between 

the Upper 700 MHz D Block and the 

public safety broadband spectrum, 

which together will be used as the 

foundation for the 700 MHz Public/ 

Private Partnership. 

5. Funding for Public Safety 

Reconfiguration. The Commission finds 

that the proximity of the public safety 

broadband spectrum to the adjacent D 

block will provide significant benefits to 

the D Block licensee. Accordingly, the 

Commission concludes that the D Block 

licensee must pay the costs of 

consolidating the 700 MHz public safety 

narrowband channels to the upper half 

of the 700 MHz Public Safety Band. 

6. License Modifications. The 

Commission finds that the public 

interest, convenience, and necessity will 

be served by relocating all existing 

Guard Band A licenses to the 

reconfigured Guard Band A Block 

located at 757–758 MHz and 787–788 

MHz. With the exception of PTPMS II, 

which holds one A Block license and 

two B Block licenses, the license 

modifications that the Commission 

effects today are consensual. 

7. These license modifications are 

consistent with Sections 337 and 309 of 

the Act, because the 4 megahertz of 

remaining Guard Bands spectrum 

remains commercial spectrum subject to 

auction. Specifically, the 2 megahertz 

from 746–747 MHz and 776–777 MHz 

will be added to, and auctioned as part 

of, the Upper 700 MHz Band C Block in 

the forthcoming 700 MHz Band auction. 

The lower portion of the reconfigured 

commercial Guard Band B Block at 775–

776 MHz will provide a necessary guard 

band between public safety narrowband 

communications and adjacent 

commercial services. The Commission 

will be able to determine other potential 

uses of this spectrum, and the related 

portion of the B Block at 805–806 MHz, 

at a future date. 

8. Spectrum Use Agreements. 

Pursuant to Section 309(f) of the Act, 

the Commission hereby grants Access 

Spectrum 180-day special temporary 

authorizations for MEAs 20, 26, 32, 37, 

44, and 52 for the current Guard Band 

A Block (746–747 MHz, 776–777 MHz). 

In the event that Access Spectrum 

cannot complete the transition of the CII 

system during the 180-day period, it 

may seek an appropriate extension of 

the STA upon a proper showing. 

Because the Commission modifies 

(repack and relocate) the Guard Band A 

Block MEA licenses held by Access 

Spectrum, Pegasus, and Dominion upon 

the effective date of this Second Report 

and Order, the six STA grants to Access 

Spectrum will be granted upon the 

effective date as well. 

9. PTPMS II. To ensure that critical 

interoperable public safety 

communications are uniform 

throughout the continental United 

States, the Commission hereby modifies 

PTPMS II’s Guard Band A Block license 

in Buffalo (MEA 003), pursuant to 

Sections 316, 301, 303, and 4(i) of the 

Act, to operate in the same geographic 

area but in the reconfigured A Block at 

757–758 MHz and 787–788 MHz. The 

Commission also modifies PTPMS II’s B 

Block licenses in Des Moines—Quad 

Cities (MEA 021) and El Paso—

Albuquerque (MEA 039) by shifting 

them down by 1 megahertz, so that 

PTPMS II is authorized to operate at 

761–763 MHz and 791–793 MHz. These 

modifications should not burden 

PTPMS II because it does not have any 

operations associated with the three 

licenses. 

10. As a result of the foregoing 

modifications, the new nationwide 

Upper 700 MHz Band D Block license, 

at 758–763 MHz and 788–793 MHz, will 

be authorized in Des Moines—Quad 

Cities (MEA 021) and El Paso—

Albuquerque (MEA 039) on a secondary 

basis to PTPMS II. As such, the D Block 

licensee may not cause interference to 

primary operations of PTPMS II or claim 

protection from harmful interference 

from any operations of PTPMS II in 

those MEAs. The D Block licensee must 

cease operations on the spectrum 

assigned to PTPMS II in these two 

markets if it poses an interference 

problem to PTPMS II. In the event that 

PTPMS II, or a successor or an assign of 

PTPMS II, elects to cancel either of its 

grandfathered licenses, or if either 

license cancels automatically, or is 

terminated by the Commission, then the 

licensed geographic area will revert, 

without further action by the 

Commission, to the D Block licensee. 

This reversionary interest will include 

the right to operate under the D Block 

technical rules. 

11. Further, the Commission 

grandfathers PTPMS II’s two B Block 

licenses without any renewal 

expectancy, and does not extend the 

term of its licenses as the Commission 

has for the reconfigured Guard Band A 

Block licenses. The Commission will 


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afford PTPMS II’s Guard Band A Block 

license the modified (less stringent) 

technical rules that the Commission 

adopts below for all other Guard Band 

A Block licenses. 

12. Accordingly, pursuant to Section 

316 of the Act and Section 1.87 of the 

Commission’s rules, PTPMS II has 30 

days from the effective date of this 

Second Report and Order to protest the 

foregoing license modifications. 

Additionally, as stated in their July 6, 

2007 Ex Parte, the other Guard Bands 

licensees have waived their protest 

rights. 

(b) Broadband Optimization Plan (BOP), 

Critical Infrastructure Industries (CII) 

and Ericsson Proposals 

13. For the reasons discussed in the 

700 MHz Further NPRM, the 

Commission denies the BOP and CII 

proposals. Further, the Commission 

concludes that the additional Ericsson 

band plan proposal is not in the public 

interest. 

2. Service Rules 

a. Commercial Services (Excluding 

Guard Bands and Upper 700 MHz D 

Block) 

(i) Performance Requirements 

14. In order to better promote access 

to spectrum and the provision of 

service, especially in rural areas, the 

Commission replaces the current 

‘‘substantial service’’ requirements for 

the 700 MHz Band licenses that have 

not been auctioned with significantly 

more stringent performance 

requirements. These requirements 

include the use of interim and end-ofterm benchmarks, with geographic area 

benchmarks for CMA and EA licenses, 

and population benchmarks for REAG 

licenses. Licensees must meet the 

interim requirement within four years of 

the end of the DTV transition (i.e., 

February 17, 2013). Failure to meet the 

interim requirement will result in a twoyear reduction in license term, as well 

as possible enforcement action, 

including forfeitures. The Commission 

also reserves the right to impose a 

proportional reduction in the size of the 

license area of a licensee that fails to 

meet its interim benchmarks. Licensees 

that fail to meet the end-of-term 

benchmarks will be subject to a ‘‘keepwhat-you-use’’ rule, under which the 

licensee will lose its authorization for 

unserved portions of its license area, 

which will be returned to the 

Commission for reassignment. They 

may also be subject to potential 

enforcement action, including possible 

forfeitures or cancellation of license. 

The Commission also imposes certain 

reporting requirements intended to help 

the Commission monitor build-out 

progress during the license term. The 

Commission expects that licensees will 

take these construction requirements 

seriously and proceed toward providing 

service with utmost diligence. As such, 

the Commission does not envision 

granting waivers or extensions of 

construction periods except where 

unavoidable circumstances beyond the 

licensee’s control delay construction. 

15. Specific Performance 

Requirements for CMA and EA Licenses. 

The Commission concludes that, for 

licenses based on CMAs and EAs, 

licensees must provide signal coverage 

and offer service to: (1) At least 35 

percent of the geographic area of their 

license within four years of the end of 

the DTV transition, and (2) at least 70 

percent of the geographic area of their 

license at the end of the license term. In 

determining the relevant geographic 

area, the Commission concludes that, in 

applying geographic benchmarks, the 

Commission should not generally 

consider the relevant area of service to 

include government lands. CMA or EA 

licensees that fail to meet the interim 

requirement within their license areas 

will have their license terms reduced by 

two years, from ten to eight years, thus 

requiring these licensees to meet the 

end-of-term benchmark at an 

accelerated schedule. For those CMAs 

or EAs in which the end-of-term 

performance requirements have not 

been met, the unused portion of the 

license will terminate automatically 

without Commission action and will 

become available for reassignment by 

the Commission subject to the ‘‘keepwhat-you-use’’ rules described below. 

16. To the extent the licensee employs 

a signal level and provides service to 

land that is owned or leased by 

government, the licensee may count this 

land area and coverage as part of its 

service area for purposes of measuring 

compliance with the build-out 

benchmark, but it also must add the 

covered government land to the total 

geographic area used for measurement 

purposes. 

17. Specific Performance 

Requirements for REAG Licenses. The 

Commission concludes that, for licenses 

based on REAGs, licensees must provide 

signal coverage and offer service to: (1) 

At least 40 percent of the population of 

the license area within four years, and 

(2) at least 75 percent of the population 

of the license area by the end of the 

license term. Licensees must use the 

most recently available U.S. Census 

Data at the time of measurement to meet 

these population based build-out 

requirements. 

18. In addition, for licenses based on 

REAGs, the Commission will apply its 

performance requirements on an EA 

basis. Accordingly, to meet their 

benchmarks, REAG licensees must 

provide signal coverage and offer 

service to at least 40 percent of the 

population in each EA in its license area 

within four years and 75 percent of the 

population of each of these EAs at the 

end of the license term. REAG licensees 

that fail to meet the interim requirement 

in any EA within their license areas will 

have their license term for the entire 

REAG reduced by two years, from ten to 

eight years, thus requiring these 

licensees to meet the end-of-term 

benchmark at an accelerated schedule. 

In applying the end-of-term coverage 

requirement to REAG licensees, the 

Commission will evaluate the licensee’s 

coverage on an EA-by-EA basis. For 

those EAs in which the end-of-term 

performance requirements have not 

been met, the unused portion of the 

license will terminate automatically 

without Commission action and will 

become available for reassignment by 

the Commission subject to the ‘‘keepwhat-you-use’’ regime described below. 

19. Reporting Requirements. In 

connection with the performance 

requirements adopted in this Second 

Report and Order, the Commission 

adopts an interim reporting requirement 

that will obligate licensees to provide 

the Commission with information 

concerning the status of their efforts to 

meet the performance requirements and 

the manner in which their spectrum is 

being utilized. In addition, this 

information will be useful to monitor 

whether further assessment of the rules 

or other actions are necessary in the 

event spectrum is being stockpiled or 

warehoused, or if it is otherwise not 

being made available despite existing 

demand. All licensees will file the first 

of these reports at the end of the second 

year following the end of the DTV 

Transition, i.e., February 17, 2011. 

Licensees that do not meet their interim 

benchmarks will file their second report 

following the sixth year after the end of 

the DTV Transition, i.e., February 17, 

2015, while licensees that do meet their 

interim benchmarks will have until the 

end of the seventh year to file, i.e., 

February 17, 2016. For licensees that do 

not meet their interim benchmarks and 

have their license terms reduced, the 

second report will be filed at the end of 

the sixth year following the end of the 

DTV Transition, i.e., February 17, 2015. 

The information to be reported will 

include a description of the steps the 

licensee has taken toward meeting its 

construction obligations in a timely 


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manner, including the technology or 

technologies and service(s) being 

provided and the areas in which those 

services are available. 

20. Procedures for Implementation. 

Licensees must demonstrate compliance 

with the Commission’s interim and endof-term construction benchmarks by 

filing a construction notification with 

the Commission within 15 days of the 

relevant benchmark certifying that they 

have met the Commission’s performance 

requirements or, if they have not met 

the Commission’s performance 

requirements, they must file a 

description and certification of the areas 

for which they are providing service. 

The information contained in the 

licensee’s construction notification must 

include electronic coverage maps and 

other supporting documentation. The 

Commission recognizes that 

demonstrations of coverage may vary 

across licensees. Accordingly, the 

Commission delegates to the Wireless 

Bureau the responsibility for 

establishing the specifications for filing 

maps and other documents (e.g., file 

format and appropriate data) needed to 

determine a licensee’s geographic 

coverage area. The Commission 

recognizes that coverage determinations 

may need to be made on a case-by-case 

basis so as to account for the potentially 

wide variety of services and 

technologies that may be offered in the 

band. 

21. The electronic coverage maps 

must clearly and accurately depict the 

boundaries of each EA or CMA in the 

licensee’s service territory, and the areas 

where the licensee is providing signal 

coverage and offering service. If the 

licensee’s signal does not provide 

service to the entire EA or CMA, the 

map must clearly and accurately display 

the boundaries of the area or areas 

within each EA or CMA not being 

served. 

22. In addition to filing electronic 

coverage maps, each licensee must file 

supporting documentation certifying the 

type of service it is providing for each 

EA or CMA within its license service 

territory and the type of technology it is 

utilizing to provide this service for each 

EA or CMA in its service territory. The 

supporting documentation also must 

provide the assumptions used by the 

licensee to create the coverage maps, 

including the propagation model and 

the signal strength necessary to provide 

service with the licensee’s technology. 

23. When the licensee files its 

construction notification, including its 

coverage maps and supporting 

documentation, the public will be given 

an opportunity to review and comment 

on the construction notification, 

including the maps provided by the 

licensee and the technical assumptions 

used to create the maps. After 

examining the notification and public 

comments, Commission staff will make 

a final determination as to what areas 

within EAs and CMAs are, and are not, 

deemed ‘‘served.’’ If the Commission 

determines that a licensee meets the 

applicable interim benchmark, it will 

not have its license term reduced by two 

years. Likewise, if the Commission 

determines that a licensee meets its 

applicable end of term benchmark 

requirement, the licensee will be 

deemed to have met the Commission’s 

construction build-out requirement. 

24. Under the Commission’s ‘‘keepwhat-you-use’’ rule, if a licensee fails to 

meet its end of term benchmark, its 

authorization to operate will terminate 

automatically without Commission 

action for those geographic areas in 

which the licensee is not providing 

service, and those unserved areas will 

become available for reassignment by 

the Commission. The Commission will 

update its Universal Licensing System 

records to reflect those geographic areas 

for which the licensee retains authority 

to operate, as well as those geographic 

areas that will be made available for 

reassignment. 

25. For purposes of reassigning these 

licenses, the Wireless Bureau is 

delegated authority to announce by 

public notice that these licenses will be 

made available and establish a 30-day 

window during which third parties may 

file license applications to serve these 

areas. During this 30-day period, the 

licensee that failed to serve the area may 

not file an application to regain the 

license authorization for that area. 

Applications filed by third parties that 

propose areas overlapping with other 

applications will be deemed mutually 

exclusive, and will be resolved through 

an auction. The Wireless Bureau, by 

public notice, may specify a limited 

period before the filing of short-form 

applications (FCC Form 175) during 

which applicants may enter into a 

settlement to resolve their mutual 

exclusivity. 

26. Following this 30-day period, the 

original licensee and third parties can 

file license applications for remaining 

unserved areas where licenses have not 

been issued or there are no pending 

applications. If the original licensee or 

a third party files an application, that 

application will be placed on public 

notice for 30 days. If no mutually 

exclusive application is filed, the 

application will be granted, provided 

that a grant is found to be in the public 

interest. If a mutually exclusive 

application is filed, it will be resolved 

through an auction. The Wireless 

Bureau, by public notice, may specify a 

limited period before the filing of shortform applications (FCC Form 175) 

during which applicants may enter into 

a settlement to resolve their mutual 

exclusivity. 

27. A licensee obtaining spectrum that 

was lost through the Commission’s 

‘‘keep-what-you-use’’ rule will have one 

year from the date it is issued a license 

to complete its construction and provide 

signal coverage and offer service to the 

entire new license area. If the licensee 

fails to meet this construction 

requirement, its license will 

automatically cancel without 

Commission action and it will not be 

eligible to apply to provide service to 

this area on the same frequencies at any 

future date. 

28. Under the Commission’s ‘‘keepwhat-you-use’’ rules, the Commission 

will determine whether an area is 

unserved by applying a de minimis 

standard similar to that applied to 

cellular service, which provides that the 

geographic service area to be made 

available to new entrants must include 

a contiguous area of at least 130 square 

kilometers (50 square miles). Areas 

smaller than this will not be deemed 

unserved by the Commission, because 

auctioning and licensing smaller areas 

to new licensees could result in harmful 

interference to incumbent licensees. 

Accordingly, unserved areas that are 

smaller than 130 square kilometers will 

continue to be a part of the licensee’s 

license area. In those geographic areas 

that the Commission deems as served, 

the licensee will retain its exclusive 

spectrum rights, including the ability to 

transfer and lease these areas. The 

licensee also will have the opportunity 

to expand its service into the unused 

parts of its original license area. 

(ii) Partitioning and Disaggregation 

29. Partitioning. Under the 

Commission’s modifications of the 

Section 27.15(d) rules relating to 

geographic partitioning of new 700 MHz 

Commercial Services licenses, the 

Commission establishes two options for 

partitioners and partitionees with regard 

to the newly adopted performance 

requirements discussed above. 

30. Under the first option, the 

partitioner and partitionee must each 

certify to the Commission that they will 

share responsibility for meeting the 

performance requirements for the entire 

original geographic license area. Under 

this option, the partitioner, partitionee, 

or both the partitioner and partitionee 

working together, can meet the four-year 

and end-of-term construction 

benchmarks for the entire geographic 


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license area. If the parties fail to meet 

the four-year benchmark, they will each 

have their license term reduced by two 

years. If the parties meet the end-of-term 

construction benchmarks, they will 

retain the ability to continue to build 

out the unserved portion of their license 

areas. Parties that fail to meet the endof-term benchmarks will be subject to a 

‘‘keep-what-you-use’’ rule, under which 

they will each lose their authorization 

for unserved portions of their license 

areas, which will automatically cancel 

and return to the Commission for 

reassignment. 

31. Under the second option, the 

partitioner and partitionee must each 

certify that it will independently meet 

the applicable performance 

requirements for its respective 

partitioned service area. If the 

partitioner or partitionee fails to meet 

the four-year build-out requirement for 

its respective partitioned service area, 

then its license term will be reduced by 

two years. If the parties meet the endof-term construction benchmarks, they 

will retain the ability to continue to 

build out the unserved portion of their 

license areas. Parties that fail to meet 

the end-of-term benchmarks will be 

subject to a ‘‘keep-what-you-use’’ rule, 

under which they will lose their 

authorization for unserved portions of 

their license areas, which will 

automatically cancel and return to the 

Commission for reassignment. 

32. Disaggregation. With regard to the 

rules relating to disaggregation of new 

700 MHz Commercial Services Band 

licenses, the Commission modifies 

Section 27.15(d) to provide that the 

disaggregator, disaggregatee, or both the 

disaggregator and disaggregatee working 

together, can meet the four-year and 

end-of-term construction benchmarks 

for the entire geographic license area. If 

either of the parties meets the four-year 

build-out requirement, then this 

requirement is considered to be satisfied 

for both parties. If neither of the parties 

meets the four-year build-out 

requirement, then each of their license 

terms will be reduced by two years. 

Similarly, if either of the parties meets 

the end-of-term build-out requirement, 

then this requirement is considered to 

be satisfied for both parties and they 

will retain the ability to continue to 

build out the unserved portion of their 

license areas. However, parties that fail 

to meet the end-of-term benchmarks 

will be subject to an automatic ‘‘keepwhat-you-use’’ rule, under which they 

will lose their authorization for 

unserved portions of their license areas, 

which will automatically cancel and 

return to the Commission for 

reassignment. 

(iii) Open Platforms for Devices and 

Applications 

33. The Commission determines that 

for one commercial spectrum block in 

the 700 MHz Band—the Upper 700 MHz 

Band C Block (700 MHz C Block)—the 

Commission will require licensees to 

allow customers, device manufacturers, 

third-party application developers and 

others to use or develop the devices and 

applications of their choice, subject to 

certain conditions, so long as they meet 

all applicable regulatory requirements 

and comply with reasonable conditions 

related to management of the wireless 

network (i.e., do not cause harm to the 

network), as described further below. 

The Commission concludes, however, 

that it would not serve the public 

interest to mandate, at this time, 

requirements for open platforms for 

devices and applications for all 

unauctioned commercial 700 MHz 

spectrum, or to impose broader 

openness requirements, such as 

wholesale or interconnection 

requirements, for the 700 MHz C Block. 

34. Scope of Requirement for open 

platforms for devices and applications. 

700 MHz C Block licensees subject to 

this requirement will not be allowed to 

disable features or functionality in 

handsets, such as ‘‘locking’’ handsets to 

prevent their transfer from one system 

to another, where such action is not 

related to reasonable network 

management and protection, or 

compliance with applicable regulatory 

requirements. In addition, 700 MHz C 

Block licensees may not establish 

network standards that block Wi-Fi 

access, MP3 playback ringtone 

capability, or other services that 

compete with wireless service 

providers’ own offerings. Standards for 

third-party applications or devices that 

are more stringent than those used by 

the provider itself would likewise be 

prohibited. In addition, 700 MHz C 

Block licensees cannot exclude 

applications or devices solely on the 

basis that such applications or devices 

would unreasonably increase 

bandwidth demands. The Commission 

emphasizes that 700 MHz C Block 

licensees may not impose any 

discriminatory charges (one-time or 

recurring) or conditions on customers 

who seek to use devices or applications 

outside of those provided by the 

licensee. Further, 700 MHz C Block 

licensees may not deny access to a 

customer’s device solely because that 

device makes use of other wireless 

spectrum bands, such as cellular or PCS 

spectrum. However, in accepting a 

multi-band device on its network, a 700 

MHz C Block licensee is not required to 

extend the requirement for open 

platforms for devices and applications 

to other spectrum bands on which the 

provider operates. 

35. Reasonable network requirements 

permitted. The Commission emphasizes 

that it is not requiring wireless service 

providers to allow the unrestricted use 

of any devices or applications on their 

networks. Wireless service providers 

may continue to use their own 

certification standards and processes to 

approve use of devices and applications 

on their networks so long as those 

standards are confined to reasonable 

network management. For example, 

providers are free to choose their air 

interface technology, and to deny 

service to devices or applications that 

cannot operate on the same technology, 

and may restrict particular non-carrier 

devices and applications on their 

networks, specifically to ensure the 

safety and integrity of their networks. In 

particular, it is reasonable for wireless 

service providers to maintain network 

control features that permit dynamic 

management of network operations, 

including the management of devices 

operating on the network, and to restrict 

use of the network to devices 

compatible with these network control 

features. Standards to ensure that 

network performance will not be 

significantly degraded would also be 

appropriate. 

36. The Commission does not specify 

a particular process for 700 MHz C 

Block licensees to develop reasonable 

network management and openness 

standards, but the Commission requires 

certain minimum steps to ensure that 

device manufacturers and application 

developers have the ability to design 

products for this spectrum in a timely 

manner. Specifically, a 700 MHz C 

Block licensee must publish standards 

no later than the time at which it makes 

such standards available to any 

preferred vendors (i.e., vendors with 

whom provider has a relationship to 

design products for the provider’s 

network). The 700 MHz C Block 

licensee must also provide to potential 

customers notice of the customers’

rights to request the attachment of a 

device or application to the licensee’s 

network, and notice of the licensee’s 

process for customers to make such 

requests, including the relevant network 

criteria. These network standards are 

expected to be non-proprietary, such 

that the standards would be open to any 

third party vendors and that the 

standards applied to third parties will 

be no more restrictive than those 

applied to the provider’s preferred 

vendors. Providers must also establish a 

reasonable process for expeditiously 


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reviewing requests from manufacturers, 

application developers and consumers 

to employ devices and applications on 

their networks. If a provider denies such 

a request, it must offer a specific 

explanation and an opportunity for 

amendment of the request to 

accommodate the provider’s concerns. 

37. The Commission encourages the 

development of industry-wide standards 

by an appropriate standards-setting 

body at the earliest possible date. 

38. Other regulatory requirements 

continue. The requirement to provide an 

open platform for devices and 

applications the Commission is 

imposing shall not override wireless 

service providers’ obligations to ensure 

that their networks and devices comply 

with applicable regulatory requirements 

(e.g., power and emission limits, E911, 

CALEA, etc.). For example, with respect 

to E911, if a network provider accepts 

a non-carrier device or application and 

if the device or application 

subsequently causes a violation of the 

Commission’s rules, the Commission 

will apply the same third-party liability 

provisions as in the wireline context. 

39. The Commission finds that a 

wireless carrier’s obligations under its 

hearing aid compatibility rule, section 

20.19 of the Commission’s rules, are not 

affected by the openness obligations for 

700 MHz C Block licensees. Under the 

Commission’s rules, the extent of a 

carrier’s compliance with the hearing 

aid compatibility obligations is not 

affected by handsets that connect to its 

network but it does not itself ‘‘offer’’ to 

its subscribers. Thus, the need to 

comply with section 20.19 of the 

Commission’s rules would not justify a 

provider’s refusal to connect a device. 

Further, the Commission declines to 

alter its hearing aid compatibility 

obligations to specifically impose an 

obligation on 700 MHz C Block 

licensees to ensure the hearing aid 

compatibility of handsets that are 

connected to the network but not 

offered by the provider. 

40. Enforcement processes. The 

Commission intends to vigorously 

enforce the requirement to provide an 

open platform for devices and 

applications adopted for 700 MHz C 

Block licensees. The Commission will 

take appropriate enforcement action 

where necessary pursuant to the 

remedies available under its statutory 

authority, including forfeitures, license 

revocations, and cease-and-desist 

orders. A person or entity who believes 

a 700 MHz C Block licensee’s refusal to 

attach a proposed device or application 

is a violation of the open platform rules 

adopted may file a complaint pursuant 

to the Commission’s enforcement rules, 

including the Commission’s formal and 

informal complaint processes, where 

applicable. The Commission sets forth 

certain presumptions for these 

complaints. Specifically, once a 

complainant sets forth a prima facie 

case that the 700 MHz C Block licensee 

has refused to attach a device or 

application in violation of the open 

platform requirements adopted, the 

licensee shall have the burden of proof 

to demonstrate that it has adopted 

reasonable network standards and 

reasonably applied those standards in 

the complainant’s case. Further, where 

the 700 MHz C Block licensee bases its 

network restrictions on industry-wide 

consensus standards, the restrictions are 

afforded a presumption of 

reasonableness. The Commission 

commits to rule on any complaints filed 

within 180 days of receipt of such 

complaints. Interested parties also may 

file a petition for declaratory ruling 

where a particular practice has broad 

market impact. Through review of 

complaints and other relevant 

information, the Commission will 

monitor the ability of consumers, device 

manufacturers, and application 

developers to use or develop devices 

and applications for 700 MHz C Block 

networks. 

(iv) Use of Dynamic Spectrum 

Management Techniques 

41. In response to Google’s first 

request, the Commission affirms that 

nothing in the Commission’s rules 

generally prohibits 700 MHz licensees 

from using dynamic spectrum 

management practices. In response to 

Google’s second suggestion, the 

Commission declines to mandate the 

use of dynamic spectrum management 

practices for 700 MHz Band licensees. 

42. The Commission concludes that 

licensees should retain significant 

flexibility with regard to the precise 

mechanisms they utilize when it comes 

to managing spectrum access to the 

network and among users. Of course, to 

the extent any licensee believes that the 

specific spectrum management 

mechanisms that Google proposes is 

appropriate or preferable, it is free to 

choose to utilize these mechanisms, 

consistent with the Commission’s 

guidance above. 

(v) Protection of 700 MHz Public Safety 

Operations 

43. The Commission shall continue to 

require Upper 700 MHz Band C Block 

licensees to meet the 76 + 10 log P and 

65 + 10 log P out-of-band emission 

(OOBE) limits with respect to the public 

safety bands. However, the Commission 

will not require the Upper 700 MHz 

Band D Block licensee to meet OOBE 

limits with respect to the public safety 

broadband spectrum. 

44. The D Block licensee will still, 

however, be required to satisfy the 76 

and 65 + 10 log P OOBE limits with 

respect to the narrowband portion of the 

public safety spectrum. Additionally, 

the Commission shall not require the D 

Block licensee and Public Safety 

Broadband Licensee to coordinate with 

one another to address potential 

overload interference, even though such 

licensees will be authorized on adjacent 

spectrum, because under the public/ 

private partnership, as discussed above, 

the D Block licensee and Public Safety 

Broadband Licensee will be sharing the 

same infrastructure. 

(vi) Licensee Eligibility 

45. The Commission declines to 

impose eligibility restrictions for the 

licenses in the 700 MHz Band. Given 

the number of actual wireless providers 

and potential broadband competitors, it 

is unlikely that incumbent local 

exchange carriers (ILECs), cable 

providers, or large wireless carriers 

would be able to behave in an 

anticompetitive manner as a result of 

any potential acquisition of 700 MHz 

spectrum. 

b. 700 MHz Guard Bands 

(i) Treatment of Reconfigured A Block 

46. Because the reconfigured Guard 

Band A Block will now be located at 

757–758/787–788 MHz between the 

Upper 700 MHz Band C and D Blocks, 

and will no longer be adjacent to public 

safety narrowband spectrum, the 

Commission concludes that it is no 

longer necessary to apply the adjacent 

channel power (ACP) emissions criteria 

to the A Block. Instead, the Commission 

will apply OOBE limits, which are 

consistent with emission limits 

applicable to the C Block. Thus, A Block 

licensees are required to attenuate outof-band by at least 43 +10log P dB. 

Further, the Commission finds that 

heightened OOBE criteria should 

continue to apply in order to provide 

adequate protection to public safety. 

Therefore A Block transmitter power 

must be attenuated to at least 76 + 10log 

P dB, in a 6.25 kilohertz bandwidth for 

base stations at 763 MHz, and 65 + 

10log P dB for mobile units at 793 MHz. 

47. Frequency Coordination and the 

Cellular Architecture Prohibition. The 

Commission will no longer apply 

sections 27.601(d) and 27.2(b) (requiring 

guard band users to employ frequency 

coordination procedures in cooperation 

with 700 MHz public safety 

coordinators, and prohibiting the use of 


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cellular architectures in the Guard 

Bands) to reconfigured A Block licenses. 

48. Removal of the 746–747 MHz A 

Block Guard Band. The Commission 

finds that it is unnecessary to retain the 

A Block Guard Band at 746–747 MHz to 

shield Upper 700 MHz Band C Block 

operations from interference from high 

power operations allowed in the Lower 

700 MHz Band C Block. 

(ii) Treatment of Reconfigured B Block 

49. The Commission finds that it 

would not be prudent to make any 

changes that would introduce the 

possibility of increased interference to 

adjacent public safety operations. Any 

future operations in the Guard Band B 

Block will continue to be bound by the 

Commission’s existing Guard Bands 

technical rules requiring frequency 

coordination and prohibiting the use of 

cellular system architectures. These 

continued technical restrictions on the 

B Block can be fully taken into account 

as the Commission considers future uses 

for the block. The Commission will, 

however, create additional flexibility by 

providing operations in the reconfigured 

B Block the option of employing either 

the existing ACP limits set forth in 

Section 27.53(d) of the Commission’s 

rules, or the same OOBE limits used by 

other commercial licensees to protect 

public safety, i.e., 76 + 10log P dB per 

6.25 kHz for base stations, and 65 + 

10log P dB per 6.25 kHz for mobile 

units. 

(iii) Treatment of PTPMS II Licenses 

50. To ensure interoperability in 

border areas with Canada, the 

Commission is modifying the PTPMS II 

licenses by relocating its Guard Band A 

Block license to 757–758 MHz and 787–

788 MHz along with the ‘‘repacked’’

Guard Band A Block licenses, and by 

shifting its Guard Band B Block licenses 

down 1 megahertz to 761–763 MHz and 

791–793 MHz. Although PTPMS II has 

elected to remain under the existing 

terms of its licenses, the Commission 

concludes that, for purposes of 

regulatory parity, the Commission 

should apply to the PTPMS II A Block 

licenses the same technical rules that 

will apply to the reconfigured A Block 

licenses. The Commission also 

concludes that the existing B Block 

technical rules continue to apply to 

PTPMS II’s B Block licenses given their 

adjacency with public safety spectrum. 

(iv) License Terms 

51. The license terms for the A Block 

licenses, including the PTPMS II A 

Block licenses, shall extend to 10 years 

after the end of the DTV transition, 

through February 17, 2019, and 

subsequent license terms will be 10 

years. However, the Commission will 

retain the existing license terms for the 

grandfathered PTPMS II B Block 

licenses, rather than extending them to 

match the other commercial licensees. 

Furthermore, the Commission does not 

provide a renewal expectancy to the 

PTPMS II B Block licenses, the terms of 

which will expire in 2015. 

3. Auctions-Related Issues 

a. Anonymous Bidding 

52. The Commission concludes that 

the public interest will be served if the 

upcoming auction of new 700 MHz 

Band licenses for which service rules 

are established today is conducted using 

anonymous bidding procedures. The 

Commission further concludes that 

implementation of anonymous bidding 

procedures during the upcoming 

auction of new 700 MHz Band licenses 

should not be contingent on a preauction measurement of likely 

competition based on an eligibility ratio. 

The Commission has delegated to the 

Wireless Bureau authority to establish 

auction procedures based on comment 

solicited shortly prior to the auction. 

Consistent with that authority, the 

Commission delegates to the Wireless 

Bureau the discretion to adopt specific 

procedures implementing these 

conclusions, taking into account the 

further record developed during our 

standard pre-auction process for 

establishing auction procedures and the 

possibility that alternative licenses may 

be offered at auction as described below. 

53. Additionally, the Commission 

concludes that the record regarding the 

available 700 MHz Band licenses and 

the Commission’s recent experience 

with anonymous bidding in other 

auctions indicate that the Commission’s 

statutory mandates under Section 

309(j)(3) of the Act would be better 

served by adopting anonymous bidding 

procedures for the upcoming auction of 

700 MHz Band licenses. Such 

procedures should withhold from 

public release until after the auction 

closes any information that may 

indicate specific applicants’ interests in 

the auction, including information such 

as their license selections and the 

identities of bidders placing bids or 

taking other bidding-related actions, 

such as withdrawals. The Commission 

further concludes that the 

implementation of anonymous bidding 

procedures in the upcoming auction of 

new 700 MHz Band licenses should not 

be contingent on the likely level of 

auction competition indicated by preauction bidder eligibility. Accordingly, 

the Commission directs the Wireless 

Bureau to propose and seek comment on 

detailed anonymous bidding procedures 

for the upcoming auction of the 700 

MHz Band licenses consistent with 

these conclusions, including how 

anonymous bidding would impact a 

potential re-auction of one or more 

spectrum blocks if the reserve prices for 

the individual blocks are not met, and 

any additional continuation or 

alteration to the anonymous bidding 

rules necessary to preserve the integrity 

of the subsequent auction. 

b. Declaratory Ruling on Anti-Collusion 

Rule Reporting Requirement 

54. To further its policy of preventing 

collusive behavior in Commission 

auctions, the Commission clarifies by 

declaratory ruling and conforming 

textual edit the obligation that 

applicants in Commission auctions have 

to report any communications of bids or 

bidding strategies that are prohibited by 

Section 1.2105(c)(1) of the 

Commission’s rules. Pursuant to Section 

1.2105(c)(6), any applicant that makes 

or receives such a communication shall 

report such communication in writing 

to the Commission immediately, and in 

no case later than five business days 

after the communication occurs. As 

noted in the Commission’s Order 

adopting Section 1.2105(c)(6), the 

Commission cannot ‘‘take on the 

impossible task of screening all 

applicant communications’’ and, 

therefore, ‘‘the responsibility for 

identifying potentially unauthorized 

communications [must fall] on auction 

applicants.’’ The reports provided by 

applicants are essential to the 

Commission’s ability to enforce its rule. 

Absent such reports, parties might find 

it easy to evade enforcement for 

extended periods of time, and possibly 

altogether. 

55. Accordingly, the reporting 

requirement ‘‘obligate[s] parties to 

notify the Commission of 

communications that appear to violate 

the anti-collusion rule and to allow the 

Commission to determine whether a 

violation has occurred.’’ Consistent with 

this purpose, applicants have a 

continuous obligation to make such 

reports extending beyond the five 

business days after the communication 

occurs. This declaratory ruling, and the 

conforming modification of Section 

1.2105(c)(6) of the Commission’s rules, 

expressly states the continuing nature of 

this obligation. The Commission can 

and will enforce the obligation so long 

as it remains unfulfilled. The 

Commission emphasizes the continuing 

nature of the duty to report to preclude 

any attempt to evade the obligation by 

waiting out the expiration of the statute 


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of limitations applicable for the 

enforcement of forfeitures and to 

reinforce the Commission’s ability to 

detect collusion, which is critical to the 

Commission’s ability to enforce and 

thereby discourage collusive behavior in 

Commission auctions. 

c. Package Bidding 

56. The Commission concludes that 

package bidding with respect to licenses 

in the Upper 700 MHz Band C Block 

would serve the public interest by 

reducing the exposure problem that 

might otherwise inhibit bidders seeking 

to create a nationwide footprint. 

Accordingly, the Commission directs 

the Wireless Bureau, pursuant to its 

delegated authority and pre-auction 

process, to propose and implement 

detailed package bidding procedures for 

the auction of the Upper 700 MHz Band 

C Block licenses, taking into account the 

goals the Commission has articulated for 

package bidding and the concerns raised 

in this record. More specifically, the 

Wireless Bureau should propose an 

auction design that includes package 

bidding for the C Block licenses to 

facilitate the entry of a new nationwide 

competitor, without causing undue 

difficulty for bidders that are not 

interested in a nationwide license. The 

Wireless Bureau should also explore the 

use of package bidding for any blocks 

subject to re-auction in the event that a 

reserve price is not met. 

57. The Wireless Bureau, consistent 

with its delegated authority and preauction process, may revise its proposal 

prior to implementation in the auction. 

In order to facilitate compliance with 

the statutory deadlines applicable to the 

auction of 700 MHz Band licenses, the 

Wireless Bureau has delegated authority 

to conduct an auction without package 

bidding for the Upper 700 MHz Band C 

Block licenses in the event that 

currently unforeseen difficulties make it 

impracticable to implement package 

bidding for the C Block consistent with 

the goals the Commission has 

articulated here. Finally, consistent with 

its conclusions today, the Commission 

directs the Wireless Bureau to adopt 

procedures for the auction of licenses in 

other blocks of 700 MHz Band spectrum 

without the use of package bidding. 

d. ‘‘New Entrant’’ Bidding Credit 

58. The Commission concludes that it 

is not necessary to compound the 

discounts already offered to small new 

entrants by existing designated entity 

bidding credits, or to offer large, 

nationwide new entrants significant 

discounts on their bids. 

e. Reserve Prices 

59. The Commission concludes that it 

should provide for separate aggregate 

reserve prices for each block of licenses 

to promote the Commission’s statutory 

objective of recovering for the public a 

portion of the value of the public 

spectrum resource. If the auction results 

for the licenses in any block satisfy the 

aggregate reserve for that block, all 

licenses in the block will be assigned 

based on the auction results, subject to 

completion of the licensing process, 

including review of applicants’

qualifications. The separate aggregate 

reserve prices should, taken together, 

reflect current assessments of the 

potential market value of this spectrum 

based on various factors including, but 

not limited to, the characteristics of this 

band and the value of other recently 

auctioned licenses, such as licenses for 

Advanced Wireless Services. In 

addition, the view of Congress as to the 

value of this spectrum, as reflected by 

the Congressional mandates for 

proceeds from the auction, should be 

given appropriate consideration. 

60. In the event that licenses are not 

assigned because the applicable blockspecific aggregate reserve is not met, the 

Commission provides for a prompt 

auction of alternative, less restrictive 

licenses for the A, B, C, and E Blocks, 

subject to the same applicable reserves. 

The Commission’s rules also provide for 

the possibility of re-offering the D Block 

license in a subsequent auction. 

61. Block-Specific Aggregate Reserve 

Price. The Commission concludes that 

the public interest requires a separate 

aggregate reserve price for each block of 

the 700 MHz Band licenses subject to 

competitive bidding in the upcoming 

auction. The reserve prices will be in 

addition to, and separate and apart 

from, any minimum opening bid 

amounts that may be established for 

purposes of the upcoming auction. If the 

aggregate reserve is met for any block, 

all licenses in that block that receive 

winning bids will be eligible for 

licensing subject to the completion of 

the Commission’s review of long-form 

license applications. 

62. The Commission also concludes 

that it is appropriate to assess interest in 

licenses in this context on a block-byblock basis. The Commission directs the 

Wireless Bureau to adopt and publicly 

disclose block-specific aggregate reserve 

prices, pursuant to its existing delegated 

authority and its regular pre-auction 

process, consistent with the 

Commission’s conclusions. Given the 

Commission’s intent that the reserve 

prices should maximize the possibility 

of recovering an appropriate portion of 

the value of the public spectrum 

resource while enabling licensing as 

promptly as possible, the Wireless 

Bureau should establish the particular 

amounts of the block-specific aggregate 

reserves by taking into account a 

conservative estimate of market value 

based on auction results for AWS–1 

spectrum licenses. More specifically, 

the Wireless Bureau should consider the 

following factors when setting the 

block-specific aggregate reserves. The 

detailed rules regarding the D Block 

license, the D Block licensee’s required 

construction of a network to be shared 

by public safety service users, and the 

resulting limitations on the flexibility of 

the D Block licensee, should be given 

substantial weight in assessing the D 

Block’s value. Based solely on 

geographic area and spectrum block 

size, AWS–1 auction results might 

suggest a D Block reserve of $1.7 billion. 

However, in light of the D Block license 

conditions essential to the public safety 

purpose of the public/private 

partnership, it might be appropriate to 

expect the D Block licensee to 

contribute only about 75 percent to 80 

percent of such an amount, or about 

$1.33 billion. In addition, when 

determining relative valuation of other 

blocks, the Wireless Bureau should 

consider the relative valuation of 

differing blocks in the recent auction of 

AWS–1 licenses. 

63. Subsequent Auction of Alternative 

Licenses. The Commission recognizes 

that it is possible that the auction results 

may not satisfy one or more of the 

block-specific reserves. In that event, 

the Commission establishes a process to 

enable the assignment of alternative 

licenses for the A, B, C, and E Blocks of 

the 700 MHz Band as soon as possible 

in order to promote the speedy 

deployment of services utilizing 700 

MHz Band spectrum. Under the 

Commission’s rules, the license for the 

D Block may also be re-offered in a 

subsequent auction.. 

64. The Commission also establishes 

a process to enable the assignment of 

alternative licenses as soon as possible 

in the event that the relevant blockspecific aggregate reserve price is not 

met when those licenses are first 

offered. Specifically, the Commission 

will offer the more flexible, less 

conditioned licenses described below in 

the A, B, C, and E Blocks as soon as 

possible after the first auction. Given the 

unique character of the D Block license 

conditions, the Commission leaves open 

the possibilities of reevaluating those 

conditions or of promptly offering that 

license again in a subsequent auction, in 

the event the D Block-specific reserve is 

not met. 


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65. The Commission also provides 

that the auction of alternative licenses 

shall be subject to the same applicable 

reserve prices as the initial auction of 

licenses. The Wireless Bureau has 

delegated authority, however, to 

determine the appropriate means of 

reapportioning the reserve associated 

with the C Block in light of the 

Commission’s determination to split the 

block into two blocks should a reauction occur. This assures both that 

any initial and subsequent auctions will 

be as similar as possible (other than 

with respect to particular license terms) 

and also that the final assignment of the 

licenses will be based only on which 

licenses are able to serve the statutory 

goal of recovering a portion of the value 

of the public spectrum resource fixed in 

advance of the auction. Therefore, the 

Commission anticipates that the reserve 

price for the C Block would be 

approximately $4.6 billion. 

66. Performance Requirements for 

Alternative Licenses. The Commission 

concludes that a failure of the auction 

results for the A, B, and E Block licenses 

to satisfy the applicable block-specific 

aggregate reserve should result in a 

prompt offering of alternative licenses 

for the relevant block(s) that are subject 

to performance requirements with the 

population benchmark regime the 

Commission has adopted for the C Block 

licenses. 

67. Changes to Alternative C Block 

Licenses. The Commission concludes 

that in the event that auction results for 

conditioned Upper 700 MHz C Block 

licenses do not satisfy the aggregate 

reserve price for the C Block, the 

Commission will offer as soon as 

possible licenses for the C Block 

without the open platform conditions. 

The Commission will also modify the C 

Block band plan. The Commission will 

reconfigure the bandwidth of the 

licenses to create two paired blocks of 

6 and 5 megahertz each, which the 

Commission will label the C1 and C2 

Blocks. Further, the Commission will 

license the C1 Block based on EAs and 

the C2 Block based on REAGs. 

68. D Block License. The Commission 

concludes that it should not alter the 

conditions it has adopted today for the 

D Block license based solely on auction 

results. The Commission believes that a 

D Block-specific aggregate reserve of 

approximately $1.33 billion is 

appropriate given the Commission’s 

goal of enabling the recovery of a 

portion of the value of the spectrum 

while also permitting licensing to 

proceed as quickly as possible. If, 

however, the D Block-specific aggregate 

reserve is not met, the Commission 

concludes that it should leave open the 

possibility of re-offering the license on 

the same terms in a subsequent auction, 

as well as the possibility of reevaluating all or some of the applicable 

license conditions. 

69. Auction Procedures. The 

Commission directs the Wireless Bureau 

to adopt for the auction of 700 MHz 

Band licenses, consistent with its 

delegated authority and pursuant to its 

routine pre-auction process, procedures 

that will enable a prompt subsequent 

auction of alternative licenses for any 

block in the event that the relevant 

block-specific aggregate reserve price is 

not met. This order’s provisions with 

respect to the procedures for the initial 

auction, including with respect to 

anonymous and package bidding, will 

continue to apply in any subsequent 

auction. Furthermore, the same 

applicable reserve prices for each block 

of licenses shall apply in both the initial 

and subsequent auctions, recognizing 

that the Wireless Bureau will be 

required to determine how to allocate 

the block-specific reserve price for the C 

Block upon reauction under the split 

block plan. The Commission directs the 

Wireless Bureau, consistent with its 

delegated authority to adopt procedures 

that will comply with this order and 

preserve the integrity of any necessary 

reauction. 

70. The Commission directs the 

Wireless Bureau to establish procedures 

that limit qualified bidders in a 

subsequent auction of alternative 

licenses to those bidders that qualify to 

bid in the upcoming auction offering 

700 MHz Band licenses in all of these 

blocks. Additionally, the Commission 

finds that the applicable ‘‘down 

payment deadline’’ for purposes of the 

Commission’s anti-collusion rule shall 

be the ‘‘down payment deadline’’

established for the subsequent auction. 

In addition, because licenses for the 

same spectrum will be offered in both 

auctions, and the auctions will take 

place relatively close in time, the 

Commission concludes that the purpose 

of the Commission’s anti-collusion rule 

requires that the provisions of that rule 

continue to apply until the down 

payment deadline for the subsequent 

auction. To assure that bidders will 

have sufficient bidding eligibility to 

pursue various bidding strategies, the 

Commission directs the Wireless Bureau 

to propose and adopt procedures that 

give applicants an opportunity to obtain 

bidding eligibility specifically for the 

alternative licenses, in addition to the 

initial licenses. 

71. The Wireless Bureau also should 

consider any additional procedures 

within its delegated authority that may 

enhance the effectiveness of the 

Commission’s auction of 700 MHz Band 

licenses in either the initial or 

subsequent auction. In this regard, the 

Commission directs the Wireless Bureau 

to consider what procedures may be 

appropriate to deter bidders from 

actions that might thwart the 

assignment of licenses in either auction. 

f. Statutory Deposit Deadline 

72. The Commission will deposit 

payments made by successful bidders 

towards their respective winning bids 

for their licenses—including upfront 

payments, deposits, and final payments 

held on deposit pending the completion 

of licensing—as of the deposit deadline, 

June 30, 2008, even in instances where 

the licensing process for those licenses 

has not yet been completed. 

B. 700 MHz Public Safety Spectrum 

73. 700 MHz Public Safety Spectrum. 

The Commission adopts a revised band 

plan for the 700 MHz Public Safety 

Band. The Commission designates the 

lower five-megahertz paired (ten 

megahertz total) segment of the 700 

MHz Public Safety Band for broadband 

communications. The Commission 

consolidates the public safety 

narrowband operations in the upper 

paired 6-megahertz blocks (twelve 

megahertz total) of the 700 MHz Public 

Safety Band. The Commission adopts a 

one-megahertz paired guard band (768–

769/798–799 MHz) between the 

broadband and narrowband segments. 

The Commission further concludes that 

in order to maximize the benefits of the 

700 MHz Public/Private Partnership to 

deploy a nationwide, interoperable 

broadband communications network, 

narrowband operations presently in 

channels 63 and 68 (and the upper one 

megahertz of channels 64 and 69) must 

be cleared no later than the DTV 

transition date. 

74. The Commission requires the 

Upper 700 MHz Band D Block licensee 

to pay the costs associated with 

relocating public safety narrowband 

operations to the consolidated channels, 

in recognition of the significant benefits 

that will accrue to the D Block licensee. 

To facilitate the relocation, the 

Commission requires every 700 MHz 

Band public safety licensee, whether 

holding individual narrowband 

authorizations or operating pursuant to 

a State License, to provide the following 

information: (1) The total number of 

narrowband mobile and portable 

handsets in operation in channels 63 

and 68, and the upper one megahertz of 

channels 64 and 69, (2) the total number 

of narrowband base stations serving 

these handsets in operation, (3) contact 

information for each identified set of 


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handsets and base stations, as 

appropriate, (4) the areas of operation of 

the mobile and portable units (such as 

defined by the jurisdictional boundaries 

of the relevant public safety 

departments), and (5) the location, in 

latitude and longitude, of the base 

stations, all as of August 30, 2007. This 

information must be filed with the 

Commission by October 23, 2007 and 

must include a certification, signed by 

an authorized party, stating that the 

information provided therein is true, 

complete, correct, and made in good 

faith. The Public Safety and Homeland 

Security Bureau will issue a public 

notice in advance of the effective date 

announcing the deadline for this 

certification requirement. 

75. The Commission prohibits 

authorization, whether pursuant to 

individual license or State License, of 

any new narrowband operations in 

channels 63 and 68, or in the upper one 

megahertz of channels 64 and 69, as of 

August 30, 2007. The Commission 

cautions that any equipment deployed 

in these frequencies subsequent to 

August 30, 2007 will be ineligible for 

relocation funding. 

76. The Commission requires all 

Regional Planning Committees with 

approved plans or plans on file to 

submit amended plans consistent with 

the decisions herein by November 23, 

2007. 

77. Public Safety Broadband Licensee. 

The Commission concludes that the 

public interest is best served by 

establishing a single nationwide Public 

Safety Broadband License for the 700 

MHz public safety broadband spectrum. 

The Commission will assign this license 

to a single Public Safety Broadband 

Licensee that will be responsible for 

implementing the 700 MHz public 

safety nationwide interoperable 

broadband network. This network will 

serve to provide public safety entities 

access to new broadband technologies 

across the country. Further, the 

Commission provides that the Upper 

700 MHz D Block Licensee will gain 

access to the 700 MHz public safety 

broadband spectrum on a secondary 

preemptible basis through a spectrum 

leasing arrangement with the Public 

Safety Broadband Licensee. 

78. The Commission adopts its 

proposal to license the 700 MHz public 

safety broadband spectrum as a 10- 

megahertz block (comprised of paired, 

5-megahertz blocks) under a nationwide 

geographic area license, and the 

Commission will assign this license to 

the Public Safety Broadband Licensee. 

The Commission establishes a variety of 

eligibility criteria for this entity and sets 

out a variety of responsibilities, 

including negotiating the Network 

Sharing Agreement with the winning 

bidder of the Upper 700 MHz Band D 

Block license. The Commission 

delegates authority to the Chief of the 

PSHSB to issue a public notice within 

thirty days of the release of this Second 

Report and Order soliciting applications 

for the Public Safety Broadband 

Licensee. The public notice shall 

specify the baseline criteria the 

Commission establishes herein, and 

describe the procedures and other 

requirements for submitting 

applications. The Commission will 

select the Public Safety Broadband 

Licensee and grant to it the Public 

Safety Broadband License consistent 

with the requirements and 

considerations set forth herein. 

700 MHz Public/Private Partnership 

1. Adoption of the 700 MHz Public/ 

Private Partnership 

79. The Commission designates the D 

Block in the Upper 700 MHz Band to be 

licensed to a commercial entity on a 

nationwide basis for the purpose of 

entering into the 700 MHz Public/ 

Private Partnership with the Public 

Safety Broadband Licensee, and the 

Commission adopts a number of 

conditions, requirements, and 

procedures to safeguard services to 

public safety entities and address 

concerns about the success of the 

partnership, as discussed more fully 

below. 

2. Essential Components of Public/ 

Private Partnership 

a. Shared Wireless Broadband Network 

80. In order to have a successful 

public/private partnership with a shared 

nationwide interoperable broadband 

network infrastructure that meets the 

needs of public safety, the Commission 

adopts certain network requirements. 

The public/private partnership network 

will serve as the nation’s public safety 

wireless broadband network 

infrastructure, so it must meet the 

requirements of a public safety 

communications network. Accordingly, 

the Commission requires that the 

network incorporate, at a minimum, the 

following: 

• Specifications for a broadband 

technology platform that provides 

mobile voice, video, and data capability 

that is seamlessly interoperable across 

agencies, jurisdictions, and geographic 

areas. The platform should also include 

current and evolving state-of-the-art 

technologies reasonably made available 

in the commercial marketplace with 

features beneficial to the public safety 

community (e.g., increased bandwidth). 

• Sufficient signal coverage to ensure 

reliable operation throughout the 

service area consistent with typical 

public safety communications systems 

(i.e., 99.7 percent or better reliability). 

• Sufficient robustness to meet the 

reliability and performance 

requirements of public safety. To meet 

this standard, network specifications 

must include features such as hardening 

of transmission facilities and antenna 

towers to withstand harsh weather and 

disaster conditions, and backup power 

sufficient to maintain operations for an 

extended period of time. 

• Sufficient capacity to meet the 

needs of public safety, particularly 

during emergency and disaster 

situations, so that public safety 

applications are not degraded (i.e., 

increased blockage rates and/or 

transmission times or reduced data 

speeds) during periods of heavy usage. 

In considering this requirement, the 

Commission expects the network to 

employ spectrum efficient techniques, 

such as frequency reuse and sectorized 

or adaptive antennas. 

• Security and encryption consistent 

with state-of-the-art technologies. 

• A mechanism to automatically 

prioritize public safety communications 

over commercial uses on a real-time 

basis and to assign the highest priority 

to communications involving safety of 

life and property and homeland security 

consistent with the requirements 

adopted in this Second Report and 

Order. 

• Operational capabilities consistent 

with features and requirements 

specified by the Public Safety 

Broadband Licensee that are typical of 

current and evolving state-of-the-art 

public safety systems (such as 

connection to the PSTN, push-to-talk, 

one-to-one and one-to-many 

communications, etc.). 

• Operational controls of the network 

by the Public Safety Broadband 

Licensee to the extent necessary to 

ensure public safety requirements are 

met. 

• The Public Safety Broadband 

Licensee shall have the right to 

determine and approve the 

specifications of public safety 

equipment that is used on the network, 

and the right to purchase its own 

subscriber equipment from any vendor 

it chooses, to the extent such 

specifications and equipment are 

consistent with reasonable network 

control requirements established in the 

NSA. 

• A requirement, as explained more 

fully herein, that the Upper 700 MHz D 

Block licensee make available to the 

Public Safety Broadband Licensee at 


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least one handset that would be suitable 

for public safety use and include an 

integrated satellite solution capable of 

operating both on the 700 MHz public 

safety spectrum and on satellite 

frequencies. 

81. These requirements are to be 

implemented by the parties through the 

NSA, which will also include the 

detailed specifications of the network 

that the D Block licensee will construct. 

By allowing the parties to determine 

specific details, including the 

technologies that will be used, subject to 

approval by the Commission, the 

Commission provides them with 

flexibility to evaluate the cost and 

performance of all available solutions 

while ensuring that the shared wireless 

broadband network has all the 

capabilities and attributes needed for a 

public safety broadband network. 

b. Spectrum Use 

82. The Commission permits the 

Public Safety Broadband Licensee to 

provide access on a secondary and 

preemptible basis to this spectrum, 

pursuant to the spectrum lease specified 

herein, for the purpose of enabling 

commercial operations within the band 

devoted to primary public safety 

broadband use. The Upper 700 MHz D 

Block licensee will gain access to this 

public safety broadband spectrum by 

means of a spectrum leasing 

arrangement with the Public Safety 

Broadband Licensee. The Commission 

also places additional conditions 

regarding the use of the D Block 

spectrum, including a requirement that 

the D Block licensee provide the Public 

Safety Broadband Licensee with priority 

access to the D Block license spectrum 

during emergencies. 

83. In addition, the Commission 

concludes that Section 337(a)(1) does 

not prohibit the Public Safety 

Broadband Licensee from entering into 

the lease for commercial operations, on 

a limited and preemptible basis as 

specified herein, of spectrum that is 

allocated for public safety services. 

Further, the Commission finds that 

Section 337(a)(2), which directs the 

Commission to allocate 36 megahertz 

‘‘for commercial use,’’ does not prohibit 

the Commission from requiring the D 

Block licensee to provide public safety 

users with priority access to D Block 

license spectrum in an emergency. 

Priority service, although provided to 

public safety, will still be commercial, 

and will not appreciably impair the D 

Block licensee’s ability to provide 

commercial services to other parties. 

84. Commercial Operations in Public 

Safety Spectrum on a Secondary Basis. 

The Commission permits the leasing of 

the Upper 700 MHz Band spectrum 

currently allocated for public safety 

services to commercial providers on a 

secondary, unconditionally preemptible 

basis. The Public Safety Broadband 

Licensee will be required to lease the 

public safety spectrum for use by the D 

Block licensee on a secondary basis 

pursuant to the requirements set forth in 

the NSA and established in this Second 

Report and Order. Thus, under the 700 

MHz Public/Private Partnership 

framework adopted here, the D Block 

licensee will be obligated to construct a 

broadband network capable of operating 

on the public safety broadband 

spectrum for the benefit of the Public 

Safety Broadband Licensee, and the 

Public Safety Broadband Licensee will 

be obligated to permit secondary 

commercial operations on the public 

safety broadband spectrum pursuant to 

the spectrum leasing arrangement. 

85. The Commission will require that 

this spectrum leasing arrangement take 

the form of a long-term spectrum 

manager leasing arrangement for the full 

term of the license. By limiting the D 

Block licensee’s secondary use of the 

Public Safety Broadband Licensee’s 

spectrum to leased access under a 

spectrum manager leasing arrangement, 

subject to the conditions the 

Commission is placing on the nature of 

that access, the Commission thus 

ensures that the Public Safety 

Broadband Licensee has the regulatory 

means (and obligation) to preserve the 

fundamental public safety function of 

the band. Moreover, the Public Safety 

Broadband Licensee’s ultimate control 

over the D Block licensee’s use of this 

band, coupled with the operational 

flexibility accorded the D Block licensee 

under a spectrum manager leasing 

arrangement, should provide an 

appropriate balance between 

commercial and public safety operations 

in the public safety broadband 

spectrum. Specifically, the spectrum 

manager leasing arrangement permits 

the D Block licensee to construct a 

network to serve its business needs, yet 

preserves the network infrastructure 

required for primary public safety use in 

the Public Safety Broadband Licensee’s 

band. 

86. As further conditions on the 

spectrum leasing arrangement 

authorized here, the D Block licensee’s 

commercial operations in the public 

safety spectrum must not cause 

interference to primary users (i.e., 

public safety users) and must accept 

interference from primary users at all 

times. To help ensure that commercial 

secondary use complies with these 

limitations, in the public safety 

broadband spectrum the Commission 

will require that the network be 

designed so as to automatically assign 

priority to public safety users, to the 

exclusion and/or immediate preemption 

of any commercial use on a dynamic, 

real-time priority basis, and that 

network specifications are sufficient to 

guarantee that public safety users suffer 

no harmful interference or interruption 

or degradation of service due to 

commercial operations in the public 

safety broadband spectrum. 

87. Priority Public Safety Access to 

Commercial Spectrum During 

Emergencies. As part of its 

responsibilities in managing the shared 

wireless broadband network, the 

Commission requires the D Block 

licensee to provide the Public Safety 

Broadband Licensee with priority 

access, during emergencies, to the 

spectrum associated with the D Block 

license (in addition to the 700 MHz 

public safety broadband spectrum). In 

determining what constitutes an 

emergency, the Commission agrees with 

Frontline that the definition of an 

‘‘emergency’’ for this purpose should be 

left to negotiation between the parties. 

The Commission requires the parties to 

define ‘‘emergency’’ for purposes of 

priority access to D Block license 

spectrum as part of the NSA. 

88. The Commission recognizes that 

there may be occasions when the parties 

are unable to agree that an emergency 

situation requires priority access to the 

D Block license spectrum, especially in 

circumstances that do not clearly fall 

within the definition of ‘‘emergency’’

negotiated by the parties in the NSA. On 

these occasions, the Public Safety 

Broadband Licensee may request that 

the Commission declare, on an 

expedited basis, that particular 

circumstances warrant emergency 

priority access. In order to facilitate this 

process and ensure a prompt response, 

the Commission delegates authority to 

the Defense Commissioner to decide 

these requests and amends Section 

0.181 of the Commission’s rules to 

reflect this new duty. 

89. Under emergency conditions, all 

public safety entities in the affected area 

will have real-time access, as needed, to 

all D Block license spectrum on a 

priority basis over commercial traffic 

and will preempt ongoing commercial 

traffic to the extent necessary. In this 

regard, the Commission requires the D 

Block licensee to provide appropriate 

warnings to its commercial customers 

about the potential interruption of their 

service during emergencies due to 

preemption by public safety users. The 

NSA should address how the D Block 

licensee will satisfy this obligation, 

including, for example, encouraging the 


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use of devices that can access spectrum 

other than the D Block. The NSA must 

also recognize that emergency 911 calls 

from commercial users also play a 

critical role in safeguarding public 

safety and should be accorded some 

level of priority, which may be lower 

priority than public safety 

communications but will not be subject 

to interruption of ongoing calls by 

public safety users and will have 

priority over all other commercial uses. 

90. Secondary Markets Rules. In 

permitting the Public Safety Broadband 

Licensee to enter into this spectrum 

leasing arrangement subject to the 

conditions set out in this order, the 

Commission waives the spectrum 

leasing policies and rules insofar as they 

prohibit public safety licensees from 

entering into spectrum leasing 

arrangements for commercial 

operations. 

c. Performance Requirements 

91. The Commission adopts specific 

performance requirements that include 

three population-based build-out 

benchmarks that cover the nationwide D 

Block license area. Specifically, the 

Commission will require the D Block 

licensee to provide signal coverage and 

offer service to at least 75 percent of the 

population of the nationwide D Block 

license area by the end of the fourth 

year, 95 percent of the population of the 

nationwide license area by the end of 

the seventh year, and 99.3 percent of the 

population of the nationwide license 

area by the end of the tenth year. To 

meet these requirements, the D Block 

licensee must use the most recently 

available U.S. Census Data. The 

Commission concludes that the buildout requirements being imposed will 

ensure that public safety needs are met. 

92. In order to ensure that less 

populous areas are not neglected in the 

D Block licensee’s build-out efforts, the 

Commission adopts certain additional 

measures to encourage coverage in those 

areas. Accordingly, the Commission 

requires that the D Block licensee meet 

the Commission’s initial population 

benchmarks based on a build-out 

schedule specified in the NSA 

consistent with the public safety needs. 

The Commission also requires the D 

Block licensee to offer at least one 

handset suitable for public safety use 

that includes an integrated satellite 

solution pursuant to the terms, 

conditions, and timeframes set forth in 

the NSA. 

93. The Commission’s three 

population-based construction 

benchmarks will take effect beginning 

on February 17, 2009. This is the 

statutorily imposed DTV transition date 

and is the same date that build-out 

obligations for the other unauctioned 

commercial 700 MHz Band licensees 

will begin to take effect. Thus, the 

Commission’s four, seven, and ten year 

construction benchmarks for the D 

Block licensee will be calculated as 

starting from February 17, 2009. Use of 

this date provides regulatory parity and 

it recognizes that the DTV transition 

will not be completed until this date. 

The Commission notes that the D Block 

licensee may begin constructing its 

system prior to February 17, 2009, and 

may begin operating its system prior to 

that date so long as it provides 

appropriate interference protection to 

incumbent co-channel and adjacent 

channel broadcasters. 

94. The Commission will apply the 

three population-based construction 

benchmarks over the nationwide D 

Block license area. Accordingly, the D 

Block licensee must employ a signal 

level sufficient to provide adequate 

service to the relevant percentage of the 

population over the nationwide D Block 

license area. Moreover, the Commission 

requires that the network and signal 

levels employed to meet these 

benchmarks be adequate for public 

safety use, as defined in the Shared 

Wireless Broadband Network subsection herein and further defined by 

the NSA, and that the services made 

available be appropriate for public 

safety entities in those areas. In 

particular, the Commission requires as a 

mandatory provision of the NSA that 

the D Block licensee and Public Safety 

Broadband Licensee negotiate inclusion 

into the build-out schedule coverage of 

major highways and interstates, as well 

as incorporated communities with a 

population in excess of 3,000, as 

suggested by APCO, IACP and IAFC. In 

addition, to the extent that the D Block 

licensee chooses to provide commercial 

services to population levels in excess 

of the relevant benchmarks, the D Block 

licensee will be required to make the 

same level of service available to public 

safety entities. 

95. In certain limited circumstances, 

the Commission will permit the D Block 

licensee to modify these populationbased construction benchmarks where 

the D Block licensee and the Public 

Safety Broadband Licensee reach 

agreement and the full Commission 

gives its prior approval for a 

modification. As with other commercial 

700 MHz Band licensees, the D Block 

licensee will be required to demonstrate 

compliance with the Commission’s 

adopted benchmarks by filing with the 

Commission within 15 days of passage 

of the relevant benchmarks a 

construction notification comprised of 

maps and other supporting documents 

certifying that they have met the 

Commission’s performance 

requirements. The construction 

notification, including the coverage 

maps and supporting documents, must 

be truthful and accurate and not omit 

material information that is necessary 

for the Commission to make a 

determination of compliance with the 

Commission’s performance 

requirements. However, unlike the other 

commercial licenses and because of the 

nature of the partnership established 

herein, the D Block licensee will not be 

subject to a ‘‘keep-what-you-use’’ rule. 

Rather, the Commission will strictly 

enforce these build-out requirements 

and, if the D Block licensee fails to meet 

a construction benchmark, the 

Commission may cancel its license, 

depending on the circumstances. 

d. Network Sharing Agreement (NSA) 

and Mandatory Provisions 

96. The Commission establishes that 

the relationship between the Public 

Safety Broadband Licensee and the D 

Block licensee will be governed by the 

Network Sharing Agreement (NSA) to be 

negotiated by the parties, and such other 

separate agreements as the Commission 

may require or allow, and the 

Commission provides that compliance 

with the terms of the NSA shall be a 

regulatory condition of the D Block 

license. Breach of this licensing 

condition may, at the determination of 

the Commission, result in remedies 

including, but not limited to, 

cancellation and subsequent award of 

the license. The Commission also 

requires all the parties to negotiate in 

good faith and finds that many of the 

details of their agreement are 

appropriately left to them to negotiate 

and reach agreement on (subject to 

ultimate Commission approval of the 

NSA). In the discussion that follows, 

certain elements that the Commission 

requires the parties to address in the 

NSA are enumerated. 

97. Rights and Obligations Under the 

Public/Private Partnership. The NSA 

must incorporate all of the substantive 

rights and obligations of the parties that 

the Commission has established in this 

Second Report and Order that are 

relevant to the Public/Private 

Partnership. Once the NSA is approved 

by the Commission and executed by the 

parties, assuming all other licensing 

requirements are met, the Commission 

will grant the D Block license to the 

winning bidder and compliance with 

the terms and conditions of the NSA 

will be license conditions for both the 

D Block license and the Public Safety 

Broadband License. The Commission 


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requires the parties to submit an 

executed NSA within 10 business days 

of the Commission’s approval of the 

agreement, and if the parties fail to 

submit the NSA, the Commission will 

deny granting the D Block license until 

the NSA is submitted. 

98. Term of Agreement. The NSA 

must have a term not to exceed 10 years 

from February 17, 2009, which 

coincides with the term of the D Block 

license established elsewhere in this 

Second Report and Order. At the 

conclusion of the initial, and 

subsequent, term of the agreement, the 

NSA may be renewed along with the D 

Block license, subject to Commission 

approval. The Commission finds it 

appropriate to ensure that consideration 

of whether to renew the D Block license 

and whether to renew or modify the 

NSA whose performance is a condition 

of that license should occur at the same 

time. 

99. Service Fees. The Commission 

finds that all service fees for public 

safety service should be specified in the 

NSA, including any applicable fees for 

normal network service and fees for 

priority access to the D Block in an 

emergency. The Commission finds that 

the parties should be left to negotiate 

reasonable rates in good faith, taking 

into account all appropriate factors, 

including but not limited to the public/ 

private nature of the partnership. The 

Commission expects, however, that the 

parties will negotiate a fee structure for 

priority access to the D Block in an 

emergency that will protect public 

safety users from incurring unforeseen 

(and unbudgeted) payment obligations 

in the event that a serious emergency 

necessitates preemption for a sustained 

period. The Commission also 

encourages the parties to negotiate a fee 

agreement that incorporates financial 

incentives for the commercial licensee 

based on the number of public safety 

entities and localities that subscribe to 

the service. 

100. The Commission also expects 

that fees will be such that public safety 

entities are able to afford the services 

that they require for their public safety 

functions, and that the terms will best 

serve the public interest goals 

established in this Second Report and 

Order regarding the public/private 

partnership. Should it prove necessary, 

the Commission has established various 

remedies to resolve disputes over NSA 

terms, and the Commission can exercise 

one of these options to ensure that fees 

charged are reasonable. 

101. Detailed Build-Out Schedule. 

The NSA must include a detailed buildout schedule that is consistent with the 

mandatory national build-out and 

performance benchmarks that the 

Commission has established for the D 

Block licensee elsewhere in this Second 

Report and Order. The Commission 

expects the NSA to identify the specific 

areas of the country that will be built 

out by each of the construction 

deadlines that the Commission has 

established. Because the Commission 

must ensure that smaller towns and 

rural areas are not neglected in the D 

Block licensee’s build-out efforts, the 

Commission requires the D Block 

licensee to meet the Commission’s 

initial population benchmarks by not 

exclusively concentrating on building 

out high population areas. In this 

regard, the Commission agrees with 

public safety commenters to the extent 

that the Commission requires the parties 

to include in the NSA coverage for 

major highways and interstates, as well 

as such additional areas that are 

necessary to provide coverage for all 

incorporated communities with a 

population in excess of 3,000, unless the 

Public Safety Broadband Licensee and 

the D Block licensee jointly determine, 

in consultation with a relevant 

community, that such additional 

coverage will not provide significant 

public benefit. The Commission also 

requires an estimated cost for each 

specified area of the build-out, which 

will assist the Commission in efforts to 

ensure that the build-out schedule is 

achieved. 

102. Modifications to the NSA. The 

Commission obligates the parties to act 

in good faith in all dealings with each 

other and to abide by the terms of the 

agreement. The NSA must specify that 

any major modifications to the terms of 

the NSA, related agreements or 

documents, or such other agreements as 

the Commission may require or allow, 

require not only the agreement of the 

parties, but also prior Commission 

approval. All other modifications 

require prior approval by the Chiefs of 

the Wireless Bureau and the Public 

Safety and Homeland Security Bureau 

on delegated authority. 

e. License Term and Renewal 

Expectancy for the Public/Private 

Partnership 

103. Consistent with the decision 

made for other commercial licensees in 

the 700 MHz Report and Order, the 

Commission decides that a term not to 

exceed 10 years from February 17, 2009, 

should be used for initial authorization 

in the D Block license. The D Block 

license would be auctioned as a single, 

nationwide license to provide for 

commercial service in the ‘‘D Block,’’

and to build and operate a joint 

broadband public safety and 

commercial network for public safety 

use. 

104. At the end of the 10 year term, 

the D Block licensee will be allowed to 

apply for license renewal, although its 

renewal will be subject to its success in 

meeting the material requirements set 

forth in the NSA as well as all other 

license conditions, including meeting 

the performance benchmark 

requirements. Because the initial NSA 

term will expire at the same time, the D 

Block licensee must also file a renewed 

or modified NSA for Commission 

approval at the time of its license 

renewal application. Given these 

detailed license renewal requirements, 

the Commission declines to impose a 

separate substantial service showing. 

105. The material requirements set 

forth in the NSA are conditions of the 

D Block license, including the network 

build-out schedule and satisfaction of 

the agreed-upon public safety 

specifications regarding the network 

construction and operations, in order to 

obtain a renewal of the license. 

Regarding the D Block license renewal 

application, the Commission finds the 

material requirements in the NSA to be 

those requirements that are the 

‘‘essence’’ of the agreement between the 

parties, including but not limited to the 

build-out schedule for the public safety 

network and other provisions that serve 

the fundamental purpose of the NSA, as 

well as any time limits on the 

performance of those provisions. 

f. Public Safety Satellite Support 

106. The Commission requires that 

the D Block licensee make available to 

public safety users at least one handset 

that includes a seamlessly integrated 

satellite solution. The Commission does 

not require that this handset use any 

specific technology, only that it be 

capable of operating both on the 700 

MHz public safety spectrum and on the 

satellite frequency bands and/or systems 

of the satellite service providers with 

which the Public Safety Broadband 

Licensee has contracted for satellite 

service. The Commission does not, 

however, require that the D Block 

licensee incorporate support for satellite 

communications into the infrastructure 

of the shared terrestrial network. 

107. The Commission expects that the 

D Block licensee, satellite companies, 

and handset manufacturers will take 

steps to facilitate the development of 

handsets with seamlessly integrated 

satellite solutions. However, the 

Commission does not establish an 

immediate obligation upon the D Block 

licensee to make satellite-capable 

handsets available. Rather, the 

Commission will require the D Block 


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licensee to begin offering at least one 

handset suitable for public safety use 

that includes a seamlessly integrated 

satellite solution pursuant to the terms, 

conditions, and timeframes set forth in 

the NSA. 

108. The Commission declines to 

mandate the incorporation of support 

for satellite communications by the D 

Block licensee into the infrastructure of 

the shared network. The Commission 

believes that the D Block licensee and 

the Public Safety Broadband Licensee 

will be in the best position to determine 

whether and when satellite support 

within the terrestrial infrastructure is 

appropriate, and by what method it 

should be implemented, such as by 

negotiating a side-agreement with 

existing satellite service providers to use 

their excess capacity for public safety 

communications. 

g. Local Public Safety Build-Out and 

Operation 

109. The Commission concludes that 

no public safety entity will be required 

to use the 700 MHz public safety 

broadband network, and that any 

participation in the 700 MHz 

nationwide public safety network by 

individual public safety entities will be 

entirely voluntary. The Commission 

also concludes, however, that the Upper 

700 MHz Band D Block licensee should 

have the exclusive right to build and 

operate the shared wireless broadband 

network using the 700 MHz public 

safety broadband spectrum, except that 

the Commission permits public safety 

entities to construct local broadband 

networks in the 700 MHz public safety 

spectrum in two limited circumstances 

subject to conditions specified below. 

The Commission further concludes that 

public safety entities should have a 

limited right to build out wideband 

networks, again with conditions and 

restrictions. 

110. Rights to Early Build-out in Areas 

with a Build-out Commitment. First, in 

an area where the D Block licensee has, 

in the NSA, committed to build out by 

a certain date, but where a public safety 

entity wishes a more immediate buildout, the public safety entity may, with 

the pre-approval of the Public Safety 

Broadband Licensee, have the network 

constructed in that area at the public 

safety entity’s own expense. The 

network must be capable of operating on 

the shared, interoperable broadband 

network that operates on both the D 

Block licensee’s commercial block and 

the public safety 700 MHz broadband 

spectrum, and must meet all of the same 

requirements and specifications as the 

shared network required under the 

NSA. 

111. The Commission authorizes two 

options for implementing the early 

build-out of an area of the broadband 

network at the discretion of the public 

safety entity. Under the first option, the 

public safety entity (or the Public Safety 

Broadband Licensee acting on its behalf) 

may construct the network in that area. 

Upon construction, it must transfer the 

network to the D Block licensee, which 

shall integrate that network into the 

shared national broadband network 

constructed pursuant to the NSA. Under 

the second option, the public safety 

entity may require the D Block licensee 

to construct the network in that area 

earlier than scheduled, but the public 

safety entity must provide all funds 

necessary for the early construction of 

the network, including any and all 

additional resource and personnel costs. 

As with the first option, upon 

construction, the D Block licensee will 

operate and manage the network as an 

integrated part of the larger shared 

national broadband network. 

112. In either case, the Public Safety 

Broadband Licensee, the D Block 

licensee, and the public safety entity 

must, prior to any construction, 

negotiate an amendment to the NSA 

regarding this part of the network, 

specifying ownership rights, fees, and 

other terms, which may be distinct from 

the analogous terms governing the 

shared national broadband network. 

Absent agreement to the contrary, the 

amendment must provide that by a date 

no later than the build-out date 

specified for that area in the NSA, the 

D Block licensee will receive full 

ownership rights and will in turn 

compensate the public safety entity (or 

the Public Safety Broadband Licensee, 

where appropriate) for the construction 

of the network. The right to 

compensation for the build-out shall be 

limited, again absent agreement to the 

contrary, to the cost that would have 

been incurred had the D Block licensee 

constructed the network itself in 

accordance with the original terms and 

specifications of the NSA. 

113. The Commission points out that 

early build-out in this scenario is a right 

to construct only. Operations may not 

commence on the network until the 

network is transferred to the D Block 

licensee. Operations on early build-out 

networks would then be conducted 

under the authority of the Public Safety 

Broadband Licensee’s license, in the 

same manner as any network operations 

that occur following construction by the 

D Block licensee under the build-out 

schedule contained in the NSA. 

114. Starting on the date of 

compensation for build-out, or on the 

build-out due date of the NSA if there 

is no specified date of compensation, 

the D Block licensee may include the 

early build-out for purposes of 

determining whether it has met its 

national build-out benchmarks and the 

build-out requirements of the NSA. 

115. The Commission notes that the 

National Capital Region (NCR) has 

commenced construction and operation 

of a broadband network in the 700 MHz 

Band pursuant to an experimental 

license and has been granted a waiver 

in anticipation of its application for a 

license to operate such system. The NCR 

consists of eighteen jurisdictions: The 

District of Columbia, Montgomery and 

Prince Georges Counties of Maryland, 

and the cities of Gaithersburg, Rockville, 

Takoma Park, Bowie, College Park, and 

Greenbelt; Arlington, Fairfax, Loudon 

and Prince William Counties of 

Virginia, and the cities of Alexandria, 

Falls Church, Town of Leesburg, 

Manassas, and Manassas Park. Although 

NCR cannot now obtain a license, as 

such license will be held by the Public 

Safety Broadband Licensee, nothing 

herein should be construed as 

preventing or limiting NCR’s ability to 

continue to operate the broadband 

network they have built within the 700 

MHz broadband allocation (subject to 

NCR properly obtaining a grant of a 

request for Special Temporary Authority 

for such continued operation) until such 

time as the NCR network is integrated 

into the nationwide, interoperable 

broadband network in accordance with 

the build-out plan set forth in the NSA. 

116. The Commission advises the 

Public Safety Broadband Licensee to 

consult NCR in negotiating the build-out 

date for the nationwide, interoperable 

network, as the build-out plan in the 

NSA should allow NCR a reasonable 

time to make any modifications 

necessary to incorporate its network 

into the nationwide, interoperable 

broadband network by the date set forth 

in the NSA for build out of the portion 

of the nationwide, interoperable 

broadband network in the NCR. NCR 

will, of course, be expected to comply 

with the requirements set forth herein 

for public safety entities exercising the 

right to early build out, and NCR shall 

be entitled to the same rights and 

compensation as set forth herein for 

public safety entities electing to exercise 

their right to early build out. 

117. The Spectrum Coalition would 

have the Commission give local public 

safety entities, including NCR, the 

ability to ‘‘opt-out’’ of the national, 

interoperable broadband network, yet 

operate individual systems in the 700 

MHz Band. The Commission flatly 

rejects such arguments; local public 

safety entities do not have to participate 


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in the nationwide network, but they 

may not ‘‘opt-out’’ in favor of using the 

700 MHz broadband spectrum for 

individual networks. As a general 

matter, as we have discussed above, 

there are numerous benefits to having a 

single Public Safety Broadband 

Licensee. 

118. Rights to Build Out and Operate 

In Areas without a Build-out 

Commitment. The Commission 

acknowledges that, even under the 

stringent population-based build-out 

requirements that the Commission is 

adopting, there will be areas of the 

nation in which the NSA does not 

require the D Block licensee to build out 

the shared broadband network. In such 

areas, under the policies and procedures 

discussed below, the Commission 

provides that a public safety entity may 

build out and operate a separate, 

exclusive network in the 700 MHz 

public safety broadband spectrum at any 

time, provided the public safety entity 

has received the approval of the Public 

Safety Broadband Licensee and operates 

its independent network pursuant to a 

spectrum leasing arrangement into 

which the public safety entity has 

entered with the Public Safety 

Broadband Licensee. 

119. Under this option, the public 

safety entity need not obtain any 

agreement with the D Block licensee. 

The Public Safety Broadband Licensee 

must, however, provide the D Block 

licensee with notice of the public safety 

entity’s intent to construct in that area 

within 30 days of receipt of a request 

from a public safety entity wishing to 

exercise this option, and shall inform 

the D Block licensee of the public safety 

entity’s anticipated build-out date(s). 

This affords the D Block licensee the 

opportunity, in conjunction with the 

Public Safety Broadband Licensee, to 

reconsider whether the NSA should be 

revised to include a commitment to 

build out the area that the public safety 

entity has identified. Further, if within 

30 days of receiving such notice the D 

Block licensee certifies in writing to the 

Public Safety Broadband Licensee that it 

will build out the shared network in the 

area, within a reasonable time of the 

anticipated build-out date(s), as 

determined by the Public Safety 

Broadband Licensee, then the public 

safety entity shall not have the option of 

building out and operating its own 

separate exclusive network in the area. 

Under this circumstance, the D Block 

licensee, working with the Public Safety 

Broadband Licensee, must then adopt 

an appropriate amendment to the NSA, 

and such commitment would become 

enforceable against the D Block licensee 

as part of its build-out requirements. 

The Commission also notes that, as an 

alternative in such cases, the public 

safety entity would be able to complete 

early build-out under the procedures 

discussed above. 

120. If the public safety entity pursues 

this option to build out a separate 

network, the Public Safety Broadband 

Licensee and public safety entity, as its 

spectrum lessee, must file a spectrum 

leasing arrangement with the 

Commission prior to the public safety 

entity commencing any operations. The 

Commission will require that the 

spectrum leasing arrangement take the 

form of a spectrum manager leasing 

arrangement under the Commission’s 

spectrum leasing rules. The Commission 

will not permit such arrangements to 

take the form of long-term de facto 

transfer spectrum leasing arrangements. 

The Commission believes that it is 

necessary that the Public Safety 

Broadband Licensee retain not only de 

jure control of all of the spectrum 

associated with the Public Safety 

Broadband License, even in areas not 

scheduled for build-out, but also de 

facto control of the spectrum leased for 

use by public safety entities. As a result, 

the Commission finds it essential that, 

as provided under the spectrum 

manager leasing rules and as 

distinguished from the long-term de 

facto transfer leasing arrangement, the 

Public Safety Broadband Licensee 

maintain actual oversight and working 

knowledge of its spectrum lessees’

activities in order to ensure compliance 

with all requirements of the 

Communications Act, the Commission’s 

rules, and the obligations set forth in 

this Second Report and Order. 

121. In addition to compliance with 

the Commission’s spectrum leasing 

requirements, the public safety 

spectrum lessee must ensure that the 

following conditions are met: (1) The 

network must provide broadband 

operations; (2) the network must be 

fully interoperable with the shared 

national broadband network required by 

the NSA; (3) the network must be 

available for use by any public safety 

agency in the area; and (4) the network 

must satisfy any other terms or 

conditions required by the Public Safety 

Broadband Licensee. These conditions 

specifically must be included in the 

spectrum manager lease agreement 

entered between the Public Safety 

Broadband Licensee and the public 

safety entity. Consistent with Section 

90.551 of the Commission’s rules, which 

contains the general 700 MHz public 

safety spectrum construction 

requirements, the lease agreement 

between the parties must specify that 

the public safety entity must construct 

and place into operation its network 

within one year of the effective date of 

the spectrum manager leasing 

arrangement, and if not, then the Public 

Safety Broadband Licensee will 

terminate the spectrum leasing 

arrangement pursuant to the 

Commission’s rules. The separate 

network need not, however, meet the 

other specifications of the D Block 

licensee’s shared national network. In 

particular, absent agreement of the 

public safety entity, the Public Safety 

Broadband Licensee, and the D Block 

licensee, the separate network may not 

operate using any spectrum associated 

with the D Block license. Finally, as 

required by the Commission’s spectrum 

leasing rules, the Public Safety 

Broadband Licensee must notify the 

Commission of the spectrum manager 

leasing arrangement as part of the 

Commission’s spectrum manager lease 

notification procedures. The notice 

must identify the public safety entity 

leasing the spectrum and the particular 

areas of spectrum leased as part of this 

build-out option. 

122. The Commission emphasizes that 

under no conditions may a public safety 

entity construct a network using 700 

MHz public safety broadband spectrum 

in an area absent the approval of the 

Public Safety Broadband Licensee. 

Nothing in this determination should be 

construed, however, to prohibit the 

Public Safety Broadband Licensee from 

being responsive to requests from 

localities to opt out and provide 

separate network services pursuant to a 

spectrum lease approved by the Public 

Safety Broadband Licensee and the 

Commission. 

123. Conditions for Waiver to Allow 

Limited and Temporary Wideband 

Operations. The Commission prohibits 

wideband operations in the public 

safety allocation of the 700 MHz Band, 

subject to the limited exceptions set 

forth herein. The Commission will 

require public safety entities seeking to 

deploy wideband systems to satisfy the 

following conditions and restrictions. 

124. First, wideband operations in the 

700 MHz public safety spectrum will be 

permitted only upon grant of a properly 

supported request for waiver of the 

requirement to conform to the band plan 

the Commission adopts herein, i.e., one 

that permits only broadband or 

narrowband operations. In the interests 

of ensuring the integrity of the public/ 

private partnership for construction of a 

nationwide broadband, interoperable 

network, the Commission finds it 

necessary to consider requests to deploy 

wideband only in a waiver context. 

Requests for waiver to conduct 

wideband operations must be 


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accompanied by an application for 

authorization. 

125. Second, any petition for waiver 

must be accompanied by a letter from 

the Public Safety Broadband Licensee, 

confirming that the proposed wideband 

deployment is not inconsistent with the 

broadband deployment plan for the 

affected or adjacent service areas. The 

Commission encourages public safety 

entities seeking such waivers to 

cooperate with the Public Safety 

Broadband Licensee to reach agreement 

on the conditions, if any, to be placed 

on any wideband deployment, 

including the appropriate plan for 

transition to the nationwide broadband, 

interoperable network. All requests for 

waiver must include any agreed-upon 

conditions and transition plan. 

126. Third, except as discussed 

below, the Commission will restrict 

grants of waiver to the deployment of a 

wideband system in the consolidated 

narrowband spectrum or the internal 

public safety guard band. The 

Commission must limit any wideband 

operations in this manner in order to 

ensure the full preservation of the 

broadband segment. The Commission 

also believes that the regional planning 

committees will continue to serve an 

important role in overseeing and 

crafting appropriate spectrum use; to 

that end, petitions for waiver in the 

narrowband spectrum must also include 

a letter from the appropriate regional 

planning committee or state licensee 

confirming that the proposed wideband 

deployment will not disrupt any 

regional or state planning efforts that are 

underway. The Commission encourages 

the Public Safety Broadband Licensee to 

coordinate with the applicable regional 

planning committee or state licensee 

when these entities are asked to 

consider any wideband deployment in 

the narrowband portion of the public 

safety spectrum, to ensure proper 

coordination with existing and pending 

narrowband applications. 

127. If there are instances where 

spectrum in the narrowband segment or 

internal guard band is unavailable for 

wideband operations, the Commission 

will permit submission of request for 

waiver to operate in the upper 1.25 

megahertz of the broadband allocation. 

The Commission emphasizes, however, 

that applicants seeking waiver relief to 

deploy wideband networks in the public 

safety broadband spectrum face a very 

high hurdle. As a threshold 

requirement, the Commission will 

consider requests for waiver to conduct 

wideband operations in the broadband 

allocation only upon submission of a 

substantially supported, detailed 

technical showing demonstrating why 

there is insufficient spectrum in the 

narrowband allocation or internal guard 

band to support the desired wideband 

operations. As with requests to conduct 

wideband operations in the narrowband 

segment or internal guard band, any 

request for waiver to conduct wideband 

operations in the upper 1.25 megahertz 

of the broadband allocation must be 

accompanied by a letter from the Public 

Safety Broadband Licensee confirming 

that the proposed wideband deployment 

is not inconsistent with the broadband 

deployment plan for the affected or 

adjacent service areas, and all requests 

for waiver must reflect any conditions 

and transition plan agreed upon by the 

petitioner and the Public Safety 

Broadband Licensee. The public safety 

entity seeking to establish wideband 

operations in the broadband segment 

must have first issued a request for 

proposal (RFP) that permitted interested 

parties to submit broadband proposals 

that are technically consistent with the 

Public Safety Broadband Licensee 

network. Finally, the wideband 

applicant must include with its waiver 

request proof that responses to the RFP 

proposing a broadband network were 

more costly, provided less coverage as 

measured by throughput at the network 

edge, or were otherwise inferior to the 

accepted wideband proposal. 

128. Notwithstanding anything herein 

to the contrary, the Commission will not 

entertain any request for waiver seeking 

to permit wideband operations in the 

broadband segment in areas scheduled 

for broadband deployment within the 

first three years of the build-out plan for 

the national public safety broadband 

network. In addition, consistent with 

the waiver discussion herein, the 

Commission will not grant any waiver 

request for any wideband deployment in 

the broadband segment that does not 

include a detailed plan, accompanied by 

attestation, specifying how and by what 

date the wideband applicant will 

integrate its proposed wideband system 

into the national broadband network. 

The Commission shall condition any 

waiver relief for wideband operations in 

the broadband segment upon acceptance 

of the applicant’s integration plan. As a 

further condition of any wideband 

operations proposed in the broadband 

segment, the Commission will require 

all devices operating on the wideband 

system to be designed such that they 

also must be interoperable with the 

nationwide, broadband network. In 

order to ensure that the Commission’s 

goals for the deployment of the 

nationwide broadband network are met, 

the authority granted for any wideband 

operations in the broadband segment 

will expire automatically upon the D 

Block licensee’s initiation of service in 

areas where wideband has been 

deployed. Further, any Grandfathered 

Wideband STA operations or wideband 

authority granted by waiver in the 

public safety segment of the 700 MHz 

Band shall be secondary to primary 

narrowband or broadband applications, 

as applicable. Finally, as a condition of 

the grant of waiver allowing deployment 

of a wideband system in the broadband 

segment, a public safety entity must 

certify in its application and waiver 

request its acknowledgement that it may 

not seek reimbursement for any costs 

involved in converting the wideband 

system to the national broadband 

network upon completion of the 

broadband network in the subject area. 

129. License terms for wideband 

operations granted under waiver—

whether they are in the narrowband, 

internal guard band, or broadband 

segments of the 700 MHz public safety 

spectrum—will be limited to no more 

than five years, and may be granted for 

less time depending on the particular 

circumstances presented. The 

Commission must receive requests for 

renewal of the license granted pursuant 

to waiver request not less than 180 days 

prior to expiration of the license. 

Renewal requests must include a 

showing that continued operation of the 

wideband system is in the public 

interest. Renewal requests for wideband 

operations in the broadband segment 

also must be accompanied by a letter 

from the Public Safety Broadband 

Licensee confirming that continuing 

wideband operations are not 

inconsistent with the broadband 

deployment plan for the affected or 

adjacent service areas. The license term 

for any renewal of waiver will not 

exceed three years and a wideband 

waiver licensee may only receive a 

single extension. Any renewal of a 

wideband authorization shall continue 

to be on a secondary basis only to 

primary narrowband or broadband 

applications, as applicable. Finally, in 

light of the waiver process described 

above, the Commission finds it 

unnecessary to adopt any particular 

wideband interoperability standard. 

3. Safeguards Relating to the Public/ 

Private Partnership 

a. Rules for Establishment, Execution 

and Application of the NSA 

130. The Commission specifically 

conditions the D Block license on the 

following requirements to ensure the 

establishment and execution of the NSA 

in a timely manner while safeguarding 

the public interest. 


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131. Approval of NSA as PreCondition for Granting the D Block 

license. Because the terms of the NSA 

are critical to the success of the 

partnership, the D Block license will not 

be issued until the Commission has 

approved the NSA and following such 

approval, the parties execute the NSA 

and file an executed copy with the 

Commission. 

132. The Commission recognizes that 

the D Block licensee will be subject to 

an aggressive build-out schedule, and an 

applicant for the license may wish to 

commence certain initial construction 

activities prior to the grant of an 

authorization. The Commission does not 

prohibit the winning bidder of the D 

Block license from engaging in network 

build-out during the NSA negotiation 

period and prior to grant of the license, 

but to ensure that such build-out does 

not frustrate the interests of public 

safety or preempt the negotiations 

regarding the appropriate build-out 

schedule, the Commission requires that 

any such build-out occur only with the 

approval of the Public Safety Broadband 

Licensee. Similar to service rules for 

other spectrum licenses, such 

construction is conducted at the sole 

risk of the applicant, is subject to the 

Commission’s authority to provide 

notification to stop such build-out, and 

cannot result in commercial operation 

unless and until the Commission has 

granted the D Block license. 

133. Timeframe for Negotiation. The 

Commission requires the parties to 

commence negotiations on the terms of 

the NSA on the date that the winning 

bidder of the D Block license files its 

long form application or the date on 

which the Commission designates the 

Public Safety Broadband Licensee, 

whichever is later, and the Commission 

further requires the parties to conclude 

negotiations not later than six months 

after the commencement date. As soon 

as the parties have reached an 

agreement on all the terms of the NSA, 

but not later than five days after the six 

month period for negotiation has 

expired, they must submit for 

Commission approval the NSA together 

with all agreements and other 

documents referred to in the NSA, 

including the agreement reached on the 

broadband technology standard. The 

Commission will act on the NSA within 

60 days of receipt. If the parties have not 

reached agreement on all terms of the 

NSA by the end of the six-month period, 

they must notify the Commission not 

later than five days after the expiration 

of the six-month period of the terms 

agreed upon, the nature of the 

remaining issues and each party’s 

position on each issue (whether in the 

form of final best offers, or a 

characterization of the parties jointly on 

the positions of the parties and reason 

for impasse), whether additional 

negotiation is likely to produce an 

agreement, and, if so, a proposed 

deadline for completing the agreement. 

134. Requirement of Good Faith. The 

Commission requires the parties to 

negotiate in good faith the specific terms 

of the NSA pursuant to the conditions, 

requirements, and guidance established 

in this Second Report and Order. The 

Commission also requires the parties to 

act in good faith in the performance of 

the NSA. To provide additional 

assurance that negotiations are 

proceeding in good faith, and except as 

explicitly set forth herein, the 

Commission will oversee the 

negotiation of the NSA, and will play an 

active role in the resolution of any 

disputes among the relevant parties 

(including the winning bidder for the D 

Block; its wholly owned subsidiary; the 

D Block licensee; the Operating 

Company; the Network Assets Holder; 

and the Public Safety Broadband 

Licensee), both resulting from the 

negotiations and once the parties are 

operating under the terms of the NSA. 

135. Progress Reports During 

Negotiations. The winning bidder for 

the D Block license shall file an initial 

report within 10 days of the 

commencement of the negotiations 

period certifying that active and good 

faith negotiations have begun, providing 

the date on which they commenced, and 

providing a schedule of the initial dates 

on which the parties intend to meet for 

active negotiations, covering at a 

minimum the first 30-day period. The 

Commission requires that two members 

of the Commission’s staff, one from the 

Wireless Bureau, and one from the 

Public Safety and Homeland Security 

Bureau, be present at all stages of the 

negotiation of the NSA as neutral 

observers. The Commission does not 

intend, however that the staff act as 

arbitrators. Disputes must still come to 

the Commission for resolution. 

Beginning three months from the 

triggering of the six-month negotiation 

period, the winning bidder for the D 

Block license and the Public Safety 

Broadband Licensee must jointly 

provide detailed reports, on a monthly 

basis and subject to a request for 

confidential treatment, on the progress 

of the negotiations throughout the 

remainder of the negotiations. These 

reports should include descriptions of 

all material issues that the parties have 

yet to resolve. The monthly reports will 

enable the Commission to identify any 

areas of significant disagreement 

between the winning bidder for the D 

Block license and the Public Safety 

Broadband Licensee. The Commission 

also reserves the right to require the 

parties to meet with Commission staff to 

discuss their negotiations or reports at 

any time during the negotiation process. 

136. If the Commission determines 

that parties are unlikely to reach an 

agreement or they violate certain 

obligations (e.g., good faith negotiation 

obligations), the Commission (or the 

Bureaus) may take, on its own motion, 

actions pertaining to dispute resolution 

before the NSA approval, described 

elsewhere in this Second Report and 

Order, without waiting for the sixmonth negotiation period to fully 

elapse. 

137. Resolution of Negotiation 

Disputes. Either upon notice of a 

dispute at the end of the six-month 

negotiation period, or on their own 

motion at any time, if the Chiefs of 

PSHSB and WTB determine that 

negotiations have reached a likely 

impasse, the Commission delegates 

authority to the Chiefs of PSHSB and 

WTB to take certain actions jointly in 

the public interest to adjudicate the 

dispute. As appropriate, these actions 

may include but are not limited to one 

or more of the following: (1) Granting 

additional time for negotiation; (2) 

issuing a decision on the disputed 

issues and requiring the submission of 

a draft agreement consistent with their 

decision; (3) directing the parties to 

further brief the remaining issues in full 

for immediate Commission decision; 

and/or (4) immediate denial of the longform application filed by the winning 

bidder for the D Block license. Remedies 

shall not, however, include ordering 

private third-party arbitration. In the 

event that the long-form application 

filed by the winning bidder for the D 

Block license is denied, the winning 

bidder for the D Block license will be 

deemed to have defaulted under Section 

1.2109(c) of the Commission’s rules, it 

will be liable for the default payment set 

forth in § 1.2104(g), and the full 

Commission, at its discretion, shall 

decide whether to offer a new license 

for the spectrum to existing or new 

applicants, offer a new license to the 

other highest bidders (in descending 

order) at their final bids, or choose any 

other process within the Commission’s 

statutory authority to reassign the 

license, in light of the public interest 

goals served by the Public/Private 

Partnership. 

138. The Commission believes that it 

would be inappropriate to have issues 

regarding the use of public safety 

spectrum resolved by a private party 

and precludes that option as a remedy. 

The Commission finds, however, that 


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the Commission should not at this time 

preclude the option of disputes being 

adjudicated by the Commission. Rather, 

providing the Commission with 

discretion to choose from a range of 

remedies will enable the Commission to 

choose the most appropriate option in 

the context of the specific concerns 

raised by the parties. 

139. Licensing Rules and Procedures 

Applicable to the D Block license. 

Except as provided herein, the 

Commission’s competitive bidding rules 

applicable to other commercial licenses 

in the 700 MHz Bands will apply to the 

winning bidder for the Public/Private 

Partnership License, including the 

practices and procedures listed in Part 

1 of the Commission’s rules. For 

example, the down payment 

requirement, the obligation of the 

winning bidder for the D Block license 

to file a ‘‘long form’’ license application, 

and the consequences of a default prior 

to grant of the license will be in 

accordance with Sections 1.2104, 

1.2105, 1.2106, 1.2107, and 1.2109 of 

the Commission’s rules. 

140. If the long form application is 

denied, the procedures under Section 

1.2109 of the Commission’s rules will 

generally apply. The Commission may 

complete review of the long form 

application and deny the application 

without regard to the NSA, if the 

application is deficient or the grant of 

the license would otherwise be 

inconsistent with the Commission’s 

rules. The Commission further clarifies 

that if the winning bidder for the D 

Block license fails to comply with the 

procedures the Commission establishes 

for negotiation or dispute resolution, 

fails to receive final Commission 

approval of an NSA, or fails to execute 

an approved NSA, (a) it shall be 

disqualified from holding the D Block 

license, (b) the license application will 

be denied, and (c) it will be deemed to 

have defaulted and will be subject to all 

payments and obligations under Section 

1.2109 of the Commission’s rules. 

141. Process for Final Approval. The 

Commission will review and approve 

the NSA. To facilitate our review, the 

Commission may seek input from the 

parties, or invite public comment on the 

proposed NSA, subject to redactions to 

protect a legitimate need for 

confidentiality. After conducting its 

review, the Commission may approve 

the NSA in its entirety, approve it with 

modifications, or require the parties to 

address additional terms or re-draft 

existing terms within a specified 

timeframe. Following approval with or 

without modifications, the parties shall 

execute the NSA and submit a copy of 

the executed NSA to the Commission 

within 10 days of approval. 

b. Ongoing Conditions for the Protection 

of Public Safety Service 

142. Requirements Relating to 

Organization and Structure of the 

Public/Private Partnership. To support 

continued construction and operation of 

the shared wireless broadband network 

by reducing the risk that the D Block 

license or the network assets will be 

drawn into a bankruptcy proceeding, 

the Commission requires the winning 

bidder for the D Block license to form 

separate special purpose entities, which 

will be bankruptcy remote, to hold the 

D Block license and the network assets, 

respectively. The Commission also 

requires the winning bidder of the D 

Block licensee to form another vehicle 

that will also be a bankruptcy remote, 

special purpose entity (Operating 

Company). The D Block licensee will 

lease the spectrum rights associated 

with the D Block license to the 

Operating Company pursuant to the 

Commission’s spectrum leasing rules. 

The spectrum leasing arrangement will 

be for the entire term of the D Block 

license and will be renewable, provided 

that the Commission renews the 

underlying D Block license. These 

license transactions will occur following 

the granting of the D Block license and 

should follow existing Commission 

procedures applicable to such 

transactions. The Operating Company 

will also be leased secondary use rights 

associated with the primary license held 

by the Public Safety Broadband 

Licensee. To ensure that these 

requirements have been met, the D 

Block auction winner shall submit the 

proposed organizational structure to the 

Commission and demonstrate to the 

Commission’s satisfaction that each of 

the constituent entities is appropriately 

bankruptcy remote. Finally, it shall be a 

condition of the D Block license and the 

Public Safety Broadband License that all 

special purpose entities and any leasing 

or other commercial agreements created 

to implement the public/private 

partnership will be subject to the Act 

and the Commission’s rules and 

regulations, and the parties to the NSA 

shall acknowledge such regulatory 

authority in a form acceptable to the 

Commission. 

143. The D Block licensee and other 

entities authorized and required in this 

Second Report and Order or the NSA 

will have the obligation to build out the 

nationwide, shared interoperable 

broadband network operating on the 

spectrum associated with the D Block 

license and the Public Safety Broadband 

License. 

144. In connection with establishing 

the bankruptcy remote special purpose 

entities required hereunder, the 

Commission requires the issuance of 

one or more legal opinion letters, at the 

cost of the winning bidder of the D 

Block license, from bankruptcy counsel 

chosen by the winning bidder of the D 

Block license and acceptable to the 

Commission, and such other parties as 

the Commission may designate, that 

clearly states, subject only to customary 

assumptions, limitations and 

qualifications that none of the winning 

bidder, the Operating Company, or any 

party to the NSA or other related 

agreements will be substantively 

consolidated with any entity. The scope 

of this opinion letter shall also cover 

such other opinions as the Commission 

may request. 

145. Prohibition on Discontinuance of 

Public Safety Operations. The 

Commission prohibits the D Block 

licensee from discontinuing or 

degrading the broadband network 

service provided to the Public Safety 

Broadband Licensee or to public safety 

entities unless either at the request of 

the entity or entities in question or it 

has first obtained the approval of the 

Commission. Further, the D Block 

licensee must notify the affected public 

safety entity or entities and the Public 

Safety Broadband Licensee at least 30 

days prior to any unrequested 

discontinuance or degradation of 

network service. 

146. Failure to Comply with the NSA 

or the Commission’s Rules. The 

Commission establishes rules to address 

how the Commission will remedy 

failures by either the D Block licensee 

or the Public Safety Broadband Licensee 

to comply with the NSA or the 

Commission’s rules. First, with regard to 

the D Block licensee, the Commission 

has conditioned the D Block license on 

compliance with the NSA. Failure to 

comply with the Commission’s rules or 

the terms of the NSA may warrant 

cancelling the D Block license, 

depending on the circumstances, and 

awarding it to a new licensee. In 

particular, the full Commission will 

decide whether to cancel and reassign 

the D Block license in the event that the 

D Block licensee either cannot or will 

not fulfill the critical responsibilities 

that are being given to it. 

147. In the event that the Commission 

determines that the D Block license 

must be cancelled consistent with the 

Act and the requirements herein, an 

order shall be issued cancelling the 

license and announcing the process for 

awarding rights to the spectrum to a 

new licensee. However, pending the 

award to a new licensee, the Operating 


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Company will be issued a special 

temporary authority (STA) to continue 

to provide both commercial and public 

safety service in the Public/Private 

Partnership spectrum. 

148. To further ensure that services to 

public safety are not threatened by 

cancellation, or otherwise, the NSA 

shall require, in a separate agreement, 

the granting of (a) an irrevocable and 

assignable right of first refusal if the 

network and network assets are 

otherwise to be sold; and (b) an 

irrevocable and assignable option in 

favor of the Public Safety Broadband 

Licensee to acquire the network and all 

network assets if and whenever the D 

Block license is cancelled or terminated, 

by reason of default or for any other 

reason, for a consideration equivalent to 

the fair market value (FMV) of the 

tangible and intangible assets sold. This 

option shall be senior to, and have 

priority over, any other right, claim, or 

interest in or to the network or the 

network assets. An event of default 

includes any default of the D Block 

licensee of a material obligation under 

the NSA, as determined by the 

Commission. Valuation will be 

performed pursuant to a FMV 

methodology to be agreed upon by the 

parties and set forth in the NSA. 

Valuation shall be performed 

immediately following the occurrence of 

a triggering event and completed within 

a reasonable time thereafter. The NSA 

must further provide that, in the event 

that the D Block license is awarded to 

a new entity, the Public Safety 

Broadband Licensee’s right to purchase 

the network assets shall be reassigned to 

the new D Block licensee. Thereafter, 

the Public Safety Broadband Licensee’s 

right to purchase shall be extinguished 

unless and until a new triggering event 

described above occurs, as the primary 

purpose of the right, to enable a smooth 

transition in the event of a default, 

would be achieved, and because 

maintaining the right might adversely 

impact the incentive of the new D Block 

licensee to invest in its network. 

149. The Commission provides that, 

in the event that the D Block license is 

cancelled, the Commission may choose 

any process within the Commission’s 

statutory authority to reassign the 

license, in light of the public interest 

goals served by the Public/Private 

Partnership. Upon grant of a new 

license, the Commission, or the Bureaus 

acting on delegated authority, shall, in 

coordination with the former licensee 

and the new licensee, as well as the 

Public Safety Broadband Licensee, 

establishes the terms and timing under 

which the temporary authorization shall 

be cancelled and the new D Block 

licensee assume the construction and 

operation of the network. This decision 

shall take into account, among other 

factors, any exercise by the new licensee 

of its right to purchase the network 

assets. 

150. With regard to the Public Safety 

Broadband Licensee, in the event that 

the Public Safety Broadband Licensee 

fails to adhere to the terms of the NSA, 

or comply with the Commission’s rules 

or any requirements contained in this 

Second Report and Order, to an extent 

giving rise to license cancellation, the 

Commission delegates authority to the 

Chiefs, PSHSB and WTB jointly to 

determine an appropriate remedy. The 

potential remedies include, but are not 

limited to, cancelling the license, 

assigning the license to another entity, 

directing the Public Safety Broadband 

Licensee to transfer the assignable 

option to purchase the assets at fair 

market value, ordering specific 

performance, or ordering removal and 

replacement of individual officers, 

directors or member organizations of the 

Public Safety Broadband Licensee. 

151. Resolution of Disputes after 

Grant of the D Block license. The 

Commission finds that the Commission 

should assume primary responsibility 

and jurisdiction for adjudicating 

intractable disputes that arise once the 

parties are operating pursuant to the 

terms of the NSA. While the 

Commission strongly encourages the 

parties to first attempt to resolve any 

disagreements themselves through 

voluntary means, the parties to the NSA 

may at any time bring a complaint based 

on a claim that the other party has 

deviated from the terms of the NSA, or 

a petition for a declaratory ruling to 

resolve the proper interpretation of an 

NSA term or provision. The 

Commission emphasizes that these shall 

be the exclusive remedies for claims 

seeking the interpretation of the NSA in 

the first instance. The Commission may, 

however, as an alternative to 

adjudicating the issues, require the 

parties to first seek a settlement to the 

dispute or authorize them to resolve the 

dispute through litigation or other 

means, particularly if the dispute is 

found to involve no significant public 

concerns, and the Commission will 

consider any request by the parties to 

authorize such means. 

152. In the event the Commission 

decides to adjudicate the issues, the 

Commission provides that the 

Commission will have full authority to 

interpret not only the Commission’s 

rules but all of the provisions of the 

NSA. The Commission further provides 

that, if the Commission finds a material 

breach of the NSA, it may apply any 

remedy or enforcement mechanism 

within its authority. As with 

adjudication of disputes during the NSA 

negotiation process, the Chiefs of 

PSHSB and WTB are delegated joint 

responsibility for adjudicating any 

disputes that arise during performance 

of the NSA. Bureau level adjudications 

of NSA disputes must be completed 

within 45 days. The parties may seek 

review by the Commission of any 

bureau-level adjudication. Finally, the 

Commission establishes that, if a breach 

of the NSA occurs but is not brought to 

the Commission for resolution, the 

Commission retains authority to apply 

all appropriate remedies on its own 

initiative at any time after the breach 

occurs. 

153. Reporting Obligations. Once the 

NSA is approved by the Commission 

and executed by the parties, the parties 

must jointly file quarterly reports with 

the Commission. These reports must 

include detailed information on the 

areas where broadband service has been 

deployed, how the specific 

requirements of public safety are being 

met, audited financial statements, 

which public safety entities (e.g., police, 

fire departments) are using the 

broadband network in each area of 

operation; what types of applications 

(e.g., voice, data, video) are in use in 

each area of operation to the extent 

known; and the number of declared 

emergencies in each area of operation. 

The Commission anticipates that this 

information will be readily available 

from the billing systems used for the 

shared network, and reserve the right to 

specify additional information that the 

quarterly reports must include at a later 

date. The D Block licensee and Public 

Safety Broadband Licensee also have 

joint responsibility to register the base 

station locations with the Commission, 

providing basic technical information, 

including geographic location. Such 

registrations may be filed with a request 

for confidential treatment by the 

Commission. In this regard, the 

Commission delegates to the Wireless 

Bureau authority to adopt rules and 

procedures to implement this 

requirement, as well as authority to 

modify ULS to accept such filings and 

to issue a public notice describing any 

such modifications and relevant filing 

procedures. The Commission delegates 

to the Wireless Bureau the authority to 

adopt filing rules and procedures not 

inconsistent with this Second Report 

and Order to facilitate these reporting 

obligations. 


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6See 5 U.S.C. 603. The RFA, see 5 U.S.C. 601–

612, has been amended by the Small Business 

Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act of 1996 

(SBREFA), Pub. L. 104–121, Title II, 110 Stat. 857 

(1996). 

7See Service Rules for the 698–746, 747–762 and 

777–792 MHz Bands, WT Docket No. 06–150, 

Revision of the Commission’s Rules to Ensure 

Compatibility with Enhanced 911 Emergency 

Calling Systems, CC Docket No. 94–102, Section 

68.4(a) of the Commission’s Rules Governing 

Hearing Aid-Compatible Telephones, WT Docket 

No. 01–309, Biennial Regulatory Review—

Amendment of Parts 1, 22, 24, 27, and 90 to 

Streamline and Harmonize Various Rules Affecting 

Wireless Radio Services, WT Docket 03–264, 

Former Nextel Communications, Inc. Upper 700 

MHz Guard Band Licenses and Revisions to Part 27 

of the Commission’s Rules, WT Docket No. 06–169, 

Implementing a Nationwide, Broadband, 

Interoperable Public Safety Network in the 700 

MHz Band, PS Docket No. 06–229, Development of 

Operational, Technical and Spectrum Requirements 

for Meeting Federal, State and Local Public Safety 

Communications Requirements Through the Year 

2010, WT Docket No. 96–86, Report and Order and 

Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, 22 FCC 

Rcd 8064 (2007) (700 MHz Report and Order and 

700 MHz Further NPRM, respectively). 

8See Service Rules for the 698–749746, 747–762 

and 777–792 MHz Bands, WT Docket No. 06–150, 

Revision of the Commission’s Rules to Ensure 

Compatibility with Enhanced 911 Emergency 

Calling Systems, CC Docket No. 94–102, and 

Section 68.4(a) of the Commission’s Rules 

Governing Hearing Aid-Compatible Telephones, 

WT Docket No. 01–309, Notice of Proposed Rule 

Making, Fourth Further Notice of Proposed Rule 

Making, and Second Further Notice of Proposed 

Rule Making, 21 FCC Rcd 9345, 9394 (2006) (‘‘700 

MHz Commercial Services Notice’’); Former Nextel 

Communications, Inc. 01–309, Biennial Regulatory 

Review—Amendment of Parts 1, 22, 24, 27, and 90 

to Streamline and Harmonize Various Rules 

Affecting Wireless Radio Services, WT Docket 03–

264, Former Nextel Communications, Inc. Upper 

700 MHz Guard Band Licenses and Revisions to 

Part 27 of the Commission’s Rules, Development of 

Operational, Technical and Spectrum Requirements 

for Meeting Federal, State and Local Public Safety 

Communications Requirements Through the Year 

2010, WT Docket Nos. 06–169 and 96–86, Notice of 

Proposed Rule Making, 21 FCC Rcd 10413, 10440 

(2006) (‘‘700 MHz Guard Bands Notice’’); 

Implementing a Nationwide, Broadband, 

Interoperable Public Safety Network in the 700 

MHz Band, PS Docket No. 06–229, Development of 

Operational, Technical and Spectrum Requirements 

for Meeting Federal, State and Local Public Safety 

Communications Requirements Through the Year 

2010, WT Docket No. 96–86, Ninth Report and 

Order and Further Notice of Proposed Rule Making, 

22 FCC Rcd 14837, 14853 (2006) (‘‘8064 (2007) (700 

MHz Public Safety Ninth Report and Order and 700 

MHz Further NPRM’’, respectively). 

9See 5 U.S.C. 604. 

10 In particular, this exemption extends to the 

requirements imposed by Chapter 6 of Title 5, 

United States Code, Section 3 of the Small Business 

Act (15 U.S.C. 632) and Sections 3507 and 3512 of 

Title 44, United States Code. Consolidated 

Appropriations Act 2000, Pub. L. 106–113, 113 Stat. 

2502, Appendix E, Sec. 213(a)(4)(A)–(B); see 145 

Cong. Rec. H12493–94 (Nov. 17, 1999); 47 U.S.C.A. 

337 note at Sec. 213(a)(4)(A)–(B). 

4. Other Issues 

a. Bidding Credits 

154. In order to encourage the widest 

range of potentially qualified applicants 

to participate in bidding for the D Block 

license, the Commission will provide 

eligible bidders for the D Block license 

with the existing 15 and 25 percent 

bidding credits, as the credits may be 

necessary to create incentives for 

investors to provide innovative small 

businesses with the capital necessary to 

compete for the D Block license at 

auction. Pursuant to the Commission’s 

existing small business size standards, 

eligible bidders with average 

attributable gross revenues for the last 

three years not exceeding $15 million or 

$40 million, respectively, may be 

eligible for bidding credits of 25 percent 

or 15 percent, respectively. 

b. License Partitioning, Disaggregation, 

Assignment, and Transfer 

155. The Commission decides to 

prohibit geographic partitioning and 

spectrum disaggregation for the D Block 

licensee. The Public Safety Broadband 

Licensee is also prohibited from 

partitioning and disaggregation. The 

Commission recognizes that the 

Commission’s existing Secondary 

Markets rules governing transfers and 

assignments would be applicable to the 

D Block licensee, providing further 

flexibility to the licensee. Thus, the D 

Block licensee would be permitted to 

assign or transfer its licensee subject to 

the Commission review and prior 

approval. 

c. Commercial Service Issues 

(i) Wholesale and Open Access 

Proposals 

156. The Commission declines to 

restrict the D Block licensee to operating 

exclusively on a ‘‘wholesale’’ or ‘‘open 

access’’ basis. Instead, the Commission 

provides the D Block licensee with 

flexibility to provide wholesale or retail 

services or other types of access to its 

network that comply with the 

Commission’s rules and the NSA. 

(ii) Roaming Proposal 

157. The Commission concludes that 

it should defer to the broader context of 

the pending roaming proceeding the 

determination of whether there are 

public interest benefits in also requiring 

automatic roaming to be provided by 

other commercial licensees. The 

Commission will therefore not at this 

time impose any special roaming 

requirements on the D Block licensee. 

(iii) Applicability of CALEA, E911, and 

Other Requirements 

158. The Commission declines to 

categorically exempt services offered by 

the D Block licensee from E911, CALEA, 

and other regulatory requirements. 

Instead, the Commission clarifies that 

E911, CALEA, and other regulatory 

requirements will apply to services 

provided using Public/Private 

Partnership spectrum to the extent and 

only to the extent that these 

requirements apply to similar services 

provided elsewhere in the 700 MHz 

Band. The Commission has only 

recently concluded that the E911 

requirements established in Section 

20.18 of the Commission’s rules will 

apply to all commercial mobile radio 

services, including such services 

throughout the 700 MHz Band, that 

meet the functional criteria in Section 

20.18(a), and the Commission sees no 

reason to revisit that decision. The 

Commission defers any further 

examination of regulatory applicability 

to a more concrete and particular 

context, e.g., if service providers seek 

clarification regarding the applicability 

of a specific regulatory requirement to 

their specific service. 

159. The Commission also notes that, 

even though the D Block license for 

spectrum in the ‘‘D Block’’ band will be 

issued pursuant to Part 27 of the 

Commission’s rules, the licensee will be 

required to comply with other rule 

parts, which are applicable to the other 

commercial 700 MHz bands, unless 

otherwise stated in this Second Report 

and Order. Some of these rule parts will 

be applicable by virtue of the fact that 

they apply to all licensees and others 

will apply depending on the type of 

services the D Block licensee provides. 

II. Procedural Matters 

A. Regulatory Flexibility Act 

160. As required by the Regulatory 

Flexibility Act of 1980, as amended 

(RFA),6 an Initial Regulatory Flexibility 

Analysis (IRFA) was included in the 700 

MHz Further Notice 7 in WT Docket No. 

06–150, WT Docket No. 01–309; WT 

Docket No. 06–169, WT Docket No. 03–

264, CC Docket No. 94–102, PS Docket 

No. 06–229, and WT Docket No. 96–86.8

The Commission sought written public 

comment on the proposals in these 

dockets, including comment on the 

IRFA. This Final Regulatory Flexibility 

Analysis (FRFA) conforms to the RFA.9

161. Although Section 213 of the 

Consolidated Appropriations Act of 

2000 provides that the RFA shall not 

apply to the rules and competitive 

bidding procedures for frequencies in 

the 746–806 MHz Band,10 the 

Commission believes that it would serve 

the public interest to analyze the 

possible significant economic impact of 

the proposed policy and rule changes in 

this band on small entities. Accordingly, 

this FRFA contains an analysis of this 


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11 5 U.S.C. 604(a)(3). 

12 5 U.S.C. 601(6). 

impact in connection with all spectrum 

that falls within the scope of this 

Second Report and Order, including 

spectrum in the 746–806 MHz Band. 

1. Need for, and Objectives of, the Rules 

162. In the Second Report and Order, 

the Commission takes a number of steps 

to facilitate access to spectrum and the 

provision of service to consumers, 

especially those in rural areas, and to 

simplify and clarify our rules related to 

the commercial 700 MHz spectrum. It 

designates a spectrum block in the 

upper portions of the commercial 

spectrum for a commercial licensee that 

will be part of a public/private 

partnership (the ‘‘700 MHz Public/ 

Private Partnership’’) with a national 

public safety broadband licensee for the 

public safety broadband spectrum 

(hereinafter, the Public Safety 

Broadband Licensee). The Commission 

reconfigures the 700 MHz Public Safety 

Band, to promote the development of 

nationwide interoperable broadband 

services for public safety users. The 

Commission also changes the location of 

the existing 700 MHz Guard Band 

licenses, provides for a one megahertz 

shift of the other commercial spectrum 

blocks in the Upper 700 MHz Band and 

the 700 MHz Public Safety Band, and 

reduces the size of the Guard Band B 

Block to make two additional megahertz 

of commercial spectrum available for 

auction. 

163. The band plan provides a 

balanced mix of geographic service area 

licenses and spectrum block sizes for 

the 62 megahertz of commercial 

spectrum to be auctioned. The 

Commission determined that it will 

auction two 12-megahertz spectrum 

blocks (comprised of paired 6-megahertz 

blocks), one licensed by Cellular Market 

Areas (CMAs) and one by Economic 

Areas (EAs); one 22-megahertz spectrum 

block (paired 11-megahertz blocks) by 

Regional Economic Area Groupings 

(REAGs); and one 6-megahertz unpaired 

spectrum block by EAs. It also 

designates one 10-megahertz spectrum 

block (paired 5-megahertz blocks), the 

Upper 700 MHz Band D Block, to be 

licensed on a nationwide basis and used 

as part of the 700 MHz Public/Private 

Partnership between this commercial 

licensee and the Public Safety 

Broadband Licensee that will be 

assigned the public safety broadband 

spectrum. 

164. In addition, the Commission 

replaces the current ‘‘substantial 

service’’ requirements for 700 MHz 

Band commercial licenses that have not 

been auctioned with significantly more 

stringent performance requirements, 

and makes unserved areas available to 

third parties who wish to provide 

service to these areas. By adopting these 

more rigorous requirements, the 

Commission ensures that the 700 MHz 

Commercial Services licensees put the 

spectrum to use throughout the course 

of their license terms and serve the 

majority of users in their license areas 

Additionally, for one commercial 

spectrum block in the 700 MHz Band—

the Upper 700 MHz C Block (700 MHz 

C Block)—the Commission imposes 

requirements on those licensees to 

provide open platforms for devices and 

applications, and concludes that it 

would not serve the public interest at 

this time to mandate broader openness 

requirements. 

165. The Second Report and Order 

also revises the 700 MHz band plan 

with respect to the Upper 700 MHz 

Guard Bands, such that all existing A 

Block licenses relocate to a reconfigured 

A Block between the C and D Blocks, 

pursuant to an agreement between all 

but one of the Guard Bands licensees. 

As part of this agreement, the existing 

B Block licenses are relinquished, and 

the B Block is reconfigured from 4 to 2 

megahertz and located immediately 

above the public safety narrowband 

spectrum. The reconfigured B Block 

serves as a guard band to protect the 

public safety narrowband channels, and 

remains empty as a commercial 

allocation at this time. With respect to 

the Guard Bands licensee that did not 

participate in the agreement, its one A 

Block license and two B Block licenses 

are grandfathered, with minor 

modifications to facilitate the overall 

revised band plan. In addition to these 

band plan issues with respect to the 

Guard Bands, the Second Report and 

Order also revises the service rules with 

respect to the reconfigured A Block, 

bringing it largely into parity with the 

adjacent Commercial Services spectrum 

given the new spectral location and its 

relationship to the rest of the band 

including the public safety spectrum. 

166. Further, the Second Report and 

Order seeks to achieve broadband 

communications capabilities consistent 

with a nationwide interoperability 

standard for public safety. The 

Commission expects that modern public 

safety services will increasingly depend 

on the advanced communications 

capabilities afforded by wireless 

broadband technologies, which should 

enable first responders to perform their 

vital safety-of-life and other critical 

roles. The Second Report and Order redesignates the wideband spectrum to 

broadband use consistent with a 

nationwide interoperability standard, 

and prohibits wideband operations on a 

going forward basis in the newly 

designated broadband spectrum. The 

Second Report and Order also 

consolidates the narrowband spectrum 

to the top of the Public Safety Band, 

locates the broadband spectrum at the 

bottom of the Public Safety Band, and 

divides these segments with an internal 

guard band. This reconfiguration 

reduces the amount of spectrum 

necessary to separate and protect the 

public safety broadband and 

narrowband allocations, and facilitates 

partnerships between public safety 

broadband operations and adjacent 

commercial broadband technologies, 

thereby optimizing the 700 MHz public 

safety band plan. Finally, in order to 

promote the rapid deployment of a 

nationwide, interoperable broadband 

public safety network, the Second 

Report and Order creates a single 

nationwide geographic area Public 

Safety Broadband License which will be 

administered by a single Public Safety 

Broadband Licensee. 

167. With regard to auctions-related 

issues, the Commission decides to 

utilize anonymous bidding to enhance 

the effectiveness of the auction of 700 

MHz licenses, as well as allow package 

bidding for the Upper 700 MHz Band C 

Block, and decides not to grant a ‘‘new 

entrant’’ bidding credit for the 700 MHz 

Band licenses. The Commission also 

declines to impose eligibility 

restrictions for the licenses in the 700 

MHz Band. Finally, the Commission 

will offer bidding credits in the D Block, 

as described fully below. 

2. Summary of Significant Issues Raised 

by Public Comments in Response to the 

IRFA 

168. No comments specifically 

addressed the IRFAs from any of the 

respective proceedings. We have 

nonetheless addressed small entity 

issues found in comments in this FRFA. 

3. Description and Estimate of the 

Number of Small Entities to Which the 

Rules Will Apply 

169. The RFA directs agencies to 

provide a description of, and, where 

feasible, an estimate of, the number of 

small entities that may be affected by 

the proposed rules, if adopted.11 The 

RFA generally defines the term ‘‘small 

entity’’ as having the same meaning as 

the terms ‘‘small business,’’ ‘‘small 

organization,’’ and ‘‘small governmental 

jurisdiction.’’ 12 In addition, the term 

‘‘small business’’ has the same meaning 

as the term ‘‘small business concern’’


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Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 164 / Friday, August 24, 2007 / Rules and Regulations 48835 

13 5 U.S.C. 601(3) (incorporating by reference the 

definition of ‘‘small-business concern’’ in the Small 

Business Act, 15 U.S.C. 632). Pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 

601(3), the statutory definition of a small business 

applies ‘‘unless an agency, after consultation with 

the Office of Advocacy of the Small Business 

Administration and after opportunity for public 

comment, establishes one or more definitions of 

such term which are appropriate to the activities of 

the agency and publishes such definition(s) in the 

Federal Register.’’

14 15 U.S.C. 632. 

15See SBA, Programs and Services, SBA 

Pamphlet No. CO–0028, at page 40 (July 2002). 

16 Independent Sector, The New Nonprofit 

Almanac & Desk Reference (2002). 

17 5 U.S.C. 601(5). 

18U.S. Census Bureau, Statistical Abstract of the 

United States: 2006, Section 8, pages 272–273, 

Tables 415 and 417. 

19 13 CFR 121.201, NAICS code 517211. 

20 13 CFR 121.201, NAICS code 517212. 

21U.S. Census Bureau, 2002 Economic Census, 

Subject Series: Information, ‘‘Establishment and 

Firm Size (Including Legal Form of Organization,’’

Table 5, NAICS code 517211 (issued Nov. 2005). 

22 Id. The census data do not provide a more 

precise estimate of the number of firms that have 

employment of 1,500 or fewer employees; the 

largest category provided is for firms with ‘‘1000 

employees or more.’’

23U.S. Census Bureau, 2002 Economic Census, 

Subject Series: Information, ‘‘Establishment and 

Firm Size (Including Legal Form of Organization,’’

Table 5, NAICS code 517212 (issued Nov. 2005). 

24 Id. The census data do not provide a more 

precise estimate of the number of firms that have 

employment of 1,500 or fewer employees; the 

largest category provided is for firms with ‘‘1000 

employees or more.’’

25See Service Rules for the 746–764 MHz Bands, 

and Revisions to Part 27 of the Commission’s rules, 

Second Report and Order, 15 FCC Rcd 5299 (2000). 

26 Id. at 5343 para. 108. 

27 Id. 

28 Id. at 5343 para. 108 n.246 (for the 746–764 

MHz and 776–704 MHz bands, the Commission is 

exempt from 15 U.S.C. 632, which requires Federal 

agencies to obtain SBA approval before adopting 

small business size standards). 

29See ‘‘700 MHz Guard Bands Auction Closes: 

Winning Bidders Announced,’’ Public Notice, 15 

FCC Rcd 18026 (2000). 

30See ‘‘700 MHz Guard Bands Auctions Closes: 

Winning Bidders Announced,’’ Public Notice, 16 

FCC Rcd 4590 (WTB 2001). 

31Service Rules for the 746–764 and 776–794 

MHz Bands, and Revisions to Part 27 of the 

Commission’s Rules, Second Memorandum 

Opinion and Order, 16 FCC Rcd 1239 (2001). 

32See ‘‘Auction of Licenses for 747–762 and 777–

792 MHz Bands (Auction No. 31) Is Rescheduled,’’

Public Notice, 16 FCC Rcd 13079 (WTB 2003). 

33See Reallocation and Service Rules for the 698–

746 MHz Spectrum Band (Television Channels 52–

59), Report and Order, 17 FCC Rcd 1022 (2002). 

34 Id. at 1087–88 para. 172. 

35 Id. 

under the Small Business Act.13 A 

‘‘small business concern’’ is one which: 

(1) Is independently owned and 

operated; (2) is not dominant in its field 

of operation; and (3) satisfies any 

additional criteria established by the 

Small Business Administration (SBA).14

170. Small Businesses. Nationwide, 

there are a total of approximately 22.4 

million small businesses, according to 

SBA data.15

171. Small Organizations. 

Nationwide, there are approximately 1.6 

million small organizations.16

172. Governmental Entities. The term 

‘‘small governmental jurisdiction’’ is 

defined as ‘‘governments of cities, 

towns, townships, villages, school 

districts, or special districts, with a 

population of less than fifty 

thousand.’’ 17 As of 2002, there were 

approximately 87,525 governmental 

jurisdictions in the United States.18 This 

number includes 38,967 county 

governments, municipalities, and 

townships, of which 37,373 

(approximately 95.9%) have 

populations of fewer than 50,000, and of 

which 1,594 have populations of 50,000 

or more. Thus, we estimate the number 

of small governmental jurisdictions 

overall to be 85,931 or fewer. 

173. Wireless Service Providers. The 

SBA has developed a small business 

size standard for wireless firms within 

the two broad economic census 

categories of ‘‘Paging’’ 19 and ‘‘Cellular 

and Other Wireless 

Telecommunications.’’ 20 Under both 

categories, the SBA deems a wireless 

business to be small if it has 1,500 or 

fewer employees. For the census 

category of Paging, Census Bureau data 

for 2002 show that there were 807 firms 

in this category that operated for the 

entire year.21 Of this total, 804 firms had 

employment of 999 or fewer employees, 

and three firms had employment of 

1,000 employees or more.22 Thus, under 

this category and associated small 

business size standard, the majority of 

firms can be considered small. For the 

census category of Cellular and Other 

Wireless Telecommunications, Census 

Bureau data for 2002 show that there 

were 1,397 firms in this category that 

operated for the entire year.23 Of this 

total, 1,378 firms had employment of 

999 or fewer employees, and 19 firms 

had employment of 1,000 employees or 

more.24 Thus, under this second 

category and size standard, the majority 

of firms can, again, be considered small. 

174. When identifying small entities 

that could be affected by the 

Commission’s new rules, this FRFA 

provides information describing 

auctions results, including the number 

of small entities that were winning 

bidders. However, the number of 

winning bidders that qualify as small 

businesses at the close of an auction 

does not necessarily reflect the total 

number of small entities currently in a 

particular service. The Commission 

does not generally require that licensees 

later provide business size information, 

except in the context of an assignment 

or transfer of control application where 

unjust enrichment issues are implicated. 

175. 700 MHz Guard Band Licenses. 

The Commission previously adopted 

size standards for ‘‘small businesses’’

and ‘‘very small businesses’’ for 

purposes of determining their eligibility 

for special provisions such as bidding 

credits and installment payments.25 A 

small business in this service is an 

entity that, together with its affiliates 

and controlling principals, has average 

gross revenues not exceeding $40 

million for the preceding three years.26

Additionally, a ‘‘very small business’’ is 

an entity that, together with its affiliates 

and controlling principals, has average 

gross revenues that are not more than 

$15 million for the preceding three 

years.27 SBA approval of these 

definitions is not required.28 An auction 

of 52 Major Economic Area (MEA) 

licenses commenced on September 6, 

2000, and closed on September 21, 

2000.29 Of the 104 licenses auctioned, 

96 licenses were sold to nine bidders. 

Five of these bidders were small 

businesses that won a total of 26 

licenses. A second auction of 700 MHz 

Guard Band licenses commenced on 

February 13, 2001, and closed on 

February 21, 2001. All eight of the 

licenses auctioned were sold to three 

bidders. One of these bidders was a 

small business that won a total of two 

licenses.30

176. Upper 700 MHz Band Licenses. 

The Commission released a Report and 

Order authorizing service in the Upper 

700 MHz band.31 An auction for these 

licenses, previously scheduled for 

January 13, 2003, was postponed.32

177. Lower 700 MHz Band Licenses. 

The Commission adopted criteria for 

defining three groups of small 

businesses for purposes of determining 

their eligibility for special provisions 

such as bidding credits.33 The 

Commission has defined a small 

business as an entity that, together with 

its affiliates and controlling principals, 

has average gross revenues not 

exceeding $40 million for the preceding 

three years.34 A very small business is 

defined as an entity that, together with 

its affiliates and controlling principals, 

has average gross revenues that are not 

more than $15 million for the preceding 

three years.35 Additionally, the Lower 

700 MHz Band has a third category of 

small business status that may be 

claimed for Metropolitan/Rural Service 

Area (MSA/RSA) licenses. The third 

category is entrepreneur, which is 

defined as an entity that, together with 

its affiliates and controlling principals, 

has average gross revenues that are not 

more than $3 million for the preceding 


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48836 Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 164 / Friday, August 24, 2007 / Rules and Regulations 

36 Id. at 1088 para. 173. 

37See Letter to Thomas Sugrue, Chief, Wireless 

Telecommunications Bureau, Federal 

Communications Commission, from Aida Alvarez, 

Administrator, SBA, dated August 10, 1999. 

38See ‘‘Lower 700 MHz Band Auction Closes,’’

Public Notice, 17 FCC Rcd 17272 (WTB 2002). 

39See ‘‘Lower 700 MHz Band Auction Closes,’’

Public Notice, 18 FCC Rcd 11873 (WTB 2003). 

40 Id. 

41See subparts A and B of Part 90 of the 

Commission’s Rules, 47 CFR 90.1–90.22. Police 

licensees include 26,608 licensees that serve state, 

county, and municipal enforcement through 

telephony (voice), telegraphy (code), and teletype 

and facsimile (printed material). Fire licensees 

include 22,677 licensees comprised of private 

volunteer or professional fire companies, as well as 

units under governmental control. Public Safety 

Radio Pool licensees also include 40,512 licensees 

that are state, county, or municipal entities that use 

radio for official purposes. There are also 7,325 

forestry service licensees comprised of licensees 

from state departments of conservation and private 

forest organizations that set up communications 

networks among fire lookout towers and ground 

crews. The 9,480 state and local governments are 

highway maintenance licensees that provide 

emergency and routine communications to aid 

other public safety services to keep main roads safe 

for vehicular traffic. Emergency medical licensees 

(1,460) use these channels for emergency medical 

service communications related to the delivery of 

emergency medical treatment. Another 19,478 

licensees include medical services, rescue 

organizations, veterinarians, persons with 

disabilities, disaster relief organizations, school 

buses, beach patrols, establishments in isolated 

areas, communications standby facilities, and 

emergency repair of public communications 

facilities. 

42See 13 CFR 121.201 (NAICS code 517212); U.S. 

Census Bureau, 2002 Economic Census, Subject 

Series: Information, ‘‘Employment Size of 

Establishments for the United States: 2002,’’ Table 

2, NAICS code 517212. 

43U.S. Census Bureau, 2002 Economic Census, 

Subject Series: Information, ‘‘Employment Size of 

Establishments for the United States: 2002,’’ Table 

2, NAICS code 517212. 

44 Id. 

45U.S. Census Bureau, 2002 NAICS Definitions, 

‘‘334220 Radio and Television Broadcasting and 

Wireless Communications Equipment 

Manufacturing’’; http://www.census.gov/epcd/ 

naics02/def/NDEF334.HTM#N3342. 

46 13 CFR 121.201, NAICS code 334220. 

47U.S. Census Bureau, American FactFinder, 

2002 Economic Census, Industry Series, Industry 

Statistics by Employment Size, NAICS code 334220 

(released May 26, 2005); http:// 

factfinder.census.gov. The number of 

‘‘establishments’’ is a less helpful indicator of small 

business prevalence in this context than would be 

the number of ‘‘firms’’ or ‘‘companies,’’ because the 

latter take into account the concept of common 

ownership or control. Any single physical location 

for an entity is an establishment, even though that 

location may be owned by a different establishment. 

Thus, the numbers given may reflect inflated 

numbers of businesses in this category, including 

the numbers of small businesses. In this category, 

the Census breaks-out data for firms or companies 

only to give the total number of such entities for 

2002, which was 929. 48 Id. An additional 18 establishments had 

employment of 1,000 or more. 49See U.S. Census Bureau, ‘‘2002 NAICS 

Definitions: 511210 Software Publishers’’; http:// 

www.census.gov/epcd/naics02/def/NDEF511.HTM. 

50 13 CFR 121.201, NAICS code 511210. 

51U.S. Census Bureau, 2002 Economic Census, 

Subject Series: Information, ‘‘Establishment and 

Firm Size (Including Legal Form of Organization),’’

Table 4, NAICS code 511210 (issued Nov. 2005). 

52U.S. Census Bureau, 2002 Economic Census, 

Subject Series: Professional, Scientific, and 

Technical Services, ‘‘Establishment and Firm Size 

(Including Legal Form of Organization),’’ Table 4, 

NAICS code 541511 (issued Nov. 2005). 

three years.36 The SBA has approved 

these small size standards.37 An auction 

of 740 licenses (one license in each of 

the 734 MSAs/RSAs and one license in 

each of the six Economic Area 

Groupings (EAGs)) commenced on 

August 27, 2002, and closed on 

September 18, 2002. Of the 740 licenses 

available for auction, 484 licenses were 

sold to 102 winning bidders. Seventytwo of the winning bidders claimed 

small business, very small business or 

entrepreneur status and won a total of 

329 licenses.38 A second auction 

commenced on May 28, 2003, and 

closed on June 13, 2003, and included 

256 licenses: 5 EAG licenses and 476 

CMA licenses.39 Seventeen winning 

bidders claimed small or very small 

business status and won sixty licenses, 

and nine winning bidders claimed 

entrepreneur status and won 154 

licenses.40

178. Public Safety Radio Licensees. As 

a general matter, public safety radio 

licensees include police, fire, local 

government, forestry conservation, 

highway maintenance, and emergency 

medical services.41 The SBA rules 

contain a small business size standard 

for cellular and other wireless 

telecommunications companies that 

encompasses business entities engaged 

in wireless communications employing 

no more than 1,500 persons.42

According to Census Bureau data for 

2002, in this category there were 8,863 

firms that operated for the entire year.43

Of this total, 401 firms had 100 or more 

employees, and the remainder had 

fewer than 100 employees.44 With 

respect to local governments, in 

particular, since many governmental 

entities as well as private businesses 

comprise the licensees for these 

services, we include under public safety 

services the number of government 

entities affected. 

179. Wireless Communications 

Equipment Manufacturers: Radio and 

Television Broadcasting and Wireless 

Communications Equipment 

Manufacturing. While these entities are 

merely indirectly affected the 

Commission’s actions, the Commission 

describes them to achieve a fuller 

record. The Census Bureau defines this 

category as follows: ‘‘This industry 

comprises establishments primarily 

engaged in manufacturing radio and 

television broadcast and wireless 

communications equipment. Examples 

of products made by these 

establishments are: Transmitting and 

receiving antennas, cable television 

equipment, GPS equipment, pagers, 

cellular phones, mobile 

communications equipment, and radio 

and television studio and broadcasting 

equipment.’’ 45 The SBA has developed 

a small business size standard for Radio 

and Television Broadcasting and 

Wireless Communications Equipment 

Manufacturing, which is: All such firms 

having 750 or fewer employees.46

According to Census Bureau data for 

2002, there were a total of 1,041 

establishments in this category that 

operated for the entire year.47 Of this 

total, 1,010 had employment of less than 

500, and an additional 13 had 

employment of 500 to 999.48 Thus, 

under this size standard, the majority of 

firms can be considered small. 

180. Software Publishers. While these 

entities are merely indirectly affected by 

our action, we are describing them to 

achieve a fuller record. These 

companies may design, develop or 

publish software and may provide other 

support services to software purchasers, 

such as providing documentation or 

assisting in installation. The companies 

may also design software to meet the 

needs of specific users.49 The SBA has 

developed a small business size 

standard of $23 million or less in 

average annual receipts for the category 

of Software Publishers.50 For Software 

Publishers, Census Bureau data for 2002 

indicate that there were 6,155 firms in 

the category that operated for the entire 

year.51 Of these, 7,633 had annual 

receipts of under $10 million, and an 

additional 403 firms had receipts of 

between $10 million and $24,999,999. 

For providers of Custom Computer 

Programming Services, the Census 

Bureau data indicate that there were 

32,269 firms that operated for the entire 

year.52 Of these, 31,416 had annual 

receipts of under $10 million, and an 

additional 565 firms had receipts of 

between $10 million and $24,999,999. 

Consequently, we estimate that the 

majority of the firms in this category are 

small entities that may be affected by 

our action. 

4. Description of Projected Reporting, 

Recordkeeping, and Other Compliance 

Requirements for Small Entities 

181. The projected reporting, 

recordkeeping, and other compliance 

requirements resulting from the Second 

Report and Order will apply to all 

entities in the same manner. The 

Commission believes that applying the 

same rules equally to all entities in this 


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Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 164 / Friday, August 24, 2007 / Rules and Regulations 48837 

53 5 U.S.C. 603(c). 

context promotes fairness. The 

Commission does not believe that the 

costs and/or administrative burdens 

associated with the rules will unduly 

burden small entities. The revisions the 

Commission adopts should benefit 

small entities by giving them more 

information, more flexibility, and more 

options for gaining access to valuable 

wireless spectrum. 

182. Performance Requirements. In 

this Second Report and Order, the 

Commission replaces the current 

‘‘substantial service’’ requirements for 

the 700 MHz Band commercial licenses 

that have not been auctioned with 

significantly more stringent 

performance requirements. These 

include the use of interim and end-ofterm benchmarks, with geographic area 

benchmarks for licenses based on CMAs 

and EAs, and population benchmarks 

for licenses based on REAGs. Licensees 

must meet the interim requirement 

within four years of the end of the DTV 

transition. Failure to meet the interim 

requirement will result in a two-year 

reduction in license term, as well as 

possible enforcement action, including 

forfeitures. Licensees that fail to meet 

the end-of-term benchmarks will be 

subject to a ‘‘keep-what-you-use’’ rule, 

under which the licensee will lose its 

authorization for unserved portions of 

its license area, which will be 

automatically returned to the 

Commission for reassignment. 

183. Licensees must demonstrate 

compliance with the Commission’s 

interim and end-of-term construction 

benchmarks by filing a construction 

notification with the Commission 

within 15 days of the passage of the 

relevant benchmark certifying that they 

have met our performance requirements. 

However, if they have not met the 

Commission’s performance 

requirements, they must file a 

description and certification of the areas 

for which they are providing service. 

The information contained in the 

licensee’s construction notification must 

include electronic coverage maps and 

other supporting documentation. The 

electronic coverage maps must clearly 

and accurately depict the boundaries of 

each EA or CMA in the licensee’s 

service territory, and the areas where 

the licensee’s signal strength is 

sufficient to provide service to users. In 

addition to filing electronic coverage 

maps, each licensee must file 

supporting documentation certifying the 

type of service it is providing for each 

EA or CMA within its license service 

territory. 

184. Guard Band Issues. The Second 

Report and Order relocates the A Block 

away from the public safety narrowband 

spectrum with respect to the upper half 

of the original paired A Block. 

Accordingly, the reconfigured A Block 

no longer serves as a guard band to 

protect the public safety spectrum from 

commercial operations. The existing 

frequency coordination requirement, 

which was created to protect public 

safety operations from Guard Bands 

operations, is therefore eliminated with 

respect to the reconfigured A Block. 

185. Open Platforms for Devices and 

Applications. In this Second Report and 

Order, the Commission adopts a 

requirement for the 700 MHz C Block 

licensees to provide open platforms for 

devices and applications. 700 MHz C 

Block licensees must allow customers, 

device manufacturers, third-party 

application developers and others to use 

or develop the devices and applications 

of their choosing on the 700 MHz C 

Block network so long as they meet all 

applicable regulatory requirements and 

comply with reasonable conditions 

related to the management of the 

wireless network. The Commission does 

not, at this time, specify a particular 

process for wireless service providers to 

develop reasonable network 

management and openness standards, 

including through participation in 

standards setting organizations. The 

Commission expects licensees to 

publish their standards once adopted, 

which will be non-proprietary, such that 

they would be open to any third party 

vendors and that the standards applied 

to third parties will be no more 

restrictive than those applied to the 

provider’s preferred vendors. 

186. The Commission also requires 

700 MHz C Block licensees to provide 

to potential customers notice of the 

customers’ rights to request the 

attachment of a device or application to 

the licensee’s network, and notice of the 

licensee’s process for customers to make 

such requests, including the relevant 

network criteria. In addition, 700 MHz 

C Block licensees are required to 

establish a reasonable process for 

expeditiously reviewing and processing 

requests to employ devices and 

applications on the licensee’s network 

and offer a specific explanation for 

denial of any such request, and an 

opportunity for amendment of the 

request to accommodate the provider’s 

concerns. 

187. The Commission also provides 

for its existing complaint procedures to 

be invoked if a violation of this 

requirement occurs. Once a complainant 

sets forth a prima facie case that the 700 

MHz C Block licensee has refused to 

attach a device or application in 

violation of the requirement or has 

otherwise violated the rule, the 700 

MHz C Block licensee shall have the 

burden of proof to demonstrate that it 

has adopted reasonable network 

standards and reasonably applied those 

standards in the complainant’s case. 

The Commission commits to rule on 

these complaints within 180 days. 

188. Public Safety Broadband. The 

Second Report and Order re-designates 

the wideband spectrum to broadband 

use consistent with a nationwide 

interoperability standard, and prohibits 

wideband operations on a going forward 

basis. The Commission will only grant 

limited exceptions to this rule through 

a waiver process. As a result of the 

decision to prohibit wideband 

operations outside of this waiver 

process, Regional Planning Committee 

plans already approved or on file with 

the Commission will require 

amendment. The Second Report and 

Order also consolidates the narrowband 

channels to the top of the public safety 

band, locates the broadband spectrum at 

the bottom of the public safety band, 

divides these segments with an internal 

guard band, and creates a single Public 

Safety Broadband License/Licensee to 

promote the rapid deployment of a 

nationwide, interoperable broadband 

public safety network. The relocation of 

public safety narrowband operations in 

the consolidated channels will entail 

some additional reporting, 

recordkeeping and compliance efforts 

by existing public safety entities with 

regard to the number and location of 

their affected narrowband handsets and 

base stations. The Second Report and 

Order does not otherwise propose any 

additional reporting, recordkeeping or 

other compliance requirements. 

5. Steps Taken To Minimize Significant 

Economic Impact on Small Entities, and 

Significant Alternatives Considered 

189. The RFA requires an agency to 

describe in the IRFA any significant 

alternatives that it has considered in 

reaching its proposed approach, which 

may include (among others) the 

following four alternatives: (1) The 

establishment of differing compliance or 

reporting requirements or timetables 

that take into account the resources 

available to small entities; (2) the 

clarification, consolidation, or 

simplification of compliance or 

reporting requirements under the rule 

for small entities; (3) the use of 

performance, rather than design, 

standards; and (4) an exemption from 

coverage of the rule, or any part thereof, 

for small entities.53 The Commission 

hereby incorporates by reference the 

discussion in the Second Report and 


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48838 Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 164 / Friday, August 24, 2007 / Rules and Regulations 

Order of our consideration of the impact 

on small entities of the rules the 

Commission adopts here. 

190. Band Plan Issues. The Second 

Report and Order revises the 700 MHz 

band plan for the commercial services 

and public safety services in a manner 

that will improve the opportunity of 

small entities to obtain valuable 

wireless spectrum by providing smaller 

licensing areas that better meet the 

needs of small entities. The 

Commission’s goals for the 700 MHz 

Band are to promote dissemination of 

licenses among a wide variety of 

applicants, including small entities, 

accommodate the competing need for 

both large and small licensing areas, 

meet the various needs expressed by 

potential entrants seeking access to 

spectrum and incumbents seeking 

additional spectrum, and provide for 

large spectrum blocks that can facilitate 

broadband deployment in the band. To 

achieve these goals the revised plan 

provides for two 12-megahertz spectrum 

blocks (comprised of paired 6-megahertz 

blocks), one licensed by CMAs and one 

by EAs; one 22-megahertz spectrum 

block (paired 11-megahertz blocks) by 

REAGs; and one 6-megahertz unpaired 

spectrum block by EAs. The revision 

also designates one 10-megahertz 

spectrum block (paired 5-megahertz 

blocks), the Upper 700 MHz D Block, to 

be licensed on a nationwide basis and 

used as part of the 700 MHz Public/ 

Private Partnership. 

191. Providing for an additional 700 

MHz Band spectrum block licensed on 

a CMA basis (the B Block) will increase 

the opportunity of small entities to 

obtain smaller license areas that meet 

their needs while avoiding the 

transaction costs associated with 

obtaining access to spectrum in the 

secondary market, costs that are 

incurred when these small providers 

must arrange the terms by which 

another licensee grants access to its 

spectrum by means of partitioning, 

disaggregation, or spectrum leasing. 

192. In addition, the Commission 

adopts EAs as the geographic service 

area for licenses in Block A of the Lower 

700 MHz Band, making 176 licenses 

available in this block. The Commission 

also adopts EAs for the unpaired 6- 

megahertz E block of the Lower 700 

MHz Band which further enhances the 

mix of geographic sizes for licenses in 

the band. These decisions will also 

create opportunities for small entities to 

acquire licenses for small geographic 

service areas in the Lower 700 MHz 

Band. 

193. Frequency Coordination and the 

Guard Bands. The service area 

definition for the Upper 700 MHz Guard 

Bands is the MEA, which is a smaller 

license area and therefore can provide 

greater opportunities for small entrants 

than larger service area definitions such 

as the REAG. Accordingly, among the 

licensed Guard Bands and the lessees 

currently using their spectrum, there 

may be a significant number of small 

entities. Additionally, continued 

operations in the Guard Bands A Block 

may continue to involve a significant 

number of small entities through 

Secondary Markets arrangements. Since 

the Second Report and Order removes 

the requirement for all A Block 

operations to be frequency coordinated 

with public safety entities, any small 

entity engaged in ownership of, or 

operations on, the A Block will find the 

frequency coordination burden lifted to 

their significant benefit. 

194. Performance Requirements. In 

this Second Report and Order, the 

Commission adopts stringent 

performance requirements for the 700 

MHz Commercial Services licenses in 

order to promote the provision of 

innovative services to consumers 

throughout the license areas, including 

in rural areas. With regard to 

geographic-based benchmarks for 

licenses based on CMAs and EAs, the 

Commission seeks to promote service 

across as much of the geographic area of 

the country as is practicable. Parties that 

seek to acquire licenses based on CMAs 

and EAs may be small and rural 

providers that are less likely to provide 

regional or nationwide service, but they 

nonetheless play an important role in 

bringing new services to consumers in 

many of these more rural areas. 

195. The use of small license areas 

such as CMAs will create opportunities 

for small and rural businesses and will 

foster the deployment of competitive 

wireless broadband services in rural 

areas. Because the Commission adopts 

smaller geographic license areas such as 

CMAs to facilitate the provision of 

service, including broadband, in rural 

areas, it also adopts performance 

requirements that are designed to ensure 

that service is offered to consumers in 

these areas. Because of the 700 MHz 

band’s excellent propagation 

characteristics and suitability for 

delivering advanced wireless services to 

rural areas, the Commission establishes 

benchmarks that require build-out to a 

significant portion of the geographic 

area in those markets. In addition, the 

performance requirements adopted here 

will discourage larger entities from 

purchasing spectrum for the purpose of 

warehousing it and thus may provide 

small entities with a greater chance of 

obtaining valuable spectrum. 

196. In the Second Report and Order, 

the Commission adopts populationbased benchmarks for REAG licensees 

with large geographic areas in order to 

facilitate the deployment of advanced 

services on a nationwide or regional 

basis. Because of the significant capital 

investment and logistical challenges 

associated with building a regional or 

nationwide system without existing 

infrastructure, population benchmarks, 

rather than geographic benchmarks, will 

best allow a potential new entrant to 

achieve the economies of scale needed 

for a viable business model, while also 

ensuring that a majority of the 

population in a given region may have 

access to these services. Moreover, the 

performance requirements adopted here 

will discourage larger entities from 

purchasing spectrum for the purpose of 

warehousing it and thus may provide 

small entities with a greater chance of 

obtaining valuable spectrum. 

197. Additionally, the ‘‘keep-whatyou-use’’ rule is pro-competitive and 

provides another method for smaller 

license areas to be made available to 

small businesses, thus promoting access 

to spectrum and the provision of 

service, especially in rural areas. This 

rule ensures that spectrum covering 

areas that are not adequately built out is 

returned to the Commission and others 

are given an opportunity to acquire 

licenses for this spectrum. Because the 

license areas returned to the 

Commission under the ‘‘keep-what-youuse’’ rule are likely to be smaller in 

nature, this rule will provide small 

entities with an additional opportunity 

to obtain valuable wireless spectrum. 

198. Although the Commission 

recognizes that the performance and 

reporting requirements for the 700 MHz 

Commercial Services licenses places 

burdens on both large and small 

businesses alike, these requirements 

will further several important policy 

objectives including taking advantage of 

the excellent propagation characteristics 

of the spectrum in the 700 MHz Band 

enabling broader coverage at lower 

costs, promoting the provision of 

innovative services to consumers 

throughout the license areas, including 

rural areas, and allowing large license 

areas to be served at lower infrastructure 

costs. Moreover, the inclusion of interim 

benchmark reporting requirements 

ensures that licensees provide service to 

consumers as early as possible. Because 

of the importance of these requirements, 

we do not believe that they should be 

applied on a differential basis to large 

and small business. Neither do we 

believe that such requirements will 

impose an unacceptable burden on 

small entities. 


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Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 164 / Friday, August 24, 2007 / Rules and Regulations 48839 

199. License Terms. The Second 

Report and Order extends the license 

terms of all the existing A Block 

licensees, given the changed 

circumstances of the band plan and 

service rules, as the licensees are 

relocated to the reconfigured A Block. 

This license term extension will benefit 

any Guard Bands licensees, and any 

lessees currently using their spectrum, 

that may be small entities as they will 

have more flexibility in the use of their 

spectrum with a longer period of time 

within which to make use of the 

spectrum. 

200. Partitioning and Disaggregation. 

In this Second Report and Order, the 

Commission concludes that Section 

27.15(d) of its rules regarding 

partitioning and disaggregation should 

be amended to clarify how the 

performance obligations will apply to 

the partitioning and disaggregation of 

the 700 MHz Commercial Services 

licenses that remain to be auctioned. 

These modifications seek to continue to 

provide flexibility to licensees and third 

parties to enter into partitioning and 

disaggregation arrangements that will 

facilitate the provision of new services 

to consumers, including consumers in 

unserved and underserved areas. 

201. Under the modifications of the 

Section 27.15(d) rule relating to 

geographic partitioning of new 700 MHz 

Commercial Services licenses, the 

Commission establishes two options for 

partitioners and partitionees with regard 

to the newly adopted performance 

requirements. Under the first option, the 

partitioner and partitionee must each 

certify to the Commission that they will 

share responsibility for meeting the 

performance requirements for the entire 

geographic license area. If the parties 

meet the end-of-term construction 

benchmarks, they will retain the ability 

to continue to build out the unserved 

portion of their license areas. Parties 

that fail to meet the end-of-term 

benchmarks will be subject to a ‘‘keepwhat-you-use’’ rule, under which they 

will lose their authorization for 

unserved portions of their license areas, 

which will automatically cancel and 

return to the Commission for 

reassignment. This option enables 

parties to share the cost of meeting the 

stricter build-out benchmarks as 

required by the Commission under its 

new performance requirements, while 

ensuring that build-out will occur over 

the original license area to the same 

extent as it would have occurred had 

the licensee never partitioned the 

license. Under the second option, the 

partitioner and partitionee must each 

certify that it will independently meet 

the applicable performance 

requirements for its respective 

partitioned service area. If the 

partitioner or partitionee fails to meet 

the four-year build-out requirement for 

its respective area, then its license term 

will be reduced by two years. If the 

parties meet the end-of-term 

construction benchmarks, they will 

retain the ability to continue to build 

out the unserved portion of their license 

areas. Parties that fail to meet the endof-term benchmarks will be subject to an 

automatic ‘‘keep-what-you-use’’ rule, 

under which they will lose their 

authorization for unserved portions of 

their license areas, which will 

automatically cancel and return to the 

Commission for reassignment. This 

option provides a way for partitioners 

and partitionees to ensure that their 

licenses will not be affected by the other 

party’s conduct with regard to meeting 

the applicable performance 

requirements. 

202. Under the modifications of the 

Section 27.15(d) rule relating to 

disaggregation of new 700 MHz 

Commercial Services band licenses, the 

Commission provides that the 

disaggregator, disaggregate, or both the 

disaggregator and disaggregate working 

together, can meet the four-year and 

end-of-term construction benchmarks 

for the entire geographic license area. If 

either party meets the performance 

requirement, then the requirement will 

be satisfied for both parties. If neither 

party meets the four-year build-out 

requirement, then each of their license 

terms will be reduced by two years. If 

either of the parties meets the end-ofterm build-out requirement, then this 

requirement is considered to be satisfied 

for both parties. Those parties that meet 

the end-of-term construction 

benchmarks will retain the ability to 

continue to build out the unserved 

portion of their license areas. Parties 

that fail to meet the end-of-term 

benchmarks will be subject to an 

automatic ‘‘keep-what-you-use’’ rule, 

under which they will lose their 

authorization for unserved portions of 

their license areas, which will 

automatically cancel and return to the 

Commission for reassignment. 

203. Partitioning and disaggregation 

allow smaller or newly-formed entities 

to enter the market for the first time, 

because they will be able to negotiate for 

portions of original licenses at costs that 

are proportionately less than the entire 

license. Moreover, these modifications 

provide the opportunity for small 

businesses to enter into partitioning and 

disaggregation agreements that would 

enable them to share the cost of meeting 

the more stringent performance 

requirements for the unauctioned 

commercial 700 MHz Band spectrum. 

204. Open Platforms for Devices and 

Applications. In order to promote 

innovation in the 700 MHz Band from 

the outset, the Commission is imposing 

certain conditions on the 700 MHz C 

Block to provide open platforms for 

devices and applications. The C Block—

a large 22-megahertz block (comprised 

of paired 11-megahertz blocks)—is of 

sufficient size and scope to provide an 

environment conducive for the 

development and deployment of 4G 

services designed to compete with other 

broadband alternatives, and to provide 

an opportunity for innovators and 

entrepreneurs to develop equipment 

and applications that require substantial 

bandwidth to realize their full potential. 

The requirements should also provide 

sufficient potential market penetration 

to attract investment and achieve 

economies of scale in the equipment 

marketplace. In addition, we believe 

that the open platform requirement for 

devices and applications will provide 

additional opportunities for small 

entities to participate in the device and 

application market, since such a 

requirement will make it easier for 

customers, device manufacturers, thirdparty application developers, and others 

to use or develop devices and 

applications made by small entities on 

the network of the C Block licensee. 

205. In adopting this requirement for 

the 700 MHz C Block, the Commission 

has taken a targeted, focused approach 

to achieve benefits to consumers. In 

particular, the Commission declines to 

impose additional openness 

requirements on the 700 MHz C Block, 

including wholesale and 

interconnection requirements. In 

addition, the Commission declines at 

this time to impose the requirement to 

provide open platforms for devices and 

applications or other openness 

obligations broadly in the 700 MHz 

Band, or in other spectrum bands. 

206. Licensee Eligibility. The 

Commission declines to impose 

eligibility restrictions for the licenses in 

the 700 MHz band. The record does not 

demonstrate that open eligibility is 

likely to result in substantial 

competitive harm in the provision of 

broadband services. There are numerous 

actual and potential broadband service 

providers, and currently, consumers can 

obtain broadband service from wireline 

providers, cable companies, satellite, 

and wireless providers. Given this 

number of providers, it is unlikely that 

incumbent local exchange carriers, cable 

providers, or large wireless carriers 

would be able to behave in an 

anticompetitive manner as a result of 


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48840 Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 164 / Friday, August 24, 2007 / Rules and Regulations 

54See McBride 700 MHz Further NPRM 

Comments at 11. 

55See, e.g., Google 700 MHz Further NPRM 

Comments at 7–8. 

56See Aloha 700 MHz Further Notice Comments 

at 7–8; Blooston 700 MHz Further Notice Comments 

at 10; Cellular South 700 MHz Further Notice 

Comments at 16; Leap 700 MHz Further Notice 

Comments at 9; MetroPCS 700 MHz Further Notice 

Comments at 22; RCA 700 MHz Further Notice 

Comments at 18; RTG 700 MHz Further Notice 

Comments at 16. 

57Frontline 700 MHz Further Notice Comments, 

Exhibit 1 at 22–23. 

58See, e.g., McBride Spectrum Partners, LLC 700 

MHz Further Notice Comments at 4–8; Blooston 

Rural Carriers 700 MHz Further NPRM Comments 

at 7; Council Tree Communications, Inc. 700 MHz 

Further Notice Reply Comments at 5–7. 

any potential acquisition of 700 MHz 

spectrum. Furthermore, there are 

potential competitive benefits to not 

imposing eligibility requirements. First, 

allowing incumbents to hold 700 MHz 

band licenses will provide opportunities 

for these carriers to extend service into 

rural and hard-to-serve areas, which is 

a major goal the Commission seeks to 

achieve. Also, an incumbent service 

provider may already be a rural provider 

and to limit their eligibility would be 

contrary to the Commission’s goals. We 

also do not believe that imposing 

eligibility restrictions for licenses in the 

700 MHz band is necessary to provide 

small entities with the opportunity to 

obtain such licenses. As discussed 

above, among other things, the smaller 

licensing areas made available here will 

increase opportunities for small entities. 

207. Anonymous Bidding. In response 

to its request for comments on whether 

to use anonymous bidding (or ‘‘limited 

information’’) procedures in the auction 

of the new 700 MHz band licenses, the 

Commission received comments both in 

support of and in opposition to such 

procedures. One of the supporters is a 

small licensee who argued that 

anonymous bidding would bring about 

a more level playing field between large 

and small bidders.54 The Commission 

further concludes that the many 

uncertainties regarding the technologies 

that will be used in the 700 MHz band 

will result in the potential anticompetitive use of detailed information 

regarding bidding outweighing the 

benefit to some bidders of having such 

information. 

208. The Commission further 

concludes that anonymous bidding 

should be employed even if the preauction eligibility ratio indicates that 

competition in the auction will be 

significant. Even in an auction with 

many competitors individual bidders 

could still use retaliatory bidding 

unilaterally to block the market, and it 

is important to avoid that from 

occurring especially given that the 700 

MHz auction is going to offer multiple, 

substitutable blocks of licenses for sale, 

with prices relatively high, and the 

outcome having possible significant 

effects on post-auction market structure. 

209. The Commission does not 

believe that anonymous bidding will 

have a detrimental effect on small 

entities. First, as discussed in Section 

III.A.3.a of the Second Report and 

Order, the potential benefit to bidders, 

such as small entities, of knowing the 

identity of other parties placing bids for 

particular licenses appears likely to be 

less in this auction than in past 

Commission auctions, in light of the 

early stage of development with respect 

to new services in these frequencies. 

Second, because bidding information 

can be used by incumbents to deter or 

exclude new entrants, we believe that 

anonymous bidding will increase the 

opportunities for new entrants, 

including small entities, to obtain 

licenses. 

210. Package Bidding. Commenters 

are divided on the issue of package 

bidding for the upcoming auction of the 

700 MHz band spectrum. While some 

commenters support package bidding 

because they feel it is essential for a new 

entrant seeking to aggregate licenses and 

offer service nationwide,55 there are 

other commenters who feel that package 

bidding will disadvantage bidders not 

bidding on packages, which are more 

likely to be small entities.56

211. The Commission concludes that 

package bidding, with respect to the 

Upper 700 MHz Band C Block, would 

serve the public interest by reducing the 

exposure problem that might otherwise 

inhibit bidders seeking to create a 

nationwide footprint. Absent package 

bidding, the exposure problem creates 

an opportunity for competitors to block 

a would-be package bidder without 

actually competing for all the licenses in 

the package.57

212. Minimizing the exposure 

problem, by implementing package 

bidding, should facilitate the entry of 

applicants whose business plans require 

the economies of scale that only can be 

obtained with nationwide operation. 

The Commission further concludes that 

package bidding solely with respect to 

licenses for the Upper 700 MHz Band C 

Block provides sufficient opportunities 

to bid with minimal risk of an exposure 

problem. However, we limit package 

bidding to the C Block so that bidders, 

including small entities, who are 

unwilling or unable to compete against 

package bids will not be deterred from 

participating in the auction. The variety 

of blocks and licenses that are not 

subjected to package bidding will 

provide any such bidders, including 

small entities, with a wide array of 

opportunities. 

213. ‘‘New Entrant’’ Bidding Credit. 

The possibility of granting ‘‘new 

entrant’’ bidding credits attracted far 

less comment than other issues relating 

to the auction of the 700 MHz licenses, 

and those parties that did respond were 

divided on the issue. The Commission 

concludes that a ‘‘new entrant’’ bidding 

credit for the 700 MHz Band licenses is 

not needed to facilitate the entry of new 

service providers. The Commission 

already offers substantial bidding 

credits to small entities, many of which 

may be new entrants in the spectrum 

services market, and we therefore do not 

believe that there is a need for an 

additional ‘‘new entrant’’ bidding credit. 

In addition, the availability of multiple 

licenses in each and every market with 

varied geographic sizes, coupled with 

the large number of licenses should 

offer new ventures, including small 

entities, a variety of opportunities to 

provide service. 

214. Bidding Credits for the 700 MHz 

Public/Private Partnership. A number of 

small entities have proposed, in their 

comments, that the Commission should 

offer designated entities bidding credits 

with regards to the license that has been 

proposed by Frontline.58 In brief, these 

commenters maintain that bidding 

credits will help potential applicants 

overcome efforts by incumbents to 

prevent others from winning newly 

available licenses. 

215. The Commission concludes that 

it should provide applicants that are 

eligible to be licensed as designated 

entities with bidding credits in the 

auction of the D Block license, 

consistent with the Commission’s prior 

decision regarding bidding credits for 

700 MHz band licenses and our current 

designated entities rules. This decision 

will improve the opportunity for small 

entities to successfully bid for the D 

Block license. 

216. Public Safety Broadband. The 

Second Report and Order reallocates the 

wideband spectrum to broadband use 

consistent with a nationwide 

interoperability standard, and prohibits 

wideband operations within the newly 

designated broadband spectrum on a 

going forward basis. The public safety 

community expressed broad support for 

a broadband allocation to enable 

advanced communications capabilities. 

The availability of a contiguous block of 

broadband spectrum, subject to a 

nationwide interoperability standard, 

enables partnerships with commercial 

licensees in adjacent broadband 


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Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 164 / Friday, August 24, 2007 / Rules and Regulations 48841 

59See 5 U.S.C. 801(a)(1)(A). 60See 5 U.S.C. 604(b). 

spectrum. As a result, the band plan 

ultimately enables public safety entities 

to utilize the 700 MHz band spectrum 

in a more cost-effective and spectrally 

efficient manner to address their 

homeland security and emergency 

response roles. In particular, the 

Commission believes that the 

interoperable broadband network will 

be of benefit to smaller governmental 

entities that would otherwise be 

unlikely to have the resources to 

construct such a network. Because the 

Commission does not anticipate that 

this reallocation will impose additional 

economic burdens on public safety, and 

is in fact designed to reduce economic 

burdens on public safety, the 

Commission has taken steps to 

minimize any adverse impact of the rule 

changes. 

217. The Second Report and Order 

also consolidates the narrowband 

spectrum to the top of the public safety 

band and locates the broadband 

spectrum at the bottom of the public 

safety band, in light of the potentially 

significant benefits such reconfiguration 

will afford the public safety community. 

The alternative would have been to 

retain the existing band plan. The 

Further NPRM sought comment on how 

to implement reconfiguration of the 

narrowband channels with minimum 

disruption to incumbent operations. The 

Second Report and Order 

accommodates public safety operations 

in the border areas with Canada and 

Mexico, and defrays the costs of 

relocation by providing that such costs 

will be covered by the D Block Licensee. 

This defrayal of costs should be of 

particular benefit to small governmental 

entities, which are less likely to have 

the resources to fund such a relocation 

on their own. The Commission expects 

that the number of entities impacted 

and the expected reconfiguration cost 

should be relatively minor. In order to 

receive reimbursement for the transition 

costs, however, affected public safety 

entities are required to provide 

information regarding the narrowband 

radios and base stations that they have 

deployed. We do not believe that such 

a reporting requirement will place an 

unacceptable burden on small 

governmental entities. 

6. Report to Congress 

218. The Commission will send a 

copy of the Second Report and Order, 

including this FRFA, in a report to be 

sent to Congress and the Government 

Accountability Office pursuant to the 

Congressional Review Act.59 In 

addition, the Commission will send a 

copy of the Second Report and Order, 

including this FRFA, to the Chief 

Counsel for Advocacy of the SBA. A 

copy of the Second Report and Order 

and FRFA (or summaries thereof) will 

also be published in the Federal 

Register.60

B. Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 

219. The Second Report and Order 

contains new or modified information 

collection requirements subject to the 

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 

(PRA), Public Law 104–13. It will be 

submitted to the Office of Management 

and Budget (OMB) for review under 

Section 3507(d) of the PRA. OMB, the 

general public, and other Federal 

agencies are invited to comment on the 

new information collection 

requirements contained in this 

proceeding. Comments should address 

the following: (a) Whether the proposed 

collection of information is necessary 

for the proper performance of the 

functions of the Commission, including 

whether the information shall have 

practical utility; (b) the accuracy of the 

Commission’s burden estimates; (c) 

ways to enhance the quality, utility, and 

clarity of the information collected; and 

(d) ways to minimize the burden of the 

collection of information on 

respondents, including the use of 

automated collection techniques or 

other forms of information technology. 

In addition, the Commission notes that 

pursuant to the Small Business 

Paperwork Relief Act of 2002, Public 

Law 107–198, see 44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(4), 

the Commission previously sought 

specific comment on how the 

Commission might ‘‘further reduce the 

information collection burden for small 

business concerns with fewer than 25 

employees.’’ In this present document, 

the Commission has assessed the 

potential effects of the various policy 

changes with regard to information 

collection burdens on small business 

concerns, and finds that there are no 

results specific to businesses with fewer 

than 25 employees. In addition, the 

Commission has described impacts that 

might affect small businesses, which 

includes most businesses with fewer 

than 25 employees, in the FRFA in 

Appendix C, infra. The Commission 

notes, however, that Section 213 of the 

Consolidated Appropriations Act 2000 

provides that rules governing 

frequencies in the 36 megahertz of the 

spectrum in the 746–806 MHz Band 

allocated for commercial use become 

effective immediately upon publication 

in the Federal Register without regard 

to certain sections of the Paperwork 

Reduction Act. The Commission is 

therefore not inviting comment on any 

information collections that concern 

those frequencies. The Commission also 

notes that it is seeking emergency 

processing under the Paperwork 

Reduction Act for the information 

collection requiring 700 MHz Band 

public safety licensees, whether holding 

individual narrowband authorizations 

or operating pursuant to a State License, 

to provide the total number of 

narrowband mobile and portable 

handsets and narrowband base stations 

in operation in channels 63 and 68, and 

the upper 1 megahertz of channels 64 

and 69, as of August 30, 2007, along 

with the related information specified 

herein. Public and agency comments 

related to this request are due August 

31, 2007. 

III. Ordering Clauses 

220. Accordingly, it is ordered that 

pursuant to Sections 1, 4(i), 5, 7, 10, 

201, 202, 208, 214, 215, 222(d)(4)(A)–

(C), 222(f), 222(g), 222(h)(1)(A), 

222(h)(4)–(5), 229, 251(e)(3), 301, 303, 

307, 308, 309, 310, 311, 312, 316, 324, 

331, 332, 333, 336, 337, 403, 503, and 

610, of the Communications Act of 

1934, as amended, 47 U.S.C. 151, 154(i), 

155, 157, 160, 201, 202, 208, 214, 215, 

222(d)(4)(A)–(C), 222(f), 222(g), 

222(h)(1)(A), 222(h)(4)–(5), 251(e)(3), 

229, 301, 303, 307, 308, 309, 310, 311, 

312, 316, 324, 331, 332, 333, 336, 337, 

403, 503, and 610, and Section 102 of 

the Communications Assistance for Law 

Enforcement Act, 18 U.S.C. 1001, this 

Second Report and Order in WT Docket 

No. 06–150, CC Docket No. 94–102, WT 

Docket No. 01–309, WT Docket No. 03–

264, WT Docket No. 06–169, PS Docket 

No. 06–229, and WT Docket No. 96–86 

is adopted, and that Part 2, 27, and 90 

of the Commission’s rules, 47 CFR Parts 

2, 27, and 90, are amended as set forth 

in Appendix B. This Second Report and 

Order shall become effective October 23, 

2007, except for the amendments to 

§§ 27.14, 27.15, 27.50, and 90.176 which 

contain information collection 

requirements that have not been 

approved by the Office of Management 

and Budget (OMB). The Commission 

will publish a document in the Federal 

Register announcing the effective date. 

221. It is further ordered that, 

pursuant to Section 5(c) of the 

Communications Act of 1934, as 

amended, 47 U.S.C. 5(c), the Wireless 

Telecommunications Bureau and Public 

Safety and Homeland Security Bureau 

are granted delegated authority to 

implement the policies set forth in this 

Second Report and Order and the rules, 

as revised, set forth in Appendix B 

hereto. 


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48842 Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 164 / Friday, August 24, 2007 / Rules and Regulations 

222. It is ordered that, pursuant to 

Sections 4(i), 309, and 316(a) of the 

Communications Act, as amended, 47 

U.S.C. 154(i), 309, 316(a), the 700 MHz 

Guard Band A Block licenses of Access 

700, LLC, Pegasus Guard Band, LLC, 

and Dominion 700, Inc. are modified, as 

specified in Appendix D, upon the 

effective date of this Second Report and 

Order. 

223. It is ordered that, pursuant to 

Sections 4(i), 309, and 316(a) of the 

Communications Act, as amended, 47 

U.S.C. 154(i), 309, 316(a), Access 700 

Holdings, LLC, Pegasus Guard Band, 

LLC, and Radiofone Nationwide PCS, 

LLC shall surrender their 700 MHz 

Guard Band B Block licenses to the 

Commission no later than 5 days from 

the effective date of this Second Report 

and Order. 

224. It is ordered that, pursuant to 

Sections 4(i), and 309(f) of the 

Communications Act, as amended, 47 

U.S.C. 154(i), 309(f), Access 700, LLC is 

granted special temporary authority for 

a period of 180 days, upon the effective 

date of this Second Report and Order, 

for frequencies 746.000–747.000 and 

776.000–777.000 MHz in Major 

Economic Areas 20, 26, 32, 37, 44, and 

52. The Wireless Telecommunications 

Bureau is delegated authority to issue 

such authorizations and to resolve any 

request for an extension of such 

authorizations as specified in this 

Second Report and Order. 

225. It is ordered that, pursuant to 

Sections 4(i), 309, and 316(a) of the 

Communications Act, as amended, 47 

U.S.C. 154(i), 309, 316(a) and Section 

1.87 of the Commission’s rules, 47 CFR 

1.87, the 700 MHz Guard Band A Block 

license for Station WPRV447, licensed 

to PTPMS II Communications, L.L.C., 

will be modified by changing the 

authorized frequencies from 746.000–

747.000 and 776.000–777.000 MHz, to 

757.000–758.000 and 787.000–788.000 

MHz. 

226. It is ordered that, pursuant to 

Sections 4(i), 309, and 316(a) of the 

Communications Act, as amended, 47 

U.S.C. 154(i), 309, 316(a) and Section 

1.87 of the Commission’s rules, 47 CFR 

1.87, the 700 MHz Guard Band B Block 

licenses for Stations WPRV448 and 

WPRV449, licensed to PTPMS II 

Communications, L.L.C., will be 

modified by changing the authorized 

frequencies from 762.000–764.000 and 

792.000–794.000 MHz, to 761.000–

763.000 and 791.000–793.000 MHz. 

227. It is ordered that, pursuant to 

Sections 309 and 316 of the 

Communications Act of 1934, as 

amended, 47 U.S.C. 309, 316, the 

modifications of Stations WPRV447, 

WPRV448, and WPRV449, licensed to 

PTPMS II Communications, L.L.C., 

specified in paragraphs 167 and 168, 

supra, shall become final and effective 

30 days from the effective date of this 

Second Report and Order if no protests 

are filed within that period. The 

Wireless Telecommunications Bureau is 

delegated authority to resolve any such 

protests that may arise and to modify 

such licenses as specified in this Second 

Report and Order. 

228. It is ordered, pursuant to 

Sections 1 and 4(i) of the 

Communications Act, as amended, 47 

U.S.C. 151, 154(i), that by October 23, 

2007, all 700 MHz Band public safety 

licensees, whether holding individual 

narrowband authorizations or operating 

pursuant to a State License, shall 

provide the total number of narrowband 

mobile and portable handsets and 

narrowband base stations in operation 

in channels 63 and 68, and the upper 1 

megahertz of channels 64 and 69, as of 

August 30, 2007, along with the related 

information specified herein. 

229. It is further ordered that the 

Wireless Telecommunications Bureau 

shall send a copy of this Second Report 

and Order, by certified mail, return 

receipt requested, to Alfred Angelo, 

President, PTPMS II Communications, 

L.L.C., 340 North Avenue East, 

Cranford, New Jersey 07016, and James 

H. Barker, Esq., 1001 Pennsylvania 

Avenue, NW., Suite 1300, Washington, 

DC 20004–2505. 

230. It is further ordered that the 

Commission’s Consumer and 

Governmental Affairs Bureau, Reference 

Information Center, shall send a copy of 

this Second Report and Order, 

including the Final Regulatory 

Flexibility Analysis, to the Chief 

Counsel for Advocacy of the Small 

Business Administration. 

231. It is further ordered that the 

Commission shall send a copy of this 

Second Report and Order in a report to 

be sent to Congress and the Government 

Accountability Office pursuant to the 

Congressional Review Act, see 5 U.S.C. 

801(a)(1)(A). 

List of Subjects 

47 CFR Part 0 

Organization and functions 

(Government agencies), Privacy, 

Reporting and recordkeeping 

requirements. 

47 CFR Part 1 

Administrative practice and 

procedure, Communications common 

carriers, Penalties, Radio, Reporting and 

recordkeeping requirements, Satellites, 

Telecommunications, Television. 

47 CFR Part 2 

Communications equipment, Disaster 

assistance, Radio, Reporting and 

recordkeeping requirements, 

Telecommunications, Television. 

47 CFR Part 27 

Communications common carriers, 

Radio, Wireless radio services. 

47 CFR Part 90 

Civil defense, Common carriers, 

Emergency medical services, Radio, 

Reporting and recordkeeping 

requirements. 

Federal Communications Commission. 

Marlene H. Dortch, 

Secretary. 

Final Rules 

■ For the reasons discussed in the 

preamble, the Federal Communications 

Commission amends 47 CFR parts 0, 1, 

2, 27 and 90 as follows: 

PART 0—COMMISSION 

ORGANIZATION 

■ 1. The authority citation for part 0 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: Secs. 5, 48 Stat. 1068, as 

amended; 47 U.S.C. 155. 

■ 2. Section 0.181 is amended by adding 

paragraph (k) to read as follows: 

§ 0.181 The Defense Commissioner. 

* * * * * 

(k) To decide, in response to a request 

by the Public Safety Broadband 

Licensee whether circumstances 

warrant emergency priority access by 

first responder public safety entities to 

the Upper 700 MHz D Block license 

spectrum. 

PART 1—PRACTICE AND 

PROCEDURE 

■ 3. The authority citation for part 1 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 15 U.S.C. 79 et seq.; 47 U.S.C. 

151, 154(i), 154(j), 155, 157, 225, 303(r), and 

309. 

■ 4. Section 1.946 is amended by 

revising paragraph (c) to read as follows: 

§ 1.946 Construction and coverage 

requirements. 

* * * * * 

(c) Termination of authorizations. If a 

licensee fails to commence service or 

operations by the expiration of its 

construction period or to meet its 

coverage or substantial service 

obligations by the expiration of its 

coverage period, its authorization 

terminates automatically (in whole or in 

part as set forth in the service rules), 


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Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 164 / Friday, August 24, 2007 / Rules and Regulations 48843 

without specific Commission action, on 

the date the construction or coverage 

period expires. 

* * * * * 

■ 5. Section 1.955 is amended by 

revising paragraph (a)(2) to read as 

follows: 

§ 1.955 Terminations of authorizations. 

(a) * * * 

(2) Failure to meet construction or 

coverage requirements. Authorizations 

automatically terminate (in whole or in 

part as set forth in the service rules), 

without specific Commission action, if 

the licensee fails to meet applicable 

construction or coverage requirements. 

See § 1.946(c). 

* * * * * 

■ 6. Section 1.2105 is amended by 

revising paragraph (c)(6) to read as 

follows: 

§ 1.2105 Bidding application and 

certification procedures; prohibition of 

collusion. 

* * * * * 

(c) * * * 

(6) Any applicant that makes or 

receives a communication of bids or 

bidding strategies prohibited under 

paragraph (c)(1) of this section shall 

report such communication in writing 

to the Commission immediately, and in 

no case later than five business days 

after the communication occurs. An 

applicant’s obligation to make such a 

report continues until the report has 

been made. Such reports shall be filed 

with the Office of the Secretary, and a 

copy shall be sent to the Chief of the 

Auctions and Spectrum Access 

Division, Wireless Telecommunications 

Bureau. 

■ 7. Section 1.9005 is amended by 

revising paragraph (k) to read as follows: 

§ 1.9005 Included services. 

* * * * * 

(k) The Wireless Communications 

Service in the 746–763 MHz, 775–793 

MHz, and 805–806 MHz bands (part 27 

of this chapter); 

PART 2—FREQUENCY ALLOCATIONS 

AND RADIO TREATY MATTERS; 

GENERAL RULES AND REGULATIONS 

■ 8. The authority citation for part 2 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 47 U.S.C. 154, 302a, 303, and 

336, unless otherwise noted. 

■ 9. Section 2.103 is amended by 

revising paragraphs (a) introductory text 

and (b) introductory text and adding 

paragraph (c) to read as follows: 

§ 2.103 Federal use of non-Federal 

frequencies. 

(a) Federal stations may be authorized 

to use non-Federal frequencies in the 

bands above 25 MHz (except the 763–

775 MHz and 793–805 MHz public 

safety bands) if the Commission finds 

that such use is necessary for 

coordination of Federal and non-Federal 

activities: Provided, however, that: 

* * * * * 

(b) Federal stations may be authorized 

to use channels in the 769–775 MHz, 

799–805 MHz and 4940–4990 MHz 

public safety bands with non-Federal 

entities if the Commission finds such 

use necessary; where: 

* * * * * 

(c) Federal stations may be authorized 

to use channels in the 763–768 MHz 

and 793–798 MHz public safety bands 

with non-Federal entities where: 

(1) The Federal entity obtains the 

prior approval of the Public Safety 

Broadband Licensee (and such approval 

granted by the Public Safety Broadband 

Licensee is consistent with the terms 

and conditions of the Network Sharing 

Agreement under 90.1406 of this 

chapter); and 

(2) Federal operation is in accordance 

with the Commission’s rules governing 

operation of this band and conforms to 

any conditions agreed upon by the 

Commission and NTIA. 

PART 27—MISCELLANEOUS 

WIRELESS COMMUNICATIONS 

SERVICES 

■ 10. The authority citation for part 27 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 47 U.S.C. 154, 301, 302, 303, 

307, 309, 332, 336, and 337 unless otherwise 

noted. 

■ 11. Section 27.1 is amended by 

revising paragraph (b)(2) to read as 

follows: 

* * * * * 

§ 27.1 Basis and purpose. 

(b) * * * 

(2) 746–763 MHz, 775–793 MHz, and 

805–806 MHz. 

■ 12. Section 27.2 is amended by 

revising paragraph (b) to read as follows: 

§ 27.2 Permissible communications. 

* * * * * 

(b) 775–776 MHz and 805–806 MHz 

bands. Operators in the 775–776 MHz 

and 805–806 MHz bands may not 

employ a cellular system architecture. A 

cellular system architecture is defined, 

for purposes of this part, as one that 

consists of many small areas or cells 

(segmented from a larger geographic 

service area), each of which uses its own 

base station, to enable frequencies to be 

reused at relatively short distances. 

* * * * * 

■ 13. Section 27.4 is amended by adding 

the following definitions in alphabetical 

order to read as follows: 

§ 27.4 Terms and definitions. 

700 MHz Public/Private Partnership. 

The public/private partnership 

established for the development and 

operation of a nationwide, shared 

interoperable wireless broadband 

network operating on the 758–763 MHz 

and 788–793 MHz bands and the 763–

768 MHz and 793–798 MHz bands in 

accordance with the Commission’s 

rules. 

* * * * * 

Network Assets Holder. The Network 

Assets Holder is a Special Purpose 

Bankruptcy Remote Entity that is 

formed to hold the assets of the shared 

wireless broadband network associated 

with the 700 MHz Public/Private 

Partnership, in accordance with the 

terms of the Network Sharing 

Agreement, such other agreements as 

the Commission may require or allow, 

and the Commission’s rules. 

Network Sharing Agreement (NSA). 

An agreement entered into between the 

winning bidder, the Upper 700 MHz D 

Block licensee, the Network Assets 

Holder, the Operating Company, the 

Public Safety Broadband Licensee, and 

any other related entities that the 

Commission may require or allow 

regarding the shared wireless broadband 

network associated with the 700 MHz 

Public/Private Partnership that will 

operate on the 758–763 MHz and 788–

793 MHz bands and the 763–768 MHz 

and 793–798 MHz bands. 

Operating Company. The Operating 

Company is a Special Purpose 

Bankruptcy Remote Entity that is 

formed to build and operate the shared 

wireless broadband network associated 

with the 700 MHz Public/Private 

Partnership, in accordance with the 

terms of the Network Sharing 

Agreement, such other agreements as 

the Commission may require or allow, 

and the Commission’s rules. 

* * * * * 

Public Safety Broadband License. The 

Public Safety Broadband License 

authorizes public safety broadband 

services in the 763–768 MHz and 793–

798 MHz bands. 

Public Safety Broadband Licensee. 

The licensee of the Public Safety 

Broadband License in the 763–768 MHz 

and 793–798 MHz bands. 

* * * * * 

Shared Wireless Broadband Network. 

Wireless broadband network associated 


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48844 Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 164 / Friday, August 24, 2007 / Rules and Regulations 

with the 700 MHz Band Public/Private 

Partnership that operates on the 758–

763 MHz and 788–793 MHz bands and 

the 763–768 MHz and 793–798 MHz 

bands pursuant to the terms of the 

Network Sharing Agreement, such other 

agreements as the Commission may 

require or allow, and the Commission’s 

rules. 

Special Purpose Bankruptcy Remote 

Entity. A ‘‘special purpose entity’’ is a 

legal entity created for a special limited 

purpose, in this context primarily to 

hold the Upper 700 MHz D Block 

license or the network assets, or to 

conduct the construction or operation of 

the shared wireless broadband network 

associated with the 700 MHz Public/ 

Private Partnership. A special purpose 

entity is ‘‘bankruptcy remote’’ if that 

entity is unlikely to become insolvent as 

a result of its own activities, is 

adequately insulated from the 

consequences of a related party’s 

insolvency, and contains certain 

characteristics which enhance the 

likelihood that it will not become the 

subject of an insolvency proceeding. 

* * * * * 

Upper 700 MHz D Block license. The 

Upper 700 MHz D Block license is the 

nationwide license associated with the 

758–763 MHz and 788–793 MHz bands. 

Upper 700 MHz D Block licensee. The 

Special Purpose Bankruptcy Remote 

Entity to which the Upper 700 MHz D 

Block license must be transferred upon 

execution of the Network Sharing 

Agreement. References herein to the 

rights and obligations of the Upper 700 

MHz D Block licensee include the 

exercise or discharge of such rights or 

obligations, respectively, by related 

entities as are provided for in the NSA 

or otherwise as authorized by the 

Commission. 

* * * * * 

■ 14. Section 27.5 is amended by 

revising paragraph (b) to read as follows: 

§ 27.5 Frequencies. 

* * * * * 

(b) 746–763 MHz, 775–793 MHz, and 

805–806 MHz bands. The following 

frequencies are available for licensing 

pursuant to this part in the 746–763 

MHz, 775–793 MHz, and 805–806 MHz 

bands: 

(1) Two paired channels of 1 

megahertz each are available for 

assignment in Block A in the 757–758 

MHz and 787–788 MHz bands. 

(2) Two paired channels of 1 

megahertz each are available for 

assignment in Block B in the 775–776 

MHz and 805–806 MHz bands. 

(3) Two paired channels of 11 

megahertz each are available for 

assignment in Block C in the 746–757 

MHz and 776–787 MHz bands. In the 

event that no licenses for two channels 

in this Block C are assigned based on 

the results of the first auction in which 

such licenses were offered because the 

auction results do not satisfy the 

applicable reserve price, the spectrum 

in the 746–757 MHz and 776–787 MHz 

bands will instead be made available for 

assignment at a subsequent auction as 

follows: 

(i) Two paired channels of 6 

megahertz each available for assignment 

in Block C1 in the 746–752 MHz and 

776–782 MHz bands. 

(ii) Two paired channels of 5 

megahertz each available for assignment 

in Block C2 in the 752–757 MHz and 

782–787 MHz bands. 

(4) Two paired channels of 5 

megahertz each are available for 

assignment in Block D in the 758–763 

MHz and 788–793 MHz bands. 

* * * * * 

■ 15. Section 27.6 is amended by 

revising paragraphs (a) introductory 

text, (b), (c), and (e) to read as follows: 

§ 27.6 Service Areas. 

(a) WCS service areas include 

Economic Areas (EAs), Major Economic 

Areas (MEAs), Regional Economic Area 

Groupings (REAGs), cellular markets 

comprising Metropolitan Statistical 

Areas (MSAs) and Rural Service Areas 

(RSAs), and a nationwide area. MEAs 

and REAGs are defined in the Table 

immediately following paragraph (a)(1) 

of this section. Both MEAs and REAGs 

are based on the U.S. Department of 

Commerce’s EAs. See 60 FR 13114 

(March 10, 1995). In addition, the 

Commission shall separately license 

Guam and the Northern Mariana 

Islands, Puerto Rico and the United 

States Virgin Islands, American Samoa, 

and the Gulf of Mexico, which have 

been assigned Commission-created EA 

numbers 173–176, respectively. The 

nationwide area is composed of the 

contiguous 48 states, Alaska, Hawaii, 

the Gulf of Mexico, and the U.S. 

territories. Maps of the EAs, MEAs, 

MSAs, RSAs, and REAGs and the 

Federal Register Notice that established 

the 172 EAs are available for public 

inspection and copying at the Reference 

Information Center, Consumer and 

Governmental Affairs Bureau, Federal 

Communications Commission, 445 12th 

Street, SW., Washington, DC 20554. 

* * * * * 

(b) 746–763 MHz, 775–793 MHz, and 

805–806 MHz bands. WCS service areas 

for the 746–763 MHz, 775–793 MHz, 

and 805–806 MHz bands are as follows. 

(1) Service areas for Block A in the 

757–758 MHz and 787–788 MHz bands 

and Block B in the 775–776 MHz and 

805–806 MHz bands are based on Major 

Economic Areas (MEAs), as defined in 

paragraphs (a)(1) and (a)(2) of this 

section. 

(2) Service areas for Block C in the 

746–757 MHz and 776–787 MHz bands 

are based on Regional Economic Area 

Groupings (REAGs) as defined by 

paragraph (a) of this section. In the 

event that no licenses with respect to 

service areas for Block C in the 746–757 

MHz and 776–787 MHz bands are 

assigned based on the results of the first 

auction in which such licenses are 

offered because the auction results do 

not satisfy the applicable reserve price, 

then service areas for the spectrum at 

746–757 MHz and 776–787 MHz will 

instead be available for assignment as 

follows: 

(i) Service areas for Block C1 in the 

746–752 MHz and 776–782 MHz bands 

are based on Economic Areas (EAs) as 

defined in paragraph (a) of this section. 

(ii) Service areas for Block C2 in the 

752–757 MHz and 782–787 MHz bands 

are based on Regional Economic Area 

Groupings (REAGs) as defined by 

paragraph (a) of this section. 

(3) Service area for Block D in the 

758–763 MHz and 788–793 MHz bands 

is a nationwide area as defined in 

paragraph (a)(1) of this section. 

(c) 698–746 MHz band. WCS service 

areas for the 698–746 MHz band are as 

follows. 

(1) Service areas for Block A in the 

698–704 MHz and 728–734 MHz bands 

and Block E in the 722–728 MHz band 

are based on Economic Areas (EAs) as 

defined in paragraph (a) of this section. 

(2) Service areas for Block B in the 

704–710 MHz and 734–740 MHz bands 

and Block C in the 710–716 MHz and 

740–746 MHz bands are based on 

cellular markets comprising 

Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs) 

and Rural Service Areas (RSAs) as 

defined by Public Notice Report No. 

CL–92–40 ‘‘Common Carrier Public 

Mobile Services Information, Cellular 

MSA/RSA Markets and Counties,’’

dated January 24, 1992, DA 92–109, 7 

FCC Rcd 742 (1992), with the following 

modifications: 

(i) The service areas of cellular 

markets that border the U.S. coastline of 

the Gulf of Mexico extend 12 nautical 

miles from the U.S. Gulf coastline. 

(ii) The service area of cellular market 

306 that comprises the water area of the 

Gulf of Mexico extends from 12 nautical 

miles off the U.S. Gulf coast outward 

into the Gulf. 

(3) Service areas for Block D in the 

716–722 MHz band are based on 


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Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 164 / Friday, August 24, 2007 / Rules and Regulations 48845 

Economic Area Groupings (EAGs) as 

defined by the Federal Communications 

Commission. See 62 FR 15978 (April 3, 

1997) extended with the Gulf of Mexico. 

See also paragraphs (a)(1) and (a)(2) of 

this section and 62 FR 9636 (March 3, 

1997), in which the Commission created 

an additional four economic area-like 

areas for a total of 176. Maps of the 

EAGs and the Federal Register notice 

that established the 172 Economic Areas 

(EAs) are available for public inspection 

and copying at the Reference Center, 

Room CY A–257, 445 12th St., SW., 

Washington, DC 20554. These maps and 

data are also available on the FCC Web 

site at http://www.fcc.gov/oet/info/ 

maps/areas/. 

(i) There are 6 EAGs, which are 

composed of multiple EAs as defined in 

the table below: 

Economic area groupings Name Economic areas 

EAG001 ........................................... Northeast ....................................... 1–11, 54. 

EAG002 ........................................... Mid-Atlantic .................................... 12–26, 41, 42, 44–53, 70. 

EAG003 ........................................... Southeast ....................................... 27–40, 43, 69, 71–86, 88–90, 95, 96, 174, 176 (part). 

EAG004 ........................................... Great Lakes ................................... 55–68, 97, 100–109. 

EAG005 ........................................... Central/Mountain ........................... 87, 91–94, 98, 99, 110–146, 148, 149, 152, 154–159, 176 (part). 

EAG006 ........................................... Pacific ............................................ 147, 150, 151, 153, 160–173, 175. 

Note 1 to paragraph (c)(3)(i): Economic 

Area Groupings are defined by the Federal 

Communications Commission; see 62 FR 

15978 (April 3, 1997) extended with the Gulf 

of Mexico. 

Note 2 to paragraph (c)(3)(i): Economic 

Areas are defined by the Regional Economic 

Analysis Division, Bureau of Economic 

Analysis, U.S. Department of Commerce 

February 1995 and extended by the Federal 

Communications Commission, see 62 FR 

9636 (March 3, 1997). 

(ii) For purposes of paragraph (c)(3)(i) 

of this section, EA 176 (the Gulf of 

Mexico) will be divided between 

EAG003 (the Southeast EAG) and 

EAG005 (the Central/Mountain EAG) in 

accordance with the configuration of the 

Eastern/Central and Western Planning 

Area established by the Mineral 

Management Services Bureau of the 

Department of the Interior (MMS). That 

portion of EA 176 contained in the 

Eastern and Central Planning Areas as 

defined by MMS will be included in 

EAG003; that portion of EA 176 

contained in the Western Planning Area 

as defined by MMS will be included in 

EAG005. Maps of these areas may be 

found on the MMS Web site: http:// 

www.gomr.mms.gov/homepg/offshore/ 

offshore.html. 

* * * * * 

(e) The paired 1392–1395 and 1432–

1435 MHz bands. Service areas for the 

paired 1392–1395 and 1432–1435 MHz 

bands are as follows. Service areas for 

Block A in the 1392–1393.5 MHz and 

1432–1433.5 MHz bands and Block B in 

the 1393.5–1395 MHz and 1433.5–1435 

MHz bands are based on Economic Area 

Groupings (EAGs) as defined in 

paragraph (c)(3) of this section. 

* * * * * 

■ 16. Section 27.11 is amended by 

revising paragraphs (c) and (d) to read 

as follows: 

§ 27.11 Initial authorization. 

* * * * * 

(c) 746–763 MHz, 775–793 MHz, and 

805–806 MHz bands. Initial 

authorizations for the 746–763 MHz, 

775–793 MHz, and 805–806 MHz bands 

shall be for paired channels of 1, 5, 6, 

or 11 megahertz of spectrum in 

accordance with § 27.5(b). 

(1) Authorizations for Block A, 

consisting of two paired channels of 1 

megahertz each, will be based on those 

geographic areas specified in 

§ 27.6(b)(1). 

(2) Authorizations for Block B, 

consisting of two paired channels of 1 

megahertz each, will be based on those 

geographic areas specified in 

§ 27.6(b)(1). 

(3) Authorizations for Block C, 

consisting of two paired channels of 11 

megahertz each, will be based on those 

geographic areas specified in 

§ 27.6(b)(2). In the event that no licenses 

granting authorizations for Block C, 

consisting of two paired channels of 11 

megahertz each, are assigned based on 

the results of the first auction in which 

such licenses are offered because the 

auction results do not satisfy the 

applicable reserve price, then the 

authorizations for the spectrum in the 

746–757 MHz and 776–787 MHz bands 

will instead be as follows: 

(i) Authorizations for Block C1, 

consisting of two paired channels of 6 

megahertz each in the 746–752 MHz 

and 776–782 MHz bands, will be based 

on those geographic areas specified in 

§ 27.6(b)(2)(i). 

(ii) Authorizations for Block C2, 

consisting of two paired channels of 5 

megahertz each in the 752–757 MHz 

and 782–787 MHz bands, will be based 

on those geographic areas specified in 

§ 27.6(b)(2)(ii). 

(4) The authorization for Block D, 

consisting of two paired channels of 5 

megahertz each, will be based on the 

geographic area specified in § 27.6(b)(3). 

(d) 698–746 MHz band. Initial 

authorizations for the 698–746 MHz 

band shall be for 6 or 12 megahertz of 

spectrum in accordance with § 27.5(c). 

(1) Authorizations for Block A, 

consisting of two paired channels of 6 

megahertz each, will be based on those 

geographic areas specified in 

§ 27.6(c)(1). 

(2) Authorizations for Block B, 

consisting of two paired channels of 6 

megahertz each, will be based on those 

geographic areas specified in 

§ 27.6(c)(2). 

(3) Authorizations for Block C, 

consisting of two paired channels of 6 

megahertz each, will be based on those 

geographic areas specified in 

§ 27.6(c)(2). 

(4) Authorizations for Block D, 

consisting of an unpaired channel block 

of 6 megahertz, will be based on those 

geographic areas specified in 

§ 27.6(c)(3). 

(5) Authorizations for Block E, 

consisting of an unpaired channel block 

of 6 megahertz, will be based on those 

geographic areas specified in 

§ 27.6(c)(1). 

* * * * * 

■ 17. Section 27.13 is amended by 

revising the paragraph heading and the 

first and second sentence in paragraph 

(b) to read as follows: 

§ 27.13 License period. 

* * * * * 

(b) 698–763 MHz and 776–793 MHz 

bands. Initial authorizations for the 

698–763 MHz and 776–793 MHz bands 

will extend for a term not to exceed ten 

years from February 17, 2009, except 

that initial authorizations for a part 27 

licensee that provides broadcast 

services, whether exclusively or in 

combination with other services, will 

not exceed eight years. Initial 

authorizations for the 775–776 MHz and 

805–806 MHz bands shall not exceed 

January 1, 2015. * * * 

* * * * * 


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48846 Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 164 / Friday, August 24, 2007 / Rules and Regulations 

§ 27.14 [Amended] 

■ 18. Amend § 27.14 as follows: 

■ a. Revise paragraph (a). 

■ b. Remove paragraph (f). 

■ c. Redesignate paragraph (e) as 

paragraph (f). 

■ d. Add new paragraphs (e), (g), (h), (i), 

(j), (k), (l), (m), and (n). 

§ 27.14 Construction requirements; criteria 

for renewal. 

(a) AWS and WCS licensees, with the 

exception of WCS licensees holding 

authorizations for Block A in the 698–

704 MHz and 728–734 MHz bands, 

Block B in the 704–710 MHz and 734–

740 MHz bands, Block E in the 722–728 

MHz band, Block C in the 746–757 MHz 

and 776–787 MHz, and Block D in the 

758–763 MHz and 788–793 MHz bands 

must, as a performance requirement, 

make a showing of ‘‘substantial service’’

in their license area within the 

prescribed license term set forth in 

§ 27.13. ‘‘Substantial service’’ is defined 

as service which is sound, favorable and 

substantially above a level of mediocre 

service which just might minimally 

warrant renewal. Failure by any licensee 

to meet this requirement will result in 

forfeiture of the license and the licensee 

will be ineligible to regain it. 

* * * * * 

(e) Comparative renewal proceedings 

do not apply to WCS licensees holding 

authorizations for the 698–757 MHz, 

758–763 MHz, 776–787 MHz, and 788–

793 MHz bands. These licensees must 

file a renewal application in accordance 

with the provisions set forth in § 1.949 

of this chapter, and must make a 

showing of substantial service, 

independent of its performance 

requirements, as a condition for renewal 

at the end of each license term. 

* * * * * 

(g) WCS licensees holding EA 

authorizations for Block A in the 698–

704 MHz and 728–734 MHz bands, 

cellular market authorizations for Block 

B in the 704–710 MHz and 734–740 

MHz bands, and EA authorizations for 

Block E in the 722–728 MHz band, if the 

results of the first auction in which 

licenses for such authorizations are 

offered satisfy the reserve price for the 

applicable block, shall provide signal 

coverage and offer service over at least 

35 percent of the geographic area of 

each of their license authorizations no 

later than February 17, 2013 (or within 

four years of initial license grant if the 

initial authorization in a market is 

granted after February 17, 2009), and 

shall provide such service over at least 

70 percent of the geographic area of 

each of these authorizations by the end 

of the license term. In applying these 

geographic benchmarks, licensees are 

not required to include land owned or 

administered by government as a part of 

the relevant service area. Licensees may 

count covered government land for 

purposes of meeting their geographic 

construction benchmark, but are 

required to add the covered government 

land to the total geographic area used 

for measurement purposes. Licensees 

are required to include those populated 

lands held by tribal governments and 

those held by the Federal Government 

in trust or for the benefit of a recognized 

tribe. 

(1) If an EA or CMA licensee holding 

an authorization in these particular 

blocks fails to provide signal coverage 

and offer service over at least 35 percent 

of the geographic area of its license 

authorization by no later than February 

17, 2013 (or within four years of initial 

license grant, if the initial authorization 

in a market is granted after February 17, 

2009), the term of that license 

authorization will be reduced by two 

years and such licensee may be subject 

to enforcement action, including 

forfeitures. In addition, such an EA or 

CMA licensee may lose authority to 

operate in part of the remaining 

unserved areas of the license. 

(2) If any such EA or CMA licensee 

fails to provide signal coverage and offer 

service to at least 70 percent of the 

geographic area of its license 

authorization by the end of the license 

term, that licensee’s authorization will 

terminate automatically without 

Commission action for those geographic 

portions of its license in which the 

licensee is not providing service, and 

those unserved areas will become 

available for reassignment by the 

Commission. Such licensee may also be 

subject to enforcement action, including 

forfeitures. In addition, an EA or CMA 

licensee that provides signal coverage 

and offers service at a level that is below 

the end-of-term benchmark may be 

subject to license termination. In the 

event that a licensee’s authority to 

operate in a license area terminates 

automatically without Commission 

action, such areas will become available 

for reassignment pursuant to the 

procedures in paragraph (j) of this 

section. 

(3) For licenses under paragraphs (g), 

(h), and (i), of this section, the 

geographic service area to be made 

available to new entrants must include 

a contiguous area of at least 130 square 

kilometers (50 square miles), and areas 

smaller than a contiguous area of at least 

130 square kilometers (50 square miles) 

will not be deemed unserved. 

(h) WCS licensees holding 

authorizations for Block C in the 746–

757 MHz and 776–787 MHz bands shall 

provide signal coverage and offer 

service over at least 40 percent of the 

population in each EA comprising the 

REAG license area no later than 

February 17, 2013 (or within four years 

of initial license grant, if the initial 

authorization in a market is granted 

after February 17, 2009), and shall 

provide such service over at least 75 

percent of the population of each of 

these EAs by the end of the license term. 

For purposes of compliance with this 

requirement, licensees should 

determine population based on the most 

recently available U.S. Census Data. 

(1) If a licensee holding a Block C 

authorization fails to provide signal 

coverage and offer service over at least 

40 percent of the population in each EA 

comprising the REAG license area by no 

later than February 17, 2013 (or within 

four years of initial license grant if the 

initial authorization in a market is 

granted after February 17, 2009), the 

term of the license authorization will be 

reduced by two years and such licensee 

may be subject to enforcement action, 

including forfeitures. In addition, a 

licensee that provides signal coverage 

and offers service at a level that is below 

the interim benchmark may lose 

authority to operate in part of the 

remaining unserved areas of the license. 

(2) If a licensee holding a Block C 

authorization fails to provide signal 

coverage and offer service over at least 

75 percent of the population in any EA 

comprising the REAG license area by 

the end of the license term, for each 

such EA that licensee’s authorization 

will terminate automatically without 

Commission action for those geographic 

portions of its license in which the 

licensee is not providing service. Such 

licensee may also be subject to 

enforcement action, including 

forfeitures. In the event that a licensee’s 

authority to operate in a license area 

terminates automatically without 

Commission action, such areas will 

become available for reassignment 

pursuant to the procedures in paragraph 

(j) of this section. In addition, a REAG 

licensee that provides signal coverage 

and offers service at a level that is below 

the end-of-term benchmark within any 

EA may be subject to license 

termination within that EA. 

(i) WCS licensees holding EA 

authorizations for Block A in the 698–

704 MHz and 728–734 MHz bands, 

cellular market authorizations for Block 

B in the 704–710 MHz and 734–740 

MHz bands, and EA authorizations for 

Block E in the 722–728 MHz band, if the 

results of the first auction in which 

licenses for such authorizations in 

Blocks A, B, and E are offered do not 


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satisfy the reserve price for the 

applicable block, as well as EA 

authorizations for Block C1 in the 746–

752 MHz and 776–782 MHz bands and 

REAG authorizations for Block C2 in the 

752–757 MHz and 782–787 MHz bands, 

are subject to the following: 

(1) If a licensee holding a cellular 

market area or EA authorization subject 

to this paragraph (i) fails to provide 

signal coverage and offer service over at 

least 40 percent of the population in its 

license area by no later than February 

17, 2013 (or within four years of initial 

license grant, if the initial authorization 

in a market is granted after February 17, 

2009), the term of that license 

authorization will be reduced by two 

years and such licensee may be subject 

to enforcement action, including 

forfeitures. In addition, such licensee 

that provides signal coverage and offers 

service at a level that is below the 

interim benchmark may lose authority 

to operate in part of the remaining 

unserved areas of the license. For 

purposes of compliance with this 

requirement, licensees should 

determine population based on the most 

recently available U.S. Census Data. 

(2) If a licensee holding a cellular 

market area or EA authorization subject 

to this paragraph (i) fails to provide 

signal coverage and offer service over at 

least 75 percent of the population in its 

license area by the end of the license 

term, that licensee’s authorization will 

terminate automatically without 

Commission action for those geographic 

portions of its license in which the 

licensee is not providing service, and 

those unserved areas will become 

available for reassignment by the 

Commission. Such licensee may also be 

subject to enforcement action, including 

forfeitures. In the event that a licensee’s 

authority to operate in a license area 

terminates automatically without 

Commission action, such areas will 

become available for reassignment 

pursuant to the procedures in paragraph 

(j) of this section. In addition, such a 

licensee that provides signal coverage 

and offers service at a level that is below 

the end-of-term benchmark may be 

subject to license termination. For 

purposes of compliance with this 

requirement, licensees should 

determine population based on the most 

recently available U.S. Census Data. 

(3) Licensee’s holding an 

authorization in Block C2 will be 

subject to the requirements in paragraph 

(h) of this section. 

(j) In the event that a licensee’s 

authority to operate in a license area 

terminates automatically under 

paragraphs (g), (h), or (i) of this section, 

such areas will become available for 

reassignment pursuant to the following 

procedures: 

(1) The Wireless Telecommunications 

Bureau is delegated authority to 

announce by public notice that these 

license areas will be made available and 

establish a 30-day window during 

which third parties may file license 

applications to serve these areas. During 

this 30-day period, licensees that had 

their authority to operate terminate 

automatically for unserved areas may 

not file applications to provide service 

to these areas. Applications filed by 

third parties that propose areas 

overlapping with other applications will 

be deemed mutually exclusive, and will 

be resolved through an auction. The 

Wireless Telecommunications Bureau, 

by public notice, may specify a limited 

period before the filing of short-form 

applications (FCC Form 175) during 

which applicants may enter into a 

settlement to resolve their mutual 

exclusivity, subject to the provisions of 

§ 1.935 of this chapter. 

(2) Following this 30-day period, the 

original licensee and third parties can 

file license applications for remaining 

unserved areas where licenses have not 

been issued or for which there are no 

pending applications. If the original 

licensee or a third party files an 

application, that application will be 

placed on public notice for 30 days. If 

no mutually exclusive application is 

filed, the application will be granted, 

provided that a grant is found to be in 

the public interest. If a mutually 

exclusive application is filed, it will be 

resolved through an auction. The 

Wireless Telecommunications Bureau, 

by public notice, may specify a limited 

period before the filing of short-form 

applications (FCC Form 175) during 

which applicants may enter into a 

settlement to resolve their mutual 

exclusivity, subject to the provisions of 

§ 1.935 of this chapter. 

(3) The licensee will have one year 

from the date the new license is issued 

to complete its construction and provide 

signal coverage and offer service over 

100 percent of the geographic area of the 

new license area. If the licensee fails to 

meet this construction requirement, its 

license will automatically terminate 

without Commission action and it will 

not be eligible to apply to provide 

service to this area at any future date. 

(k) WCS licensees with authorizations 

in the spectrum blocks enumerated in 

paragraphs (g), (h), or (i), of this section, 

including any licensee that obtained its 

license pursuant to the procedures set 

forth in paragraph (j) of this section, 

shall demonstrate compliance with 

performance requirements by filing a 

construction notification with the 

Commission, within 15 days of the 

expiration of the relevant benchmark, in 

accordance with the provisions set forth 

in § 1.946(d) of this chapter. The 

licensee must certify whether it has met 

the relevant performance requirement. 

All licensees must file a description and 

certification of the areas for which they 

are providing service. The construction 

notifications must include electronic 

coverage maps, supporting technical 

documentation and any other 

information as the Wireless 

Telecommunications Bureau may 

prescribe by public notice. 

(l) WCS licensees with authorizations 

in the spectrum blocks enumerated in 

paragraphs (g), (h), or (i), of this section, 

excluding any licensee that obtained its 

license pursuant to the procedures set 

forth in paragraph (j), of this section, 

shall file interim reports with the 

Commission that provide the 

Commission, at a minimum, with 

information concerning the status of 

their efforts to meet the performance 

requirements applicable to their 

authorizations in such spectrum blocks 

and the manner in which that spectrum 

is being utilized. The information to be 

reported will include the date the 

license term commenced, a description 

of the steps the licensee has taken 

toward meeting its construction 

obligations in a timely manner, 

including the technology or 

technologies and service(s) being 

provided, and the areas within their 

license areas in which those services are 

available. These licensees shall file their 

first interim report with the Commission 

no later than February 17, 2011 and no 

sooner than 30 days prior to this date. 

Licensees that meet their interim 

benchmarks shall file a second interim 

report with the Commission no later 

than February 17, 2016 and no sooner 

than 30 days prior to this date. 

Licensees that do not meet their interim 

benchmarks shall file their second 

interim report no later than on February 

17, 2015 and no sooner than 30 days 

prior to this date. 

(m) The WCS licensee holding the 

authorization for the D Block at 758–763 

MHz and 788–793 MHz (the Upper 700 

MHz D Block licensee) shall comply 

with the following construction 

requirements. 

(1) The Upper 700 MHz D Block 

licensee shall provide a signal coverage 

and offer service over at least 75 percent 

of the population of the nationwide 

Upper 700 MHz D Block license area 

within four years from February 17, 

2009, 95 percent of the population of 

the nationwide license area within 

seven years, and 99.3 percent of the 


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population of the nationwide license 

area within ten years. 

(2) The Upper 700 MHz D Block 

licensee may modify, to a limited 

degree, its population-based 

construction benchmarks with the 

agreement of the Public Safety 

Broadband Licensee and the prior 

approval of the Commission, where 

such a modification would better serve 

to meet commercial and public safety 

needs. 

(3) The Upper 700 MHz D Block 

licensee shall meet the population 

benchmarks based on a performance 

schedule specified in the Network 

Sharing Agreement, taking into account 

performance pursuant to § 27.1327 as 

appropriate under that rule, and using 

the most recently available U.S. Census 

Data. The network and signal levels 

employed to meet these benchmarks 

must be adequate for public safety use, 

as defined in the Network Sharing 

Agreement, and the services made 

available must include those 

appropriate for public safety entities 

that operate in those areas. The 

schedule shall include coverage for 

major highways and interstates, as well 

as such additional areas that are 

necessary to provide coverage for all 

incorporated communities with a 

population in excess of 3,000, unless the 

Public Safety Broadband Licensee and 

the Upper 700 MHz D Block licensee 

jointly determine, in consultation with 

a relevant community, that such 

additional coverage will not provide 

significant public benefit. 

(4) The Upper 700 MHz D Block 

licensee shall demonstrate compliance 

with performance requirements by filing 

a construction notification with the 

Commission within 15 days of the 

expiration of the relevant benchmark, in 

accordance with the provisions set forth 

in § 1.946(d) of this chapter. The 

licensee must certify whether it has met 

the relevant performance requirement 

and must file a description and 

certification of the areas for which it is 

providing service. The construction 

notifications must include the 

following: 

(i) Certifications of the areas that were 

scheduled for construction and service 

by that date under the Network Sharing 

Agreement for which it is providing 

service, the type of service it is 

providing for each area, and the type of 

technology it is utilizing to provide this 

service. 

(ii) Electronic coverage maps and 

supporting technical documentation 

providing the assumptions used by the 

licensee to create the coverage maps, 

including the propagation model and 

the signal strength necessary to provide 

service. 

(n) At the end of its license term, the 

Upper 700 MHz D Block licensee must, 

in order to renew its license, make a 

showing of its success in meeting the 

material requirements set forth in the 

Network Sharing Agreement as well as 

all other license conditions, including 

the performance benchmark 

requirements set forth in this section. 

§ 27.15 [Amended] 

■ 19. Amend § 27.15 by revising 

paragraph (d) to read as follows: 

§ 27.15 Geographic partitioning and 

spectrum disaggregation. 

* * * * * 

(d) Compliance with construction 

requirements—(1) Partitioning. (i) 

Except for WCS licensees holding 

authorizations for Block A in the 698–

704 MHz and 728–734 MHz bands, 

Block B in the 704–710 MHz and 734–

740 MHz bands, Block E in the 722–728 

MHz band, Blocks C, C1, and C2 in the 

746–757 MHz and 776–787 MHz bands, 

and Block D in the 758–763 MHz and 

788–793 MHz bands, the following rules 

apply to WCS and AWS licensees 

holding authorizations for purposes of 

implementing the construction 

requirements set forth in § 27.14. Parties 

to partitioning agreements have two 

options for satisfying the construction 

requirements set forth in § 27.14. Under 

the first option, the partitioner and 

partitionee each certifies that it will 

independently satisfy the substantial 

service requirement for its respective 

partitioned area. If a licensee 

subsequently fails to meet its substantial 

service requirement, its license will be 

subject to automatic cancellation 

without further Commission action. 

Under the section option, the partitioner 

certifies that it has met or will meet the 

substantial service requirement for the 

entire, pre-partitioned geographic 

service area. If the partitioner 

subsequently fails to meet its substantial 

service requirement, only its license 

will be subject to automatic cancellation 

without further Commission action. 

(ii) For WCS licensees holding 

authorizations for Block A in the 698–

704 MHz and 728–734 MHz bands, 

Block B in the 704–710 MHz and 734–

740 MHz bands, Block E in the 722–728 

MHz band, and Blocks C, C1, and C2 in 

the 746–757 MHz and 776–787 MHz 

bands, the following rules apply for 

purposes of implementing the 

construction requirements set forth in 

§ 27.14. Parties to partitioning 

agreements have two options for 

satisfying the construction requirements 

set forth in § 27.14. Under the first 

option, the partitioner and partitionee 

each certifies that they will collectively 

share responsibility for meeting the 

construction requirement for the entire 

pre-partition geographic license area. If 

the partitioner and partitionee 

collectively fail to meet the construction 

requirement, then both the partitioner 

and partitionee will be subject to the 

consequences enumerated in § 27.14(g) 

and (h) for this failure. Under the 

second option, the partitioner and 

partitionee each certifies that it will 

independently meet the construction 

requirement for its respective 

partitioned license area. If the 

partitioner or partitionee fails to meet 

the construction requirement for its 

respective partitioned license area, then 

the consequences for this failure shall 

be those enumerated in § 27.14(g) and 

(h). 

(2) Disaggregation. (i) Except for WCS 

licensees holding authorizations for 

Block A in the 698–704 MHz and 728–

734 MHz bands, Block B in the 704–710 

MHz and 734–740 MHz bands, Block E 

in the 722–728 MHz band, and Blocks 

C, C1, and C2 in the 746–757 MHz and 

776–787 MHz bands, and Block D in the 

758–763 MHz and 788–793 MHz bands, 

the following rules apply to WCS and 

AWS licensees holding authorizations 

for purposes of implementing the 

construction requirements set forth in 

§ 27.14. Parties to disaggregation 

agreements have two options for 

satisfying the construction requirements 

set forth in § 27.14. Under the first 

option, the disaggregator and 

disaggregatee each certifies that it will 

share responsibility for meeting the 

substantial service requirement for the 

geographic service area. If the parties 

choose this option and either party 

subsequently fails to satisfy its 

substantial service responsibility, both 

parties’ licenses will be subject to 

forfeiture without further Commission 

action. Under the second option, both 

parties certify either that the 

disaggregator or the disaggregatee will 

meet the substantial service requirement 

for the geographic service area. If the 

parties choose this option, and the party 

responsible subsequently fails to meet 

the substantial service requirement, 

only that party’s license will be subject 

to forfeiture without further 

Commission action. 

(ii) For WCS licensees holding 

authorizations for Block A in the 698–

704 MHz and 728–734 MHz bands, 

Block B in the 704–710 MHz and 734–

740 MHz bands, Block E in the 722–728 

MHz band, and Blocks C, C1, and C2 in 

the 746–757 MHz and 776–787 MHz 

bands, the following rules apply for 

purposes of implementing the 


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construction requirements set forth in 

§ 27.14. If either the disaggregator or the 

disaggregatee meets the construction 

requirements set forth in § 27.14, then 

these requirements will be considered to 

be satisfied for both parties. If neither 

the disaggregator nor the disaggregatee 

meets the construction requirements, 

then both parties will be subject to the 

consequences enumerated in § 27.14(g) 

and (h) for this failure. 

■ 20. Add § 27.16 to subpart B to read 

as follows: 

§ 27.16 Network access requirements for 

Block C in the 746–757 and 776–787 MHz 

bands. 

(a) Applicability. This section shall 

apply only to the authorizations for 

Block C in the 746–757 and 776–787 

MHz bands assigned and only if the 

results of the first auction in which 

licenses for such authorizations are 

offered satisfied the applicable reserve 

price. 

(b) Use of devices and applications. 

Licensees offering service on spectrum 

subject to this section shall not deny, 

limit, or restrict the ability of their 

customers to use the devices and 

applications of their choice on the 

licensee’s C Block network, except: 

(1) Insofar as such use would not be 

compliant with published technical 

standards reasonably necessary for the 

management or protection of the 

licensee’s network, or 

(2) As required to comply with statute 

or applicable government regulation. 

(c) Technical standards. For purposes 

of paragraph (b)(1) of this section: 

(1) Standards shall include technical 

requirements reasonably necessary for 

third parties to access a licensee’s 

network via devices or applications 

without causing objectionable 

interference to other spectrum users or 

jeopardizing network security. The 

potential for excessive bandwidth 

demand alone shall not constitute 

grounds for denying, limiting or 

restricting access to the network. 

(2) To the extent a licensee relies on 

standards established by an 

independent standards-setting body 

which is open to participation by 

representatives of service providers, 

equipment manufacturers, application 

developers, consumer organizations, 

and other interested parties, the 

standards will carry a presumption of 

reasonableness. 

(3) A licensee shall publish its 

technical standards, which shall be nonproprietary, no later than the time at 

which it makes such standards available 

to any preferred vendors, so that the 

standards are readily available to 

customers, equipment manufacturers, 

application developers, and other 

parties interested in using or developing 

products for use on a licensee’s 

networks. 

(d) Access requests. (1) Licensees 

shall establish and publish clear and 

reasonable procedures for parties to seek 

approval to use devices or applications 

on the licensees’ networks. A licensee 

must also provide to potential 

customers notice of the customers’

rights to request the attachment of a 

device or application to the licensee’s 

network, and notice of the licensee’s 

process for customers to make such 

requests, including the relevant network 

criteria. 

(2) If a licensee determines that a 

request for access would violate its 

technical standards or regulatory 

requirements, the licensee shall 

expeditiously provide a written 

response to the requester specifying the 

basis for denying access and providing 

an opportunity for the requester to 

modify its request to satisfy the 

licensee’s concerns. 

(e) Handset locking prohibited. No 

licensee may disable features on 

handsets it provides to customers, to the 

extent such features are compliant with 

the licensee’s standards pursuant to 

paragraph (b)of this section, nor 

configure handsets it provides to 

prohibit use of such handsets on other 

providers’ networks. 

(f) Burden of proof. Once a 

complainant sets forth a prima facie 

case that the C Block licensee has 

refused to attach a device or application 

in violation of the requirements adopted 

in this section, the licensee shall have 

the burden of proof to demonstrate that 

it has adopted reasonable network 

standards and reasonably applied those 

standards in the complainant’s case. 

Where the licensee bases its network 

restrictions on industry-wide consensus 

standards, such restrictions would be 

presumed reasonable. 

■ 21. Section 27.50 is amended by 

revising paragraphs (b)(1) through 

(b)(12), (c)(5), (c)(7), (c)(8), (c)(11), and 

by revising tables 1, 2, 3, and 4 at the 

end of the section. 

§ 27.50 Power and antenna height limits. 

* * * * * 

(b) * * * 

(1) Fixed and base stations 

transmitting a signal in the 757–758 and 

775–776 MHz bands must not exceed an 

effective radiated power (ERP) of 1000 

watts and an antenna height of 305 m 

height above average terrain (HAAT), 

except that antenna heights greater than 

305 m HAAT are permitted if power 

levels are reduced below 1000 watts 

ERP in accordance with Table 1 of this 

section. 

(2) Fixed and base stations 

transmitting a signal in the 746–757 

MHz, 758–763 MHz, 776–787 MHz, and 

788–793 MHz bands with an emission 

bandwidth of 1 MHz or less must not 

exceed an ERP of 1000 watts and an 

antenna height of 305 m HAAT, except 

that antenna heights greater than 305 m 

HAAT are permitted if power levels are 

reduced below 1000 watts ERP in 

accordance with Table 1 of this section. 

(3) Fixed and base stations located in 

a county with population density of 100 

or fewer persons per square mile, based 

upon the most recently available 

population statistics from the Bureau of 

the Census, and transmitting a signal in 

the 746–757 MHz, 758–763 MHz, 776–

787 MHz, and 788–793 MHz bands with 

an emission bandwidth of 1 MHz or less 

must not exceed an ERP of 2000 watts 

and an antenna height of 305 m HAAT, 

except that antenna heights greater than 

305 m HAAT are permitted if power 

levels are reduced below 2000 watts 

ERP in accordance with Table 2 of this 

section. 

(4) Fixed and base stations 

transmitting a signal in the 746–757 

MHz, 758–763 MHz, 776–787 MHz, and 

788–793 MHz bands with an emission 

bandwidth greater than 1 MHz must not 

exceed an ERP of 1000 watts/MHz and 

an antenna height of 305 m HAAT, 

except that antenna heights greater than 

305 m HAAT are permitted if power 

levels are reduced below 1000 watts/ 

MHz ERP accordance with Table 3 of 

this section. 

(5) Fixed and base stations located in 

a county with population density of 100 

or fewer persons per square mile, based 

upon the most recently available 

population statistics from the Bureau of 

the Census, and transmitting a signal in 

the 746–757 MHz, 758–763 MHz, 776–

787 MHz, and 788–793 MHz bands with 

an emission bandwidth greater than 1 

MHz must not exceed an ERP of 2000 

watts/MHz and an antenna height of 305 

m HAAT, except that antenna heights 

greater than 305 m HAAT are permitted 

if power levels are reduced below 2000 

watts/MHz ERP in accordance with 

Table 4 of this section. 

(6) Licensees of fixed or base stations 

transmitting a signal in the 746–757 

MHz, 758–763 MHz, 776–787 MHz, and 

788–793 MHz bands at an ERP greater 

than 1000 watts must comply with the 

provisions set forth in paragraph (b)(8) 

of this section and § 27.55(c). 

(7) Licensees seeking to operate a 

fixed or base station located in a county 

with population density of 100 or fewer 

persons per square mile, based upon the 

most recently available population 


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statistics from the Bureau of the Census, 

and transmitting a signal in the 746–757 

MHz, 758–763 MHz, 776–787 MHz, and 

788–793 MHz bands at an ERP greater 

than 1000 watts must: 

(i) coordinate in advance with all 

licensees authorized to operate in the 

698–763 MHz, 775–793, and 805–806 

MHz bands within 120 kilometers (75 

miles) of the base or fixed station; 

(ii) coordinate in advance with all 

regional planning committees, as 

identified in § 90.527 of this chapter, 

with jurisdiction within 120 kilometers 

(75 miles) of the base or fixed station. 

(8) Licensees authorized to transmit in 

the 746–757 MHz, 758–763 MHz, 776–

787 MHz, and 788–793 MHz bands and 

intending to operate a base or fixed 

station at a power level permitted under 

the provisions of paragraph (b)(6) of this 

section must provide advanced notice of 

such operation to the Commission and 

to licensees authorized in their area of 

operation. Licensees who must be 

notified are all licensees authorized to 

operate in the 763–775 MHz and 793–

805 MHz bands under part 90 of this 

chapter within 75 km of the base or 

fixed station and all regional planning 

committees, as identified in § 90.527 of 

this chapter, with jurisdiction within 75 

km of the base or fixed station. 

Notifications must provide the location 

and operating parameters of the base or 

fixed station, including the station’s 

ERP, antenna coordinates, antenna 

height above ground, and vertical 

antenna pattern, and such notifications 

must be provided at least 90 days prior 

to the commencement of station 

operation. 

(9) Control stations and mobile 

stations transmitting in the 746–757 

MHz, 758–763 MHz, 776–793 MHz, and 

805–806 MHz bands and fixed stations 

transmitting in the 787–788 MHz and 

805–806 MHz bands are limited to 30 

watts ERP. 

(10) Portable stations (hand-held 

devices) transmitting in the 746–757 

MHz, 758–763 MHz, 776–793 MHz, and 

805–806 MHz bands are limited to 3 

watts ERP. 

(11) For transmissions in the 757–758, 

775–776, 787–788, and 805–806 MHz 

bands, maximum composite transmit 

power shall be measured over any 

interval of continuous transmission 

using instrumentation calibrated in 

terms of RMS-equivalent voltage. The 

measurement results shall be properly 

adjusted for any instrument limitations, 

such as detector response times, limited 

resolution bandwidth capability when 

compared to the emission bandwidth, 

etc., so as to obtain a true maximum 

composite measurement for the 

emission in question over the full 

bandwidth of the channel. 

(12) For transmissions in the 746–757, 

758–763, 776–787, and 788–793 MHz 

bands, licensees may employ equipment 

operating in compliance with either the 

measurement techniques described in 

paragraph (b)(11) of this section or a 

Commission-approved average power 

technique. In both instances, equipment 

employed must be authorized in 

accordance with the provisions of 

§ 27.51. 

(c) * * * 

(5) Licensees seeking to operate a 

fixed or base station located in a county 

with population density of 100 or fewer 

persons per square mile, based upon the 

most recently available population 

statistics from the Bureau of the Census, 

and transmitting a signal at an ERP 

greater than 1000 watts must: 

(i) coordinate in advance with all 

licensees authorized to operate in the 

698–763 MHz, 775–793, and 805–806 

MHz bands within 120 kilometers (75 

miles) of the base or fixed station; 

(ii) coordinate in advance with all 

regional planning committees, as 

identified in §§ 90.527 of this chapter, 

with jurisdiction within 120 kilometers 

(75 miles) of the base or fixed station. 

* * * * * 

(7) A licensee authorized to operate in 

the 710–716, 716–722, or 740–746 MHz 

bands, or in any unpaired spectrum 

blocks within the 698–746 MHz band, 

may operate a fixed or base station at an 

ERP up to a total of 50 kW within its 

authorized, 6 MHz spectrum block if the 

licensee complies with the provisions of 

§ 27.55(b). The antenna height for such 

stations is limited only to the extent 

required to satisfy the requirements of 

§ 27.55(b). 

(8) Licensees intending to operate a 

base or fixed station at a power level 

permitted under the provisions of 

paragraph (c)(6) of this section must 

provide advanced notice of such 

operation to the Commission and to 

licensees authorized in their area of 

operation. Licensees who must be 

notified are all licensees authorized 

under this part to operate on an adjacent 

spectrum block within 75 km of the base 

or fixed station. Notifications must 

provide the location and operating 

parameters of the base or fixed station, 

including the station’s ERP, antenna 

coordinates, antenna height above 

ground, and vertical antenna pattern, 

and such notifications must be provided 

at least 90 days prior to the 

commencement of station operation. 

* * * * * 

(11) Licensees may employ equipment 

operating in compliance with either the 

measurement techniques described in 

paragraph (b)(11) of this section or a 

Commission-approved average power 

technique. In both instances, equipment 

employed must be authorized in 

accordance with the provisions of 

§ 27.51. 

* * * * * 

TABLE 1 TO § 27.50.—PERMISSIBLE

POWER AND ANTENNA HEIGHTS FOR

BASE AND FIXED STATIONS IN THE

757–758 AND 775–776 MHZ BANDS

AND FOR BASE AND FIXED STATIONS

IN THE 698–757 MHZ, 758–763 

MHZ, 776–787 MHZ AND 788–793 

MHZ BANDS TRANSMITTING A SIGNAL WITH AN EMISSION BANDWIDTH

OF 1 MHZ OR LESS

Antenna height (AAT) in 

meters 

(feet) 

Effective radiated power 

(ERP) 

(watts) 

Above 1372 (4500) ............... 65 

Above 1220 (4000) To 1372 

(4500) ................................ 70 

Above 1067 (3500) To 1220 

(4000) ................................ 75 

Above 915 (3000) To 1067 

(3500) ................................ 100 

Above 763 (2500) To 915 

(3000) ................................ 140 

Above 610 (2000) To 763 

(2500) ................................ 200 

Above 458 (1500) To 610 

(2000) ................................ 350 

Above 305 (1000) To 458 

(1500) ................................ 600 

Up to 305 (1000) .................. 1000 

TABLE 2 TO § 27.50.—PERMISSIBLE

POWER AND ANTENNA HEIGHTS FOR

BASE AND FIXED STATIONS IN THE

698–757 MHZ, 758–763 MHZ, 

776–787 MHZ AND 788–793 MHZ

BANDS TRANSMITTING A SIGNAL

WITH AN EMISSION BANDWIDTH OF 1 

MHZ OR LESS

Antenna height (AAT) in 

meters 

(feet) 

Effective radiated power 

(ERP) 

(watts) 

Above 1372 (4500) ............... 130 

Above 1220 (4000) To 1372 

(4500) ................................ 140 

Above 1067 (3500) To 1220 

(4000) ................................ 150 

Above 915 (3000) To 1067 

(3500) ................................ 200 

Above 763 (2500) To 915 

(3000) ................................ 280 

Above 610 (2000) To 763 

(2500) ................................ 400 

Above 458 (1500) To 610 

(2000) ................................ 700 

Above 305 (1000) To 458 

(1500) ................................ 1200 


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Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 164 / Friday, August 24, 2007 / Rules and Regulations 48851 

TABLE 2 TO § 27.50.—PERMISSIBLE

POWER AND ANTENNA HEIGHTS FOR

BASE AND FIXED STATIONS IN THE

698–757 MHZ, 758–763 MHZ, 

776–787 MHZ AND 788–793 MHZ

BANDS TRANSMITTING A SIGNAL

WITH AN EMISSION BANDWIDTH OF 1 

MHZ OR LESS—Continued 

Antenna height (AAT) in 

meters 

(feet) 

Effective radiated power 

(ERP) 

(watts) 

Up to 305 (1000) .................. 2000 

TABLE 3 TO § 27.50.—PERMISSIBLE

POWER AND ANTENNA HEIGHTS FOR

BASE AND FIXED STATIONS IN THE

698–757 MHZ, 758–763 MHZ, 

776–787 MHZ AND 788–793 MHZ

BANDS TRANSMITTING A SIGNAL

WITH AN EMISSION BANDWIDTH

GREATER THAN 1 MHZ

Antenna height (AAT) in 

meters 

(feet) 

Effective radiated power 

(ERP) per 

MHz 

(watts/MHz) 

Above 1372 (4500) ............... 65 

Above 1220 (4000) To 1372 

(4500) ................................ 70 

Above 1067 (3500) To 1220 

(4000) ................................ 75 

Above 915 (3000) To 1067 

(3500) ................................ 100 

Above 763 (2500) To 915 

(3000) ................................ 140 

Above 610 (2000) To 763 

(2500) ................................ 200 

Above 458 (1500) To 610 

(2000) ................................ 350 

Above 305 (1000) To 458 

(1500) ................................ 600 

Up to 305 (1000) .................. 1000 

TABLE 4 TO § 27.50.—PERMISSIBLE

POWER AND ANTENNA HEIGHTS FOR

BASE AND FIXED STATIONS IN THE

698–757 MHZ, 758–763 MHZ, 

776–787 MHZ AND 788–793 MHZ

BANDS TRANSMITTING A SIGNAL

WITH AN EMISSION BANDWIDTH

GREATER THAN 1 MHZ

Antenna height (AAT) in 

meters 

(feet) 

Effective radiated power 

(ERP) per 

MHz 

(watts/MHz ) 

Above 1372 (4500) ............... 130 

Above 1220 (4000) To 1372 

(4500) ................................ 140 

Above 1067 (3500) To 1220 

(4000) ................................ 150 

Above 915 (3000) To 1067 

(3500) ................................ 200 

TABLE 4 TO § 27.50.—PERMISSIBLE

POWER AND ANTENNA HEIGHTS FOR

BASE AND FIXED STATIONS IN THE

698–757 MHZ, 758–763 MHZ, 

776–787 MHZ AND 788–793 MHZ

BANDS TRANSMITTING A SIGNAL

WITH AN EMISSION BANDWIDTH

GREATER THAN 1 MHZ—Continued 

Antenna height (AAT) in 

meters 

(feet) 

Effective radiated power 

(ERP) per 

MHz 

(watts/MHz ) 

Above 763 (2500) To 915 

(3000) ................................ 280 

Above 610 (2000) To 763 

(2500) ................................ 400 

Above 458 (1500) To 610 

(2000) ................................ 700 

Above 305 (1000) To 458 

(1500) ................................ 1200 

Up to 305 (1000) .................. 2000 

■ 22. Amend § 27.53 as follows: 

■ a. Revise paragraph (c) introductory 

text and paragraphs (c)(1) through (c)(4). 

■ b. Redesignate paragraphs (d) through 

(m) as paragraphs (e) through (n). 

■ c. Add new paragraph (d). 

■ d. Revise newly redesignated 

paragraph (e) introductory text. 

■ e. Redesignate newly redesignated 

paragraphs (e)(1) through (e)(4) as 

paragraphs (e)(6) through (e)(9). 

■ f. Add new paragraphs (e)(1) through 

(e)(5). 

■ g. Revise newly redesignated 

paragraph (f). 

§ 27.53 Emission limits. 

* * * * * 

(c) For operations in the 746–758 

MHz band and the 776–788 MHz band, 

the power of any emission outside the 

licensee’s frequency band(s) of 

operation shall be attenuated below the 

transmitter power (P) within the 

licensed band(s) of operation, measured 

in watts, in accordance with the 

following: 

(1) On any frequency outside the 746–

758 MHz band, the power of any 

emission shall be attenuated outside the 

band below the transmitter power (P) by 

at least 43 + 10 log (P) dB; 

(2) On any frequency outside the 776–

788 MHz band, the power of any 

emission shall be attenuated outside the 

band below the transmitter power (P) by 

at least 43 + 10 log (P) dB; 

(3) On all frequencies between 763–

775 MHz and 793–805 MHz, by a factor 

not less than 76 + 10 log (P) dB in a 6.25 

kHz band segment, for base and fixed 

stations; 

(4) On all frequencies between 763–

775 MHz and 793–805 MHz, by a factor 

not less than 65 + 10 log (P) dB in a 6.25 

kHz band segment, for mobile and 

portable stations; 

* * * * * 

(d) For operations in the 758–763 

MHz and 788–793 MHz bands, the 

power of any emission outside the 

licensee’s frequency bands of operation 

shall be attenuated below the 

transmitter power (P) within the 

licensed band(s) of operation, measured 

in watts, in accordance with the 

following: 

(1) On all frequencies between 769–

775 MHz and 799–805 MHz, by a factor 

not less than 76 + 10 log (P) dB in a 6.25 

kHz band segment, for base and fixed 

stations; 

(2) On all frequencies between 769–

775 MHz and 799–805 MHz, by a factor 

not less than 65 + 10 log (P) dB in a 6.25 

kHz band segment, for mobile and 

portable stations; 

(3) On any frequency between 775–

788 MHz, above 805 MHz, and below 

758 MHz, by at least 43 + 10 log (P) dB; 

(4) Compliance with the provisions of 

paragraphs (d)(1) and (d)(2) of this 

section is based on the use of 

measurement instrumentation such that 

the reading taken with any resolution 

bandwidth setting should be adjusted to 

indicate spectral energy in a 6.25 kHz 

segment; 

(5) Compliance with the provisions of 

paragraph (d)(3) of this section is based 

on the use of measurement 

instrumentation employing a resolution 

bandwidth of 100 kHz or greater. 

However, in the 100 kHz bands 

immediately outside and adjacent to the 

frequency block, a resolution bandwidth 

of at least 30 kHz may be employed. 

(e) For operations in the 775–776 

MHz and 805–806 MHz bands, 

transmitters must comply with either 

paragraphs (e)(1) to (e)(5) of this section 

or the ACP emission limitations set 

forth in paragraphs (e)(6) to (e)(9) of this 

section. 

(1) On all frequencies between 763–

775 MHz and 793–805 MHz, the power 

of any emission outside the licensee’s 

frequency bands of operation shall be 

attenuated below the transmitter power 

(P) within the licensed band(s) of 

operation, measured in watts, by a factor 

not less than 76 + 10 log (P) dB in a 6.25 

kHz band segment, for base and fixed 

stations; 

(2) On all frequencies between 763–

775 MHz and 793–805 MHz, the power 

of any emission outside the licensee’s 

frequency bands of operation shall be 

attenuated below the transmitter power 

(P) within the licensed band(s) of 

operation, measured in watts, by a factor 

not less than 65 + 10 log (P) dB in a 6.25 

kHz band segment, for mobile and 

portable stations; 


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48852 Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 164 / Friday, August 24, 2007 / Rules and Regulations 

(3) On any frequency outside the 775–

776 MHz and 805–806 MHz bands, the 

power of any emission shall be 

attenuated outside the band below the 

transmitter power (P) within the 

licensed band(s) of operation, measured 

in watts, by at least 43 + 10 log (P) dB; 

(4) Compliance with the provisions of 

paragraphs (e)(1) and (e)(2) of this 

section is based on the use of 

measurement instrumentation such that 

the reading taken with any resolution 

bandwidth setting should be adjusted to 

indicate spectral energy in a 6.25 kHz 

segment; 

(5) Compliance with the provisions of 

paragraph (e)(3) of this section is based 

on the use of measurement 

instrumentation employing a resolution 

bandwidth of 100 kHz or greater. 

However, in the 100 kHz bands 

immediately outside and adjacent to the 

frequency block, a resolution bandwidth 

of at least 30 kHz may be employed. 

* * * * * 

(f) For operations in the 746–763 

MHz, 775–793 MHz, and 805–806 MHz 

bands, emissions in the band 1559–1610 

MHz shall be limited to ¥70 dBW/MHz 

equivalent isotropically radiated power 

(EIRP) for wideband signals, and ¥80 

dBW EIRP for discrete emissions of less 

than 700 Hz bandwidth. For the purpose 

of equipment authorization, a 

transmitter shall be tested with an 

antenna that is representative of the 

type that will be used with the 

equipment in normal operation. 

* * * * * 

■ 23. Section 27.55 is amended by 

revising the section heading and 

paragraphs (a)(2) and (c) to read as 

follows: 

§ 27.55 Power strength limits. 

(a) * * * 

(2) 698–758 and 775–787 MHz bands: 

40 dBμV/m. 

* * * * * 

(c) Power flux density limit for 

stations operating in the 746–757 MHz, 

758–763 MHz, 776–787 MHz, and 788–

793 MHz bands. For base and fixed 

stations operating in the 746–757 MHz, 

758–763 MHz, 776–787 MHz, and 788–

793 MHz bands in accordance with the 

provisions of § 27.50(b)(6), the power 

flux density that would be produced by 

such stations through a combination of 

antenna height and vertical gain pattern 

must not exceed 3000 microwatts per 

square meter on the ground over the 

area extending to 1 km from the base of 

the antenna mounting structure. 

■ 24. Section 27.57 is amended by 

revising paragraph (b) to read as follows: 

§ 27.57 International coordination. 

* * * * * 

(b) Operation in the 698–763 MHz, 

775–793 MHz, and 805–806 MHz bands 

is subject to international agreements 

between Mexico and Canada. Unless 

otherwise modified by international 

treaty, licenses must not cause 

interference to, and must accept harmful 

interference from, television broadcast 

operations in Mexico and Canada. 

* * * * * 

■ 25. Section 27.60 is revised to read as 

follows: 

§ 27.60 TV/DTV interference protection 

criteria. 

Base, fixed, control, and mobile 

transmitters in the 698–763 MHz, 775–

793 MHz, and 805–806 MHz frequency 

bands must be operated only in 

accordance with the rules in this section 

to reduce the potential for interference 

to public reception of the signals of 

existing TV and DTV broadcast stations 

transmitting on TV Channels 51 through 

68. 

(a) D/U ratios. Licensees must choose 

site locations that are a sufficient 

distance from co-channel and adjacent 

channel TV and DTV stations, and/or 

must use reduced transmitting power or 

transmitting antenna height such that 

the following minimum desired signalto-undesired signal ratios (D/U ratios) 

are met. 

(1) The minimum D/U ratio for cochannel stations is: 

(i) 40 dB at the hypothetical Grade B 

contour (64 dBμV/m) (88.5 kilometers 

(55 miles)) of the TV station; 

(ii) For transmitters operating in the 

698–746 MHz frequency band, 23 dB at 

the equivalent Grade B contour (41 

dBμV/m) (88.5 kilometers (55 miles)) of 

the DTV station; or 

(iii) For transmitters operating in the 

746–763 MHz, 775–793 MHz, and 805–

806 MHz frequency bands, 17 dB at the 

equivalent Grade B contour (41 dBμV/ 

m) (88.5 kilometers (55 miles)) of the 

DTV station. 

(2) The minimum D/U ratio for 

adjacent channel stations is 0 dB at the 

hypothetical Grade B contour (64 dBμV/ 

m) (88.5 kilometers (55 miles)) of the TV 

station or ¥23 dB at the equivalent 

Grade B contour (41 dBμV/m) (88.5 

kilometers (55 miles)) of the DTV 

station. 

(b) TV stations and calculation of 

contours. The methods used to calculate 

TV contours and antenna heights above 

average terrain are given in §§ 73.683 

and 73.684 of this chapter. Tables to 

determine the necessary minimum 

distance from the 698–763 MHz, 775–

793 MHz, and 805–806 MHz station to 

the TV/DTV station, assuming that the 

TV/DTV station has a hypothetical or 

equivalent Grade B contour of 88.5 

kilometers (55 miles), are located in 

§ 90.309 of this chapter and labeled as 

Tables B, D, and E. Values between 

those given in the tables may be 

determined by linear interpolation. 

Distances for station parameters greater 

than those indicated in the tables 

should be calculated in accordance with 

the required D/U ratios, as provided in 

paragraph (a) of this section. The 

locations of existing and proposed 

TV/DTV stations during the period of 

transition from analog to digital TV 

service are given in part 73 of this 

chapter and in the final proceedings of 

MM Docket No. 87–268. 

(1) Licensees of stations operating 

within the ERP and HAAT limits of 

§ 27.50 must select one of four methods 

to meet the TV/DTV protection 

requirements, subject to Commission 

approval: 

(i) Utilize the geographic separation 

specified in Tables B, D, and E of 

§ 90.309 of this chapter, as appropriate; 

(ii) When station parameters are 

greater than those indicated in the 

tables, calculate geographic separation 

in accordance with the required D/U 

ratios, as provided in paragraph (a) of 

this section; 

(iii) Submit an engineering study 

justifying the proposed separations 

based on the parameters of the land 

mobile station and the parameters, 

including authorized and/or applied for 

facilities, of the TV/DTV station(s) it is 

trying to protect; or, 

(iv) Obtain written concurrence from 

the applicable TV/DTV station(s). If this 

method is chosen, a copy of the 

agreement must be submitted with the 

application. 

(2) The following is the method for 

geographic separations. (i) Base and 

fixed stations that operate in the 746–

763 MHz, 775–787 MHz, and 788–793 

MHz bands having an antenna height 

(HAAT) less than 152 m. (500 ft.) shall 

afford protection to co-channel and 

adjacent channel TV/DTV stations in 

accordance with the values specified in 

Table B (co-channel frequencies based 

on 40 dB protection) and Table E 

(adjacent channel frequencies based on 

0 dB protection) in § 90.309 of this 

chapter. Base and fixed stations that 

operate in the 698–746 MHz band 

having an antenna height (HAAT) less 

than 152 m. (500 ft.) shall afford 

protection to adjacent channel DTV 

stations in accordance with the values 

specified in Table E in § 90.309 of this 

chapter, shall afford protection to cochannel DTV stations by providing 23 

dB protection to such stations’


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Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 164 / Friday, August 24, 2007 / Rules and Regulations 48853 

equivalent Grade B contour (41 

dBμV/m), and shall afford protection to 

co-channel and adjacent channel TV 

stations in accordance with the values 

specified in Table B (co-channel 

frequencies based on 40 dB protection) 

and Table E (adjacent channel 

frequencies based on 0 dB protection) in 

§ 90.309 of this chapter. For base and 

fixed stations having an antenna height 

(HAAT) between 152–914 meters (500–

3,000 ft.) the effective radiated power 

must be reduced below 1 kilowatt in 

accordance with the values shown in 

the power reduction graph in Figure B 

in § 90.309 of this chapter. For heights 

of more than 152 m. (500 ft.) above 

average terrain, the distance to the radio 

path horizon will be calculated 

assuming smooth earth. If the distance 

so determined equals or exceeds the 

distance to the hypothetical or 

equivalent Grade B contour of a cochannel TV/DTV station (i.e., it exceeds 

the distance from the appropriate Table 

in § 90.309 of this chapter to the 

relevant TV/DTV station), an 

authorization will not be granted unless 

it can be shown in an engineering study 

(see paragraph (b)(1)(iii) of this section) 

that actual terrain considerations are 

such as to provide the desired 

protection at the actual Grade B contour 

(64 dBμV/m for TV and 41 dBμV/m for 

DTV stations) or unless the effective 

radiated power will be further reduced 

so that, assuming free space attenuation, 

the desired protection at the actual 

Grade B contour (64 dBμV/m for TV and 

41 dBμV/m coverage contour for DTV 

stations) will be achieved. Directions for 

calculating powers, heights, and 

reduction curves are listed in § 90.309 of 

this chapter for land mobile stations. 

Directions for calculating coverage 

contours are listed in § 73.683 through 

73.685 of this chapter for TV stations 

and in § 73.625 of this chapter for DTV 

stations. 

(ii) Control, fixed, and mobile stations 

(including portables) that operate in the 

787–788 MHz and 805–806 MHz bands 

and control and mobile stations 

(including portables) that operate in the 

698–757 MHz, 758–763 MHz, 776–787 

MHz, and 788–793 MHz bands are 

limited in height and power and 

therefore shall afford protection to cochannel and adjacent channel TV/DTV 

stations in the following manner: 

(A) For control, fixed, and mobile 

stations (including portables) that 

operate in the 787–788 MHz and 805–

806 MHz bands and control and mobile 

stations (including portables) that 

operate in the 746–757 MHz, 758–763 

MHz, 776–787 MHz, and 788–793 MHz 

bands, co-channel protection shall be 

afforded in accordance with the values 

specified in Table D (co-channel 

frequencies based on 40 dB protection 

for TV stations and 17 dB for DTV 

stations) in § 90.309 of this chapter. 

(B) For control and mobile stations 

(including portables) that operate in the 

698–746 MHz band, co-channel 

protection shall be afforded to TV 

stations in accordance with the values 

specified in Table D (co-channel 

frequencies based on 40 dB protection) 

and to DTV stations by providing 23 dB 

protection to such stations’ equivalent 

Grade B contour (41 dBμV/m). 

(C) For control, fixed, and mobile 

stations (including portables) that 

operate in the 787–788 MHz and 805–

806 MHz bands and control and mobile 

stations (including portables) that 

operate in the 698–757 MHz, 758–763 

MHz, 776–787 MHz, and 788–793 MHz 

bands, adjacent channel protection shall 

be afforded by providing a minimum 

distance of 8 kilometers (5 miles) from 

all adjacent channel TV/DTV station 

hypothetical or equivalent Grade B 

contours (adjacent channel frequencies 

based on 0 dB protection for TV stations 

and ¥23 dB for DTV stations). 

(D) Since control, fixed, and mobile 

stations may affect different TV/DTV 

stations than the associated base or 

fixed station, particular care must be 

taken by applicants/licensees to ensure 

that all appropriate TV/DTV stations are 

considered (e.g., a base station may be 

operating within TV Channel 62 and the 

mobiles within TV Channel 67, in 

which case TV Channels 61, 62, 63, 66, 

67 and 68 must be protected). Control, 

fixed, and mobile stations shall keep a 

minimum distance of 96.5 kilometers 

(60 miles) from all adjacent channel 

TV/DTV stations. Since mobiles and 

portables are able to move and 

communicate with each other, licensees 

must determine the areas where the 

mobiles can and cannot roam in order 

to protect the TV/DTV stations. 

Note to § 27.60: The 88.5 km (55mi) Grade 

B service contour (64 dBμV/m) is based on 

a hypothetical TV station operating at an 

effective radiated power of one megawatt, a 

transmitting antenna height above average 

terrain of 610 meters (2000 feet) and the 

Commission’s R–6602 F(50,50) curves. See 

§ 73.699 of this chapter. Maximum facilities 

for TV stations operating in the UHF band are 

5 megawatts effective radiated power at an 

antenna HAAT of 610 meters (2,000 feet). See 

§ 73.614 of this chapter. The equivalent 

contour for DTV stations is based on a 41 

dBμV/m signal strength and the distance to 

the F(50,90) curve. See § 73.625 of this 

chapter. 

■ 26. Section 27.70 is amended by 

revising paragraph (a) introductory text 

and paragraphs (b)(1) and (b)(2) to read 

as follows: 

§ 27.70 Information exchange. 

(a) Prior notification. Public safety 

licensees authorized to operate in the 

763–775 MHz and 793–805 MHz bands 

may notify any licensee authorized to 

operate in the 746–757, 758–763, 776–

787, or 788–793 MHz bands that they 

wish to receive prior notification of the 

activation or modification of the 

licensee’s base or fixed stations in their 

area. Thereafter, the 746–757, 758–763, 

776–787, or 788–793 MHz band licensee 

must provide the following information 

to the public safety licensee at least 10 

business days before a new base or fixed 

station is activated or an existing base 

or fixed station is modified: 

* * * * * 

(b) * * * 

(1) Allow a public safety licensee to 

advise the 746–757, 758–763, 776–787, 

or 788–793 MHz band licensee whether 

it believes a proposed base or fixed 

station will generate unacceptable 

interference; 

(2) Permit 746–757, 758–763, 776–

787, and 788–793 MHz band licensees 

to make voluntary changes in base or 

fixed station parameters when a public 

safety licensee alerts them to possible 

interference; and, 

* * * * * 

■ 27. Section 27.303 (a) is amended by 

revising paragraph (a) introductory text 

to read as follows: 

§ 27.303 Upper 700 MHz commercial and 

public safety coordination zone. 

(a) General. CMRS operators are 

required, prior to commencing 

operations on fixed or base station 

transmitters on the 776–787 MHz and 

788–793 MHz bands that are located 

within 500 meters of existing or planned 

public safety base station receivers, to 

submit a description of their proposed 

facility to a Commission-approved 

public safety coordinator. 

* * * * * 

■ 28. Section 27.501 is revised to read 

as follows: 

§ 27.501 746–763 MHz, 775–793 MHz, and 

805–806 MHz bands subject to competitive 

bidding. 

Mutually exclusive initial 

applications for licenses in the 746–763 

MHz, 775–793 MHz, and 805–806 MHz 

bands are subject to competitive 

bidding. The general competitive 

bidding procedures set forth in part 1, 

subpart Q of this chapter will apply 

unless otherwise provided in this 

subpart. 

■ 29. Section 27.601 is amended by 

revising paragraph (c)(1) introductory 

text to read as follows: 


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48854 Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 164 / Friday, August 24, 2007 / Rules and Regulations 

§ 27.601 Authority and coordination 

requirements. 

* * * * * 

(c) * * * 

(1) A Guard Band licensee, or a 

spectrum lessee operating at 775–776 

MHz and 805–806 MHz pursuant to a 

spectrum lease arrangement under 

§§ 1.9030 and 1.9035 of this chapter, 

must notify Commission-recognized 

public safety frequency coordinators for 

the 700 MHz Public Safety band and 

adjacent-area Guard Band licensees 

within one business day after the 

licensee or the spectrum lessee has: 

* * * * * 

■ 30. Add subpart N to part 27 as 

follows: 

Subpart N—700 MHz Public/Private 

Partnership 

Sec. 

27.1301 Purpose and scope. 

27.1303 Upper 700 MHz D Block license 

conditions. 

27.1305 Shared wireless broadband 

network. 

27.1307 Spectrum use in the network. 

27.1308 Organization and structure of the 

700 MHz public/private partnership. 

27.1310 Network sharing agreement. 

27.1315 Establishment, execution, and 

application of the network sharing 

agreement. 

27.1320 Failure to comply with the NSA or 

the Commission’s rules. 

27.1325 Resolution of disputes after grant of 

the upper 700 MHz D block license. 

27.1327 Construction requirements; criteria 

for renewal. 

27.1330 Local public safety build-out and 

operation. 

27.1333 Geographic partitioning, spectrum 

disaggregation, license assignment, and 

transfer. 

27.1335 Prohibition on discontinuance of 

public safety operations. 

27.1340 Reporting obligations. 

§ 27.1301 Purpose and scope. 

The purpose of this subpart, in 

conjunction with subpart AA of part 90, 

is to establish rules and procedures 

relating to the 700 MHz Public/Private 

Partnership entered between the 

winning bidder for the Upper 700 MHz 

D Block license, the Upper 700 MHz D 

Block licensee, the Network Assets 

Holder, the Operating Company, the 

Public Safety Broadband Licensee, and 

other related entities as the Commission 

may require or allow. Pursuant to this 

partnership, the Upper 700 MHz D 

Block licensee and the Operating 

Company will be responsible for 

constructing and operating a 

nationwide, shared interoperable 

wireless broadband network used to 

provide a commercial service and a 

broadband network service for public 

safety entities. The shared network 

assets will be held by the Network 

Assets Holder and the Shared Wireless 

Broadband Network will operate on 

both the commercial spectrum licensed 

to the Upper 700 MHz D Block licensee 

and the public safety broadband 

spectrum licensed to the Public Safety 

Broadband Licensee. This subpart of the 

part 27 rules sets forth specific 

provisions relating to the Upper 700 

MHz D Block license, the Upper 700 

MHz D Block licensee, and other related 

entities as the Commission may require 

or allow with respect to the 700 MHz 

Public/Private Partnership. Subpart AA 

of the part 90 rules sets forth related 

provisions applicable to the Public 

Safety Broadband License and the 

Public Safety Broadband Licensee with 

respect to the 700 MHz Public/Private 

Partnership. 

§ 27.1303 Upper 700 MHz D Block license 

conditions. 

(a) The winning bidder at auction of 

the license for Block D in the 758–763 

MHz and 788–793 MHz bands will be 

granted the Upper 700 MHz D Block 

license only after this winning bidder 

has entered, with the Public Safety 

Broadband Licensee and other related 

entities as the Commission may require 

or allow, into the Network Sharing 

Agreement (NSA) that has been 

approved by the Commission, has 

executed such other agreements as the 

Commission may require or allow, and 

has met all other necessary conditions 

pertaining to the award of this license. 

(b) The Upper 700 MHz D Block 

licensee shall comply with all of the 

applicable requirements set forth in this 

part and subpart, including the 

construction requirements set forth in 

§ 27.14, and shall comply with the terms 

of the NSA and such other agreements 

as the Commission may require or 

allow. 

(c) The Upper 700 MHz D Block 

licensee shall have the exclusive right to 

build and operate the shared wireless 

broadband network, except as set forth 

in §§ 20.1330 and 90.1430 of this 

chapter. 

(d) The Upper 700 MHz D Block 

licensee must not discontinue, reduce, 

or impair service to public safety users 

unless and until, pursuant to 

Commission procedures, it has obtained 

prior authorization from the 

Commission. 

(e) The Upper 700 MHz D Block 

licensee must provide the Public Safety 

Broadband Licensee with priority access 

during emergencies, as specified in the 

NSA. 

(f) These conditions and requirements 

will apply to any related entities that 

the Commission may require or allow, 

as provided for in the NSA or otherwise 

as authorized by the Commission. 

§ 27.1305 Shared wireless broadband 

network. 

The Shared Wireless Broadband 

Network developed by the 700 MHz 

Public/Private Partnership must be 

designed to meet requirements 

associated with a nationwide, public 

safety broadband network. At a 

minimum, the network must 

incorporate the following features: 

(a) Design for operation over a 

broadband technology platform that 

provides mobile voice, video, and data 

capability that is seamlessly 

interoperable across public safety local 

and state agencies, jurisdictions, and 

geographic areas, and that includes 

current and evolving state-of-the-art 

technologies reasonably made available 

in the commercial marketplace with 

features beneficial to the public safety 

community. 

(b) Sufficient signal coverage to 

ensure reliable operation throughout the 

service area consistent with typical 

public safety communications systems. 

(c) Sufficient robustness to meet the 

reliability and performance 

requirements of public safety. 

(d) Sufficient capacity to meet the 

needs of public safety. 

(e) Security and encryption consistent 

with state-of-the-art technologies. 

(f) A mechanism to automatically 

prioritize public safety communications 

over commercial uses on a real-time 

basis consistent with the requirements 

of § 27.1307. 

(g) Operational capabilities consistent 

with features and requirements that are 

typical of current and evolving state-ofthe-art public safety systems. 

(h) Operational control of the network 

by the Public Safety Broadband 

Licensee to the extent necessary to 

ensure that public safety requirements 

are met. 

§ 27.1307 Spectrum use in the network. 

(a) Spectrum use. The shared wireless 

broadband network developed by the 

700 MHz Public/Private Partnership 

will operate using spectrum associated 

with the Upper 700 MHz D Block 

license in the 758–763 MHz and 788–

793 MHz bands and the Public Safety 

Broadband License in the adjacent 763–

768 MHz and 793–798 MHz bands. 

(b) Access to spectrum in the 758–763 

MHz and 788–793 MHz bands. The 

Upper 700 MHz D Block licensee shall 

lease the spectrum rights associated 

with the Upper 700 MHz D Block 

license to the Operating Company, 

pursuant to the Commission’s spectrum 

leasing rules. The spectrum leasing 


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arrangement shall be a long-term de 

facto transfer leasing arrangement for 

the entire remaining term of the Upper 

700 MHz D Block license. If the Upper 

700 MHz D Block license is renewed, 

the parties will be required to renew 

this spectrum leasing arrangement as 

well. 

(c) Access to spectrum in the 763–768 

MHz and 793–798 MHz bands. The 

Public Safety Broadband Licensee, 

which holds the Public Safety 

Broadband License pursuant to part 90 

rules, must lease the spectrum usage 

rights associated with this license, 

pursuant to a spectrum manager leasing 

arrangement set forth in part 1 subpart 

X, to the Upper 700 MHz D Block 

licensee and the Operating Company for 

the entire remaining term of the Public 

Safety Broadband License to effectuate 

the 700 MHz Public/Private Partnership. 

The Upper 700 MHz D Block licensee 

and the Operating Company are the only 

entities that are eligible to lease the 

spectrum usage rights associated with 

the Public Safety Broadband License to 

operate on the 763–768 and 793–798 

MHz bands. If the Upper 700 MHz D 

Block license is cancelled, this spectrum 

leasing arrangement will automatically 

terminate. 

(d) Commercial operations in the 763–

768 MHz and 793–798 MHz bands. 

Commercial operations in the 763–768 

MHz and 793–798 MHz bands through 

the spectrum manager leasing 

arrangement shall not cause harmful 

interference to primary users (i.e., 

public safety users) and cannot claim 

protection from harmful interference 

from the primary public safety 

operations in the 763–768 MHz and 

793–798 MHz bands. The network 

providing commercial operations in the 

763–768 MHz and 793–798 MHz bands 

through the spectrum manager leasing 

arrangement must be designed to 

automatically assign priority to public 

safety users, to the exclusion and/or 

immediate preemption of any 

commercial use on a dynamic, real-time 

priority basis, and to guarantee that 

public safety users suffer no harmful 

interference or interruption or 

degradation of service due to 

commercial operations in the 763–768 

MHz and 793–798 MHz bands. 

§ 27.1308 Organization and structure of 

the 700 MHz public/private partnership. 

(a) The Upper 700 MHz D Block 

licensee, the Network Assets Holder and 

such other related entities as the 

Commission may require or allow shall 

be formed by the winning bidder of the 

Upper 700 MHz D Block license. The 

Upper 700 MHz D Block licensee, the 

Network Assets Holder, and related 

entities as the Commission may require 

or allow must be Special Purpose 

Bankruptcy Remote Entities formed to 

hold the license, to hold the shared 

network assets, or for such other 

purpose as the Commission may require 

or allow. The winning bidder of the 

Upper 700 MHz D Block license shall 

also form the Operating Company, 

which must also be a Special Purpose 

Bankruptcy Remote Entity. Upon 

issuance of the Upper 700 MHz D Block 

license, the winning bidder will assign 

all of its rights and obligations under the 

NSA to the Upper 700 MHz D Block 

licensee, Network Assets Holder, the 

Operating Company, and any other 

related entities that the Commission 

may require or allow. 

(b) The Upper 700 MHz D Block 

licensee and other related entities as the 

Commission may require or allow shall 

have the obligation to build out the 

Shared Wireless Broadband Network, as 

provided for in the NSA or otherwise as 

authorized by the Commission. 

§ 27.1310 Network sharing agreement. 

The relationship between the Upper 

700 MHz D Block licensee, the Public 

Safety Broadband Licensee, and related 

entities as the Commission may require 

or allow will be governed by the 

Network Sharing Agreement (NSA) and 

such other separate agreements as the 

Commission may require or allow that 

are negotiated and entered into between 

the parties. The NSA must, at a 

minimum, include the following terms: 

(a) All of the substantive rights and 

obligations of the parties relating to the 

NSA, as established by the Commission 

concerning the 700 MHz Public/Private 

Partnership. 

(b) Network specifications that 

comply with § 27.1305. 

(c) The definition of ‘‘emergency’’ for 

purposes of emergency priority access. 

(d) All service fees to be imposed for 

services to public safety, including fees 

for normal network service and fees for 

priority access to the D Block spectrum 

in an emergency. 

(e) A detailed build-out schedule 

consistent with § 27.1327, including 

coverage of major highways and 

interstates, as well as incorporated 

communities with a population in 

excess of 3,000. 

(f) The right of the Public Safety 

Broadband Licensee to determine and 

approve the specifications of public 

safety equipment used on the network 

and the right to purchase its own 

subscriber equipment from any vendor 

it chooses, to the extent such 

specifications and equipment are 

consistent with reasonable network 

control requirements established in the 

NSA. 

(g) The Upper 700 MHz D Block 

licensee must offer at least one handset 

suitable for public safety use that 

includes a seamlessly integrated 

satellite solution pursuant to the terms, 

conditions, and timeframes set forth in 

the NSA. 

(h) Any major modification of the 

terms of the NSA, related agreements or 

documents, or such other agreements as 

the Commission may require or allow 

must be submitted to the Commission 

for prior approval. All other 

modifications must be submitted to the 

Chiefs of the Wireless 

Telecommunications Bureau and the 

Public Safety and Homeland Security 

Bureau for prior approval. 

(i) The NSA shall require, in a 

separate agreement, the granting of an 

irrevocable and assignable right of first 

refusal to purchase the network assets if 

and whenever such assets are otherwise 

to be sold and an irrevocable and 

assignable option in favor of the Public 

Safety Broadband Licensee to purchase 

the network and all network assets if 

and whenever the Upper 700 MHz D 

Block license is cancelled or terminated, 

by reason of default or for any other 

reason, for a consideration equivalent to 

the fair market value of the tangible and 

intangible assets sold. This right and 

option shall be senior to, and have 

priority over, any other right, claim, or 

interest in or to the network or the 

network assets. The NSA shall also 

include a fair market valuation 

methodology to determine the fair 

market value of the shared wireless 

broadband network assets. 

(j) The NSA must have a term, not to 

exceed 10 years from February 17, 2009, 

that coincides with the terms of the 

Upper 700 MHz D Block license and the 

Public Safety Broadband License. 

§ 27.1315 Establishment, execution, and 

application of the network sharing 

agreement. 

The following requirements and 

processes relate to the establishment, 

execution, and application of the NSA: 

(a) Approval of NSA as pre-condition 

for granting the Upper 700 MHz D Block 

License. The Commission shall not grant 

the Upper 700 MHz D Block license 

until the winning bidder for the Upper 

700 MHz D Block license has negotiated 

the NSA and such other agreements as 

the Commission may require or allow 

with the Public Safety Broadband 

Licensee, and the NSA and related 

agreements or documents have been 

approved by the Commission and 

executed by the required parties. Parties 

to the NSA must also include the Upper 


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700 MHz D Block licensee, the Network 

Assets Holder, and the Operating 

Company, as these entities are defined 

in § 27.4. 

(b) Requirement of negotiation. 

Negotiation of an NSA between the 

winning bidder for the Upper 700 MHz 

D Block license and the Public Safety 

Broadband Licensee must commence by 

the date the winning bidder files its long 

form application or the date on which 

the Commission designates the Public 

Safety Broadband Licensee, whichever 

is later, and must conclude within six 

months of that date. Parties to this 

negotiation are required to negotiate in 

good faith. Two members of the 

Commission staff, one from the Wireless 

Telecommunications Bureau and one 

from the Public Safety and Homeland 

Security Bureau, shall be present at all 

stages of the negotiation as neutral 

observers. 

(c) Reporting requirements. The 

winning bidder for the Upper 700 MHz 

D Block license must file a report with 

the Commission within 10 business 

days of the commencement of the 

negotiation period certifying that active 

and good faith negotiations have begun, 

providing the date on which they 

commenced, and providing a schedule 

of the initial dates on which the parties 

intend to meet for active negotiations, 

covering at a minimum the first 30-day 

period. Beginning three months from 

the triggering of the six-month 

negotiation period, the winning bidder 

for the Upper 700 MHz D Block license 

and the Public Safety Broadband 

Licensee must jointly provide detailed 

reports, on a monthly basis and subject 

to a request for confidential treatment, 

on the progress of the negotiations 

throughout the remainder of the 

negotiations. These reports must 

include descriptions of all material 

issues that the parties have yet to 

resolve. 

(d) Submission of final agreement. As 

soon as the parties have reached an 

agreement on all the terms of the NSA, 

related agreements or documents, and 

such other agreements as the 

Commission may require or allow, but 

not later than five business days after 

the six-month period for negotiation has 

expired, they must submit the NSA 

together with all agreements and related 

documents referenced in the NSA, for 

review and approval by the full 

Commission. The Commission will act 

on the NSA within 60 days of receipt. 

The Commission may approve the NSA 

in its entirety, approve with 

modifications, or require the parties to 

address additional terms or re-draft 

existing terms within a specified 

timeframe. After the NSA is approved, 

the parties must execute the NSA and 

such other agreements as the 

Commission may require or allow, and 

submit executed copies to the 

Commission within 10 business days of 

approval. 

(e) Submission of disputed issues. If 

the parties have not reached agreement 

on all terms of the NSA and related 

agreements by the end of the six-month 

period, they must notify the 

Commission not later than five business 

days after the expiration of the sixmonth period of the terms on which 

they have agreed, the nature of the 

remaining issues, each party’s position 

on each issue, whether additional 

negotiation is likely to produce an 

agreement, and, if so, a proposed 

deadline for reaching agreement on the 

NSA. Authority is delegated jointly to 

the Chiefs of the Wireless 

Telecommunications Bureau and the 

Public Safety and Homeland Security 

Bureau to resolve any remaining 

disputes. 

(f) Resolution of disputes. Actions to 

resolve disputes may include, but are 

not limited to: 

(1) Granting additional time for 

negotiation; 

(2) Issuing a decision on the disputed 

issues and requiring the submission of 

a draft agreement consistent with the 

decision; 

(3) Directing the parties to further 

brief the remaining issues in full for 

immediate Commission decision; and/or 

(4) Immediate denial of the long-form 

application filed by the winning bidder 

for the Upper 700 MHz D Block license. 

(g) Default by winning bidder for 

Upper 700 MHz D Block license. If the 

winning bidder for the Upper 700 MHz 

D Block fails to comply with negotiation 

or dispute resolution requirements or 

fails to execute a Commission-approved 

NSA, its long form application will be 

denied. If the long form application of 

the winning bidder of the Upper 700 

MHz D Block license is denied for any 

reason, including as a consequence of 

an action taken pursuant to paragraphs 

(e) and (f) of this section, it will be 

deemed to have defaulted under 

§ 1.2109(c) of this chapter, and will be 

liable for the default payment specified 

in § 1.2104(g) of this chapter. 

§ 27.1320 Failure to comply with the NSA 

or the Commission’s rules. 

(a) Failure to comply with the 

Commission’s rules or the terms of the 

NSA may warrant cancelling the Upper 

700 MHz D Block license and awarding 

it to a new licensee. In the event the 

Upper 700 MHz D Block license is 

cancelled, the Commission shall issue 

an order cancelling the license and 

announcing the process for awarding 

rights to the spectrum to a new licensee. 

Pending the award to a new licensee, 

the Commission shall issue the 

Operating Company a special temporary 

authority to prevent interruption of 

services provided over the Shared 

Wireless Broadband Network. The 

Operating Company must continue to 

provide both commercial service and 

services to public safety during the 

transition. Upon grant of a new license, 

the Commission shall establish the 

terms and timing under which the 

special temporary authorization shall be 

cancelled and the new Upper 700 MHz 

D Block licensee assumes the 

construction and operation of the 

network. 

(b) If the Commission cancels or 

terminates the Upper 700 MHz D Block 

license, a fair market valuation of the 

shared wireless broadband network 

assets shall be performed immediately, 

pursuant to the fair market valuation 

methodology set forth in the NSA. In the 

event that the Upper 700 MHz D Block 

license is awarded to a new entity, the 

Public Safety Broadband Licensee’s 

option to purchase the network and all 

network assets if and whenever the 

Upper 700 MHz D Block license is 

cancelled or terminated and its right of 

first refusal to purchase the network 

assets if and whenever such assets are 

otherwise to be sold shall be assigned to 

the new Upper 700 MHz D Block 

licensee and the new Network Assets 

Holder. 

§ 27.1325 Resolution of disputes after 

grant of the upper 700 MHz D block license. 

(a) The Upper 700 MHz D Block 

licensee, the Operating Company, the 

Network Assets Holder and the Public 

Safety Broadband Licensee may at any 

time bring a complaint to the 

Commission based on a claim that 

another party to the NSA has deviated 

from the terms of the NSA, or a petition 

for a declaratory ruling to resolve the 

proper interpretation of an NSA term or 

provision. The Commission also may at 

any time, on its own motion, determine 

to address any material breach or 

interpret any NSA term or provision. 

(b) The Commission shall have 

primary responsibility and jurisdiction 

for adjudicating disputes that arise 

following execution of the NSA. The 

Commission may, however, require the 

parties to first seek a settlement to the 

dispute or authorize the parties to 

resolve the dispute through litigation or 

other means. Breach of license terms, 

the NSA, or the Commission’s rules may 

result in cancellation of the Upper 700 

MHz D Block license, the Public Safety 

Broadband License, or both. 


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(c) The Chiefs of the Public Safety and 

Homeland Security Bureau and the 

Wireless Telecommunications Bureau 

are delegated joint responsibility for 

adjudicating disputes. 

§ 27.1327 Construction requirements; 

criteria for renewal. 

(a) The Upper 700 MHz D Block 

licensee shall comply with the 

applicable construction requirements of 

§ 27.14. 

(b) The Upper 700 MHz D Block 

licensee shall comply with the 

applicable procedures and criteria for 

license renewal of § 27.14. 

§ 27.1330 Local public safety build-out and 

operation. 

(a) The Upper 700 MHz D Block 

licensee and the Operating Company 

through its lease arrangements shall, 

except in the two limited circumstances 

set forth herein, have the exclusive right 

to build and operate the Shared 

Wireless Broadband Network. 

(b) Rights to early build-out in areas 

with a build-out commitment. In an area 

where the Upper 700 MHz D Block 

licensee has committed, in the NSA, to 

build out by a certain date, a public 

safety entity may, with the pre-approval 

of the Public Safety Broadband Licensee 

and subject to the requirements set forth 

herein, construct a broadband network 

in that area at its own expense so long 

as the network is capable of operating 

on the Shared Wireless Broadband 

Network and meets all the requirements 

and specifications of the network 

required under the NSA. 

(1) Options for early build-out in 

areas with a build-out commitment. In 

order to obtain authorization to 

construct a broadband network as set 

forth in paragraph (b) of this section, the 

requesting public safety entity must 

agree to one of the following: 

(i) To, on its own, or through the 

Public Safety Broadband Licensee acting 

on its behalf, construct the network at 

its own expense, and upon completion 

of construction transfer the network to 

the Upper 700 MHz D Block licensee, 

which shall then integrate that network 

into the Shared Wireless Broadband 

Network constructed pursuant to the 

NSA; or 

(ii) To, in agreement with the Upper 

700 MHz D Block licensee, provide all 

funds necessary for the Upper 700 MHz 

D Block licensee to complete the early 

construction of the network, including 

any and all additional resource and 

personnel costs, allowing the Upper 700 

MHz D Block licensee at all times to 

own, operate, and manage the network 

as an integrated part of the Shared 

Wireless Broadband Network. 

(2) Negotiation of amendment to NSA. 

Under either early build out option set 

forth in paragraph (b)(1) of this section, 

the Public Safety Broadband Licensee, 

the Upper 700 MHz D Block licensee, 

and the public safety entity must, prior 

to any construction, negotiate an 

amendment to the NSA regarding this 

part of the network, specifying 

ownership rights, fees, and other terms, 

which may be distinct from the 

analogous terms governing the Shared 

Wireless Broadband Network, and such 

amendment must be approved by the 

Commission. 

(i) Such amendment must provide the 

terms under which the Upper 700 MHz 

D Block licensee shall receive full 

ownership rights and shall compensate 

the public safety entity (or the Public 

Safety Broadband Licensee, where 

appropriate) for the construction of the 

network; and shall, absent agreement to 

the contrary, provide for such transfer 

and compensation to occur prior to the 

scheduled build out date for such 

network in the NSA. 

(ii) Any right to compensation from 

the Upper 700 MHz D Block licensee 

related to such early build-out shall be 

limited to the cost that would have been 

incurred had the Upper 700 MHz D 

Block licensee constructed the network 

itself in accordance with the original 

terms and specifications of the NSA, as 

reasonably determined by the parties 

and negotiated as part of the NSA 

amendment required in paragraph (b)(2) 

of this section. Such costs shall not 

include costs attributable solely to 

advancing the date of construction or 

otherwise expediting the construction 

process. 

(3) Operations. The public safety 

entity may not commence operations on 

the network until ownership of the 

network has been transferred to the 

Upper 700 MHz D Block licensee. 

Further, no operations shall be allowed 

except those authorized and conducted 

pursuant to the authority of the Public 

Safety Broadband License. 

(4) Attribution of early build-out to 

national benchmarks. Upon completion 

of construction, transfer of ownership to 

the Upper 700 MHz D Block licensee, 

and compensation as required herein, if 

applicable, the Upper 700 MHz D Block 

licensee may include the network 

constructed pursuant to the early buildout provisions herein for purposes of 

determining whether it has met its 

national build-out benchmarks and the 

build-out requirements of the NSA. 

(5) Rights to build out and operate in 

areas without a build-out commitment. 

In areas for which the NSA does not 

require the Upper 700 MHz D Block 

licensee to build out the Shared 

Wireless Broadband Network, a public 

safety entity may build out and operate 

a separate, exclusive network in the 700 

MHz public safety broadband spectrum 

at any time, provided the public safety 

entity has received the written approval 

of the Public Safety Broadband Licensee 

and operates its independent network 

pursuant to a spectrum leasing 

arrangement into which the public 

safety entity has entered with the Public 

Safety Broadband Licensee. 

(i) Such leasing arrangement shall not 

require the approval or consent of the 

Upper 700 MHz D Block licensee; 

however, the Public Safety Broadband 

Licensee must provide the Upper 700 

MHz D Block licensee with notice of the 

public safety entity’s intent to construct 

in that area within 30 days of receipt of 

a request from a public safety entity 

seeking to exercise this option, and shall 

inform the Upper 700 MHz D Block 

licensee of the public safety entity’s 

anticipated build-out date(s). 

(ii) Should the Upper 700 MHz D 

Block licensee, within 30 calendar days 

from receipt of notice of the public 

safety entity’s intent to construct in that 

area, certify in writing to the Public 

Safety Broadband Licensee that it will 

build out the shared network in the area 

within a reasonable time of the 

anticipated build-out date(s), as 

determined by the Public Safety 

Broadband Licensee, the Public Safety 

Broadband Licensee shall not allow the 

public safety entity to build and operate 

its own separate exclusive network in 

that area, provided that the Upper 700 

MHz D Block licensee and the Public 

Safety Broadband Licensee execute an 

amendment to the NSA indicating the 

Upper 700 MHz D Block licensee’s 

commitment to build the network in 

that area. Such commitment shall 

become enforceable against the Upper 

700 MHz D Block licensee as part of its 

overall build-out requirements. 

(iii) If the Upper 700 MHz D Block 

licensee does not exercise its option to 

commit to build out the network in the 

requested area within 30 calendar days 

of receipt of notice of the public safety 

entity’s intent to construct in such area, 

the Public Safety Broadband Licensee 

and the public safety entity may 

proceed with a spectrum leasing 

arrangement, which must be filed with 

the Commission prior to the public 

safety entity commencing any 

operations. The spectrum leasing 

arrangement must take the form of a 

spectrum manager leasing arrangement 

under the rules specified in § 1.9020 of 

this chapter, and incorporate the 

following conditions: 

(A) The network must provide 

broadband operations; 


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(B) The network must be fully 

interoperable with the Shared Wireless 

Broadband Network; 

(C) The network must be available for 

use by any public safety entity in the 

area; 

(D) The network must satisfy any 

other terms or conditions required by 

the Public Safety Broadband Licensee; 

and 

(E) The public safety entity must 

construct and place into operation its 

network within one year of the effective 

date of the spectrum manager leasing 

arrangement. If the public safety entity 

fails to place the network into operation 

within one year, the Public Safety 

Broadband Licensee shall terminate the 

spectrum leasing arrangement pursuant 

to § 1.9020(h)(3) of this chapter. The 

public safety entity may also seek 

extended implementation authority 

from the Commission pursuant to the 

requirements of § 90.629 of this chapter. 

(6) Except as set forth herein, the 

separate network is not required to meet 

the other specifications of the Shared 

Wireless Broadband Network. Absent 

agreement of the public safety entity, 

the Public Safety Broadband Licensee, 

and the Upper 700 MHz D Block 

licensee, the separate network may not 

operate using any spectrum associated 

with the Upper 700 MHz D Block 

license. 

(7) The Public Safety Broadband 

Licensee must file with the Commission 

any spectrum manager leasing 

arrangement as specified in § 1.9020(e) 

of this chapter; such filing shall identify 

the public safety entity leasing the 

spectrum, the particular areas of 

spectrum leased as part of this build-out 

option, and the specific network 

infrastructure and equipment deployed 

on such leased spectrum. 

§ 27.1333 Geographic partitioning, 

spectrum disaggregation, license 

assignment and transfer. 

(a) The 700 MHz Upper D Block 

license may not be partitioned or 

disaggregated. 

(b) The 700 MHz Upper D Block 

licensee will be permitted to assign or 

transfer its licensee subject to 

Commission review and prior approval. 

The Upper 700 MHz D Block license 

assignment or transfer applications are 

precluded from overnight processing. 

§ 27.1335 Prohibition on discontinuance of 

public safety operations. 

The Upper 700 MHz D Block licensee, 

the Operating Company and the 

Network Assets Holder are prohibited 

from discontinuing or degrading the 

broadband network service provided to 

the Public Safety Broadband Licensee or 

to public safety entities unless either at 

the request of the public safety entity or 

entities in question or with the preapproval of the Commission. The Upper 

700 MHz D Block licensee shall notify 

the affected public safety entity or 

entities and the Public Safety 

Broadband Licensee at least 30 days 

prior to any unrequested discontinuance 

or degradation of network service. 

§ 27.1340 Reporting obligations. 

(a) The Upper 700 MHz D Block 

licensee and the Public Safety 

Broadband Licensee shall jointly file 

quarterly reports with the Commission. 

These reports shall include audited 

financial statements, how the specific 

requirements of public safety are being 

met, detailed information on the areas 

where broadband service has been 

deployed, which public safety entities 

are using the broadband network in 

each area of operation, what types of 

applications are in use in each area of 

operation, and the number of declared 

emergencies in each area of operation. 

(b) The Upper 700 MHz D Block 

licensee and Public Safety Broadband 

Licensee have joint responsibility to 

register the base station locations with 

the Commission, providing basic 

technical information, including 

geographic location. 

PART 90—PRIVATE LAND MOBILE 

RADIO SERVICES 

■ 31. The authority citation for part 90 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: Sections 4(i), 11, 303(g), 303(r), 

and 332(c)(7) of the Communications Act of 

1934, as amended, 47 U.S.C. 154(i), 161, 

303(g), 303(r), and 332(c)(7). 

■ 32. Section 90.5 is amended by 

revising paragraphs (k), (l), and (m), and 

adding paragraph (n) to read as follows: 

§ 90.5 Other applicable rule parts. 

* * * * * 

(k) Part 27 contains rules relating to 

miscellaneous wireless communications 

services. 

(l) Part 51 contains rules relating to 

interconnection. 

(m) Part 68 contains technical 

standards for connection of private land 

mobile radio equipment to the public 

switched telephone network. 

(n) Part 101 governs the operation of 

fixed microwave services. 

■ 33. Section 90.7 is amended by adding 

the following definitions in alphabetical 

order to read as follows: 

§ 90.7 Definitions. 

700 MHz Public/Private Partnership. 

The public/private partnership 

established for the development and 

operation of a nationwide, shared 

interoperable wireless broadband 

network operating on the 758–763 MHz 

and 788–793 MHz bands and the 763–

768 MHz and 793–798 MHz bands in 

accordance with the Commission’s 

rules. 

* * * * * 

Network Assets Holder. The Network 

Assets Holder is a Special Purpose 

Bankruptcy Remote Entity that is 

formed to hold the assets of the shared 

wireless broadband network associated 

with the 700 MHz Public/Private 

Partnership, in accordance with the 

terms of the Network Sharing 

Agreement, such other agreements as 

the Commission may require or allow, 

and the Commission’s rules. 

Network Sharing Agreement (NSA). 

An agreement entered into between the 

winning bidder, the Upper 700 MHz D 

Block licensee, the Network Assets 

Holder, the Operating Company, the 

Public Safety Broadband Licensee, and 

any other related entities that the 

Commission may require or allow 

regarding the shared wireless broadband 

network associated with the 700 MHz 

Public/Private Partnership that will 

operate on the 758–763 MHz and 788–

793 MHz bands and the 763–768 MHz 

and 793–798 MHz bands. 

* * * * * 

Operating Company. The Operating 

Company is a Special Purpose 

Bankruptcy Remote Entity that is 

formed to build and operate the shared 

wireless broadband network associated 

with the 700 MHz Public/Private 

Partnership, in accordance with the 

terms of the Network Sharing 

Agreement, such other agreements as 

the Commission may require or allow, 

and the Commission’s rules. 

* * * * * 

Public Safety Broadband License. The 

Public Safety Broadband License 

authorizes public safety broadband 

services in the 763–768 MHz and 793–

798 MHz bands on a primary basis. 

Public Safety Broadband Licensee. 

The licensee of the Public Safety 

Broadband License in the 763–768 MHz 

and 793–798 MHz bands. 

* * * * * 

Shared Wireless Broadband Network. 

Wireless broadband network associated 

with the 700 MHz Band Public/Private 

Partnership that operates on the 758–

763 MHz and 788–793 MHz bands and 

the 763–768 MHz and 793–798 MHz 

bands pursuant to the terms of the 

Network Sharing Agreement, such other 

agreements as the Commission may 

require or allow, and the Commission’s 

rules. 

* * * * * 


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Special Purpose Bankruptcy Remote 

Entity. A ‘‘special purpose entity’’ is a 

legal entity created for a special limited 

purpose, in this context primarily to 

hold the Upper 700 MHz D Block 

license or the network assets, or to 

conduct the construction or operation of 

the Shared Wireless Broadband Network 

associated with the 700 MHz Public/ 

Private Partnership. A special purpose 

entity is ‘‘bankruptcy remote’’ if that 

entity is unlikely to become insolvent as 

a result of its own activities, is 

adequately insulated from the 

consequences of a related party’s 

insolvency, and contains certain 

characteristics which enhance the 

likelihood that it will not become the 

subject of an insolvency proceeding. 

* * * * * 

Upper 700 MHz D Block license. The 

Upper 700 MHz D Block license is the 

nationwide license associated with the 

758–763 MHz and 788–793 MHz bands. 

Upper 700 MHz D Block licensee. The 

Special Purpose Bankruptcy Remote 

Entity to which the Upper 700 MHz D 

Block license must be transferred upon 

execution of the Network Sharing 

Agreement. References herein to the 

rights and obligations of the Upper 700 

MHz D Block licensee include the 

exercise or discharge of such rights or 

obligations, respectively, by related 

entities as are provided for in the NSA 

or otherwise as authorized by the 

Commission. 

* * * * * 

■ 34. Section 90.18 is added to read as 

follows: 

§ 90.18 Public Safety 700 MHz Nationwide 

Broadband Network. 

The 763–768/793–798 MHz band is 

dedicated to a broadband public safety 

communications system with a 

nationwide level of interoperability. A 

nationwide license for this spectrum is 

held by a single entity, the Public Safety 

Broadband Licensee, which must enter 

into the 700 MHz Public/Private 

Partnership with the licensee of the 

adjacent Upper 700 MHz D Block 

license, pursuant to a Network Sharing 

Agreement and such other agreements 

as the Commission may require. The 

specific provisions relating to the 700 

MHz Public/Private Partnership are set 

forth in subpart AA of this part and 

subpart N of part 27. The Public Safety 

700 MHz Nationwide Broadband 

Network is established in the Second 

Report and Order in PS Docket No. 06–

229. 

■ 35. Section 90.20 is amended by 

revising the entries for ‘‘470 to 512’’ and 

‘‘763 to 775; ‘‘806 to 817’’ by removing 

the entry for ‘‘764 to 776’’; and by 

adding entries for ‘‘763 to 775’’ and 

‘‘793 to 805’’ in the frequency or band 

table in paragraph (c)(3) and by revising 

paragraph (d)(77) is to read as follows: 

§ 90.20 Public Safety Pool. 

* * * * * 

(c) * * * 

(3) Frequencies. 

PUBLIC SAFETY POOL FREQUENCY TABLE

Frequency or band Class of station(s) Limitations Coordinator 

* * * * * * * 

470 to 512 ................................................................... Base or mobile ............................................................ 68 

763 to 775 ................................................................... Base, mobile ............................................................... 77 PX 

793 to 805 ................................................................... Mobile .......................................................................... 77 PX 

806 to 817 ................................................................... ......do .......................................................................... 69 

* * * * * * * 

(d) * * * 

(77) Subpart R of this part contains 

rules for assignment of channels in the 

763–775 MHz and 793–805 MHz bands. 

* * * * * 

■ 36. Section 90.155 is amended by 

revising paragraph (a) to read as follows: 

§ 90.155 Time in which station must be 

placed in operation. 

(a) All stations authorized under this 

part, except as provided in §§ 90.528, 

90.529, 90.629, 90.631(f), 90.665, 

90.685, and 90.1209, must be placed in 

operation within twelve (12) months 

from the date of grant or the 

authorization cancels automatically and 

must be returned to the Commission. 

* * * * * 

■ 37. Section 90.175 is amended by 

revising the paragraph heading in 

paragraph (e), revising paragraphs (j) 

(10), through (j)(11) and (12) and adding 

paragraph (j)(18) to read as follows: 

§ 90.175 Frequency coordination 

requirements. 

* * * * * 

(e) For frequencies between 470–512 

MHz, 769–775/799–805 MHz, 806–824/ 

851–869 MHz and 896–901/935–940 

MHz: * * * 

* * * * * 

(j) * * * 

(10) Applications for mobile stations 

operating in the 470–512 MHz band, 

799–805 MHz band, or above 800 MHz 

if the frequency pair is assigned to a 

single system on an exclusive basis in 

the proposed area of operation. 

(11) Applications for add-on base 

stations in multiple licensed systems 

operating in the 470–512 MHz, 769–775 

MHz band, or above 800 MHz if the 

frequency pair is assigned to a single 

system on an exclusive basis. 

(12) Applications for control stations 

operating below 470 MHz, 769–775/ 

799–805 MHz, or above 800 MHz and 

meeting the requirements of § 90.119(b). 

* * * * * 

(18) Applications for base, mobile, or 

control stations in the 763–768 MHz 

and 793–798 MHz bands. 

■ 38. Section 90.176 is amended by 

revising the section heading and 

revising the heading to paragraph (c) to 

read as follows: 

§ 90.176 Coordinator notification 

requirements on frequencies below 512 

MHz or at 769–775/799–805 MHz. 

* * * * * 

(c) Frequencies in the 769–775/799–

805 MHz band. * * * 

* * * * * 

■ 39. Section 90.179 is amended by 

revising paragraph (g) to read as follows: 

§ 90.179 Shared use of radio stations. 

* * * * * 

(g) Notwithstanding paragraph (a) of 

this section, licensees authorized to 

operate radio systems on Public Safety 

Pool frequencies designated in § 90.20 

may share their facilities with Federal 

Government entities on a non-profit, 

cost-shared basis. Such a sharing 

arrangement is subject to the provisions 

of paragraphs (b), (d), and (e) of this 

section, and § 2.103(c) concerning 

approval of the Public Safety Broadband 

Licensee for Federal operations in the 

763–768 MHz and 793–798 MHz bands. 

State governments authorized to operate 


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radio systems under § 90.529 may share 

the use of their systems (for public 

safety services not made commercially 

available to the public) with any entity 

that would be eligible for licensing 

under § 90.523 and Federal Government 

entities. 

* * * * * 

■ 40. Section 90.205 is amended by 

redesignating paragraphs (j) through (r) 

as paragraphs (k) through (s) by adding 

new paragraph (j), and revising newly 

redesignated paragraph (k) to read as 

follows: 

§ 90.205 Power and antenna height limits. 

* * * * * 

(j) 763–775 MHz and 793–805 MHz. 

Power and height limitations are 

specified in §§ 90.541 and 90.542. 

(k) 806–824 MHz, 851–869 MHz, 896–

901 MHz and 935–940 MHz. Power and 

height limitations are specified in 

§ 90.635 

* * * * * 

■ 41. Part 90 is amended by revising the 

heading to subpart R as follows: 

Subpart R—Regulations Governing the 

Licensing and Use of Frequencies in 

the 763–775 and 793–805 MHz Bands 

■ 42. Section 90.521 is amended by 

revising the first sentence to read as 

follows: 

§ 90.521 Scope. 

This subpart sets forth the regulations 

governing the licensing and operations 

of all systems operating in the 763–775 

MHz and 793–805 MHz frequency 

bands. * * * 

* * * * * 

■ 43. Section 90.523 is amended by 

revising the introductory text and 

adding paragraph (e) to read as follows: 

§ 90.523 Eligibility. 

This section implements the 

definition of public safety services 

contained in 47 U.S.C. 337(f)(1). The 

following are eligible to hold 

Commission authorizations for systems 

operating in the 763–775 MHz and 793–

805 MHz frequency bands: 

* * * * * 

(e) The minimum eligibility 

requirements for the Public Safety 

Broadband Licensee in the 763–768 

MHz and 793–798 MHz bands are as 

follows: 

(1) No commercial interest may be 

held in the Public Safety Broadband 

Licensee, and no commercial interest 

may participate in the management of 

the Public Safety Broadband Licensee; 

(2) The Public Safety Broadband 

Licensee must be a non-profit 

organization; 

(3) The Public Safety Broadband 

Licensee must be as broadly 

representative of the public safety radio 

user community as possible; and 

(4) The Public Safety Broadband 

Licensee must be in receipt of written 

certifications from no less than ten 

geographically diverse state and local 

governmental entities (the authorizing 

entities), with at least one certification 

from a state government entity and one 

from a local government entity, 

verifying that—

(i) They have authorized the Public 

Safety Broadband Licensee to use 

spectrum at 763–768 MHz and 793–798 

MHz to provide the authorizing entities 

with public safety services; and 

(ii) The authorizing entities’ primary 

mission is the provision of public safety 

services. 

■ 44. Revise § 90.525 to read as follows: 

§ 90.525 Administration of interoperability 

channels. 

(a) States are responsible for 

administration of the Interoperability 

channels in the 769–775 MHz and 799–

805 MHz frequency bands. Base and 

control stations must be licensed 

individually. A public safety entity 

meeting the requirements of § 90.523 

may operate mobile or portable units on 

the Interoperability channels in the 

769–775 MHz and 799–805 MHz 

frequency bands without a specific 

authorization from the Commission 

provided it holds a part 90 license. All 

persons operating mobile or portable 

units under this authority are 

responsible for compliance with part 90 

of these rules and other applicable 

federal laws. 

(b) License applications for 

Interoperability channels in the 769–775 

MHz and 799–805 MHz frequency 

bands must be approved by a state-level 

agency or organization responsible for 

administering state emergency 

communications. States may hold the 

licenses for Interoperability channels or 

approve other qualified entities to hold 

such licenses. States may delegate the 

approval process for interoperability 

channels to another entity, such as 

regional planning committees. 

■ 45. Add § 90.528 to subpart R to read 

as follows: 

§ 90.528 Public Safety Broadband License. 

(a) The 763–768/793–798 MHz bands 

are allocated on a nationwide basis for 

public safety broadband operations and 

licensed to a single Public Safety 

Broadband Licensee. The 768–769/798–

799 MHz bands also are licensed to the 

Public Safety Broadband Licensees as 

guard bands. The license area of the 

Public Safety Broadband License 

consists of the contiguous 48 states, 

Alaska, Hawaii, Gulf of Mexico, and the 

U.S. territories. 

(b) The Public Safety Broadband 

License authorizes construction and 

operation of base stations anywhere 

within the area authorized by the 

license, except as follows: 

(1) A station is required to be 

individually licensed if: 

(i) International agreements require 

coordination; 

(ii) Submission of an environmental 

assessment is required under § 1.1307 of 

this chapter; or 

(iii) The station would affect areas 

identified in § 1.924 of this chapter. 

(2) Any antenna structure that 

requires notification to the Federal 

Aviation Administration (FAA) must be 

registered with the Commission prior to 

construction under § 17.4 of this 

chapter. 

(c) Mobile and portable devices may 

operate without individual license 

under the authority of the Public Safety 

Broadband License. 

(d) The term of the Public Safety 

Broadband License shall not exceed ten 

years from February 17, 2009. The 

Public Safety Broadband Licensee is 

entitled to a renewal expectancy barring 

violations of law, rules or policy 

warranting denial of renewal. 

(e) The Public Safety Broadband 

License may not be partitioned or 

disaggregated. 

(f) The Public Safety Broadband 

Licensee may not voluntarily assign or 

transfer control of the Public Safety 

Broadband License. 

(g) Quarterly reporting of financial 

and operational information. The Public 

Safety Broadband Licensee shall submit, 

on a quarterly basis, a full financial 

accounting to the Commission, in a 

format to be set forth in the Network 

Sharing Agreement, and as approved by 

the Commission. Such quarterly 

financial reports shall be filed with the 

Commission, with a copy to the Chiefs 

of the Wireless Telecommunications 

and the Public Safety and Homeland 

Security Bureaus. 

■ 46. Amend § 90.531 as follows: 

■ a. Revise the introductory text to the 

section. 

■ b. Revise paragraph (a), (b) 

introductory text, and the table that 

follows. 

■ c. Remove and reserve paragraphs (c) 

and (d)(2). 

■ d. Revise paragraph (e). 

■ e. Add paragraphs (f) and (g). 

§ 90.531 Band plan. 

This section sets forth the band plan 

for the 763–775 MHz and 793–805 MHz 

public safety bands. 


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(a) Base and mobile use. The 763–775 

MHz band may be used for base, mobile 

or fixed (repeater) transmissions. The 

793–805 MHz band may be used only 

for mobile or fixed (control) 

transmissions. 

(b) Narrowband segments. There are 

two band segments that are designated 

for use with narrowband emissions. 

Each of these narrowband segments is 

divided into 960 channels having a 

channel size of 6.25 kHz as follows: 

Frequency range Channel Nos. 

769–775 MHz ....................... 1–960 

799–805 MHz ....................... 961–1920 

* * * * * 

(f) Internal guard band. The internal 

guard band (768–769/798–799 MHz) is 

reserved. 

(g) Broadband. The 763–768 MHz and 

793–798 MHz bands are allocated for 

broadband communications pursuant to 

the Public Safety Broadband License. 

■ 47. Section 90.533 is amended by 

revising the introductory text and 

paragraphs (a) and (c) to read as follows: 

§ 90.533 Transmitting sites near the U.S./ 

Canada or U.S./Mexico border. 

This section applies to each license to 

operate one or more public safety 

transmitters in the 763–775 MHz and 

793–805 MHz bands, at a location or 

locations North of Line A (see § 90.7) or 

within 120 kilometers (75 miles) of the 

U.S.-Mexico border, until such time as 

agreements between the government of 

the United States and the government of 

Canada or the government of the United 

States and the government of Mexico, as 

applicable, become effective governing 

border area non-broadcast use of these 

bands. Public safety licenses are granted 

subject to the following conditions: 

(a) Public safety transmitters 

operating in the 763–775 MHz and 793–

805 MHz bands must conform to the 

limitations on interference to Canadian 

television stations contained in 

agreement(s) between the United States 

and Canada for use of television 

channels in the border area. 

* * * * * 

(c) Conditions may be added during 

the term of the license, if required by 

the terms of international agreements 

between the government of the United 

States and the government of Canada or 

the government of the United States and 

the government of Mexico, as 

applicable, regarding non-broadcast use 

of the 763–775 MHz and 793–805 MHz 

bands. 

■ 48. Section 90.535 is amended by 

revising the introductory text and 

paragraph (a) to read as follows: 

§ 90.535 Modulation and spectrum usage 

efficiency requirements. 

Transmitters designed to operate in 

769–775 MHz and 799–805 MHz 

frequency bands must meet the 

following modulation standards: 

(a) All transmitters in the 769–775 

MHz and 799–805 MHz frequency 

bands must use digital modulation. 

Mobile and portable transmitters may 

have analog modulation capability only 

as a secondary mode in addition to its 

primary digital mode. Mobile and 

portable transmitters that only operate 

on the low power channels designated 

in §§ 90.531(b)(3), 90.531(b)(4), are 

exempt from this digital modulation 

requirement. 

* * * * * 

■ 49. Section 90.537 is amended by 

revising paragraph (a) to read as follows: 

§ 90.537 Trunking requirement. 

(a) General use channels. All systems 

using six or more narrowband channels 

in the 769–775 MHz and 799–805 MHz 

frequency bands must be trunked 

systems, except for those described in 

paragraph (b) of this section. 

* * * * * 

■ 50. Section 90.539 is amended by 

revising the introductory text to read as 

follows: 

§ 90.539 Frequency stability. 

Transmitters designed to operate in 

769–775 MHz and 799–805 MHz 

frequency bands must meet the 

frequency stability requirements in this 

section. 

* * * * * 

■ 51. Section 90.541 is amended by 

revising the introductory text to read as 

follows: 

§ 90.541 Transmitting power limits. 

The transmitting power of base, 

mobile, portable and control stations 

operating in the 769–775 MHz and 799–

805 MHz frequency bands must not 

exceed the maximum limits in this 

section, and must also comply with any 

applicable effective radiated power 

limits in § 90.545. 

* * * * * 

■ 52. Add § 90.542 to subpart R to read 

as follows: 

§ 90.542 Broadband transmitting power 

limits. 

(a) The following power limits apply 

to the 763–768/793–798 MHz band: 

(1) Fixed and base stations 

transmitting a signal in the 763–768 

MHz band with an emission bandwidth 

of 1 MHz or less must not exceed an 

ERP of 1000 watts and an antenna 

height of 305 m HAAT, except that 

antenna heights greater than 305 m 

HAAT are permitted if power levels are 

reduced below 1000 watts ERP in 

accordance with Table 1 of this section. 

(2) Fixed and base stations located in 

a county with population density of 100 

or fewer persons per square mile, based 

upon the most recently available 

population statistics from the Bureau of 

the Census, and transmitting a signal in 

the 763–768 MHz band with an 

emission bandwidth of 1 MHz or less 

must not exceed an ERP of 2000 watts 

and an antenna height of 305 m HAAT, 

except that antenna heights greater than 

305 m HAAT are permitted if power 

levels are reduced below 2000 watts 

ERP in accordance with Table 2 of this 

section. 

(3) Fixed and base stations 

transmitting a signal in the 763–768 

MHz band with an emission bandwidth 

greater than 1 MHz must not exceed an 

ERP of 1000 watts/MHz and an antenna 

height of 305 m HAAT, except that 

antenna heights greater than 305 m 

HAAT are permitted if power levels are 

reduced below 1000 watts/MHz ERP 

accordance with Table 3 of this section. 

(4) Fixed and base stations located in 

a county with population density of 100 

or fewer persons per square mile, based 

upon the most recently available 

population statistics from the Bureau of 

the Census, and transmitting a signal in 

the 763–768 MHz band with an 

emission bandwidth greater than 1 MHz 

must not exceed an ERP of 2000 watts/ 

MHz and an antenna height of 305 m 

HAAT, except that antenna heights 

greater than 305 m HAAT are permitted 

if power levels are reduced below 2000 

watts/MHz ERP in accordance with 

Table 4 of this section. 

(5) Licensees of fixed or base stations 

transmitting a signal in the 763–768 

MHz band at an ERP greater than 1000 

watts must comply with the provisions 

set forth in paragraph (b) of this section. 

(6) Control stations and mobile 

stations transmitting in the 763–768 

MHz band and the 793–798 MHz band 

are limited to 30 watts ERP. 

(7) Portable stations (hand-held 

devices) transmitting in the 763–768 

MHz band and the 793–798 MHz band 

are limited to 3 watts ERP. 

(8) For transmissions in the 763–768 

MHz and 793–798 MHz bands, licensees 

may employ equipment operating in 

compliance with either of the following 

measurement techniques: 

(i) The maximum composite transmit 

power shall be measured over any 

interval of continuous transmission 

using instrumentation calibrated in 

terms of RMS-equivalent voltage. The 

measurement results shall be properly 

adjusted for any instrument limitations, 


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such as detector response times, limited 

resolution bandwidth capability when 

compared to the emission bandwidth, 

etc., so as to obtain a true maximum 

composite measurement for the 

emission in question over the full 

bandwidth of the channel. 

(ii) A Commission-approved average 

power technique. 

TABLE 1 TO § 90.542(A).—PERMISSIBLE POWER AND ANTENNA

HEIGHTS FOR BASE AND FIXED STATIONS IN THE 763–768 MHZ BAND

TRANSMITTING A SIGNAL WITH AN

EMISSION BANDWIDTH OF 1 MHZ OR

LESS

Antenna height (AAT) in meters 

(feet) 

Effective radiated power 

(ERP) 

(watts) 

Above 1372 (4500) ............... 65 

Above 1220 (4000) To 1372 

(4500) ................................ 70 

Above 1067 (3500) To 1220 

(4000) ................................ 75 

Above 915 (3000) To 1067 

(3500) ................................ 100 

Above 763 (2500) To 915 

(3000) ................................ 140 

Above 610 (2000) To 763 

(2500) ................................ 200 

Above 458 (1500) To 610 

(2000) ................................ 350 

Above 305 (1000) To 458 

(1500) ................................ 600 

Up to 305 (1000) .................. 1000 

TABLE 2 TO § 90.542(A).—PERMISSIBLE POWER AND ANTENNA

HEIGHTS FOR BASE AND FIXED STATIONS IN THE 763–768 MHZ BAND

TRANSMITTING A SIGNAL WITH AN

EMISSION BANDWIDTH OF 1 MHZ OR

LESS

Antenna height (AAT) in meters 

(feet) 

Effective radiated power 

(ERP) 

(watts) 

Above 1372 (4500) ............... 130 

Above 1220 (4000) To 1372 

(4500) ................................ 140 

Above 1067 (3500) To 1220 

(4000) ................................ 150 

Above 915 (3000) To 1067 

(3500) ................................ 200 

Above 763 (2500) To 915 

(3000) ................................ 280 

Above 610 (2000) To 763 

(2500) ................................ 400 

Above 458 (1500) To 610 

(2000) ................................ 700 

Above 305 (1000) To 458 

(1500) ................................ 1200 

Up to 305 (1000) .................. 2000 

TABLE 3 TO § 90.542(A).—PERMISSIBLE POWER AND ANTENNA

HEIGHTS FOR BASE AND FIXED STATIONS IN THE 763–768 MHZ BAND

TRANSMITTING A SIGNAL WITH AN

EMISSION BANDWIDTH GREATER

THAN 1 MHZ

Antenna height (AAT) in meters 

(feet) 

Effective radiated power 

(ERP) per 

MHz 

(watts/MHz) 

Above 1372 (4500) ............... 65 

Above 1220 (4000) To 1372 

(4500) ................................ 70 

Above 1067 (3500) To 1220 

(4000) ................................ 75 

Above 915 (3000) To 1067 

(3500) ................................ 100 

Above 763 (2500) To 915 

(3000) ................................ 140 

Above 610 (2000) To 763 

(2500) ................................ 200 

Above 458 (1500) To 610 

(2000) ................................ 350 

Above 305 (1000) To 458 

(1500) ................................ 600 

Up to 305 (1000) .................. 1000 

TABLE 4 TO § 90.542(A).—PERMISSIBLE POWER AND ANTENNA

HEIGHTS FOR BASE AND FIXED STATIONS IN THE 763–768 MHZ BAND

TRANSMITTING A SIGNAL WITH AN

EMISSION BANDWIDTH GREATER

THAN 1 MHZ

Antenna height (AAT) in meters 

(feet) 

Effective radiated power 

(ERP) per 

MHz 

(watts/MHz) 

Above 1372 (4500) ............... 130 

Above 1220 (4000) To 1372 

(4500) ................................ 140 

Above 1067 (3500) To 1220 

(4000) ................................ 150 

Above 915 (3000) To 1067 

(3500) ................................ 200 

Above 763 (2500) To 915 

(3000) ................................ 280 

Above 610 (2000) To 763 

(2500) ................................ 400 

Above 458 (1500) To 610 

(2000) ................................ 700 

Above 305 (1000) To 458 

(1500) ................................ 1200 

Up to 305 (1000) .................. 2000 

(b) For base and fixed stations 

operating in the 763–768 MHz band in 

accordance with the provisions of 

paragraph (a)(5) of this section, the 

power flux density that would be 

produced by such stations through a 

combination of antenna height and 

vertical gain pattern must not exceed 

3000 microwatts per square meter on 

the ground over the area extending to 1 

km from the base of the antenna 

mounting structure. 

■ 53. Amended § 90.543 as follows: 

■ a. Revise the introductory text. 

■ b. Amend paragraph (a) by removing 

the tables titled ‘‘150 kHz Mobile 

Transmitter ACP Requirements’’ and 

‘‘150 kHz Base Transmitter ACP 

Requirements’’. 

■ c. Revise paragraph (b)(1). 

■ d. Redesignate paragraphs (e) and (f) 

as paragraphs (f) and (g). 

■ e. Add a new paragraph (e). 

■ f. Revise newly redesignated 

paragraphs (f) and (g). 

§ 90.543 Emission limitations. 

Transmitters designed to operate in 

769–775 MHz and 799–805 MHz 

frequency bands must meet the 

emission limitations in paragraphs (a) 

through (d) of this section. Transmitters 

operating in 763–768 MHz and 793–798 

MHz bands must meet the emission 

limitations in (e) of this section. 

* * * * * 

(b) * * * 

(1) Setting reference level. Set 

transmitter to maximum output power. 

Using a spectrum analyzer capable of 

ACP measurements, set the 

measurement bandwidth to the channel 

size. For example, for a 6.25 kHz 

transmitter set the measurement 

bandwidth to 6.25 kHz. Set the 

frequency offset of the measurement 

bandwidth to zero and adjust the center 

frequency of the instrument to the 

assigned center frequency to measure 

the average power level of the 

transmitter. Record this power level in 

dBm as the ‘‘reference power level.’’

* * * * * 

(e) For operations in the 763–768 

MHz and the 793–798 MHz bands, the 

power of any emission outside the 

licensee’s frequency band(s) of 

operation shall be attenuated below the 

transmitter power (P) within the 

licensed band(s) of operation, measured 

in watts, in accordance with the 

following: 

(1) On all frequencies between 769–

775 MHz and 799–805 MHz, by a factor 

not less than 76 + 10 log (P) dB in a 6.25 

kHz band segment, for base and fixed 

stations. 

(2) On all frequencies between 769–

775 MHz and 799–805 MHz, by a factor 

not less than 65 + 10 log (P) dB in a 6.25 

kHz band segment, for mobile and 

portable stations. 

(3) Compliance with the provisions of 

paragraphs (e)(1) and (2) of this section 

is based on the use of measurement 

instrumentation such that the reading 

taken with any resolution bandwidth 

setting should be adjusted to indicate 

spectral energy in a 6.25 kHz segment. 


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Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 164 / Friday, August 24, 2007 / Rules and Regulations 48863 

(f) For operations in the 763–775 MHz 

and 793–805 MHz bands, all emissions 

including harmonics in the band 1559–

1610 MHz shall be limited to -70 dBW/ 

MHz equivalent isotropically radiated 

power (EIRP) for wideband signals, and 

-80 dBW EIRP for discrete emissions of 

less than 700 Hz bandwidth. For the 

purpose of equipment authorization, a 

transmitter shall be tested with an 

antenna that is representative of the 

type that will be used with the 

equipment in normal operation. 

(g) When an emission outside of the 

authorized bandwidth causes harmful 

interference, the Commission may, at its 

discretion, require greater attenuation 

than specified in this section. 

■ 54. Section 90.547 is amended by 

revising paragraph (a) introductory text 

to read as follows: 

§ 90.547 Narrowband interoperability 

channel capability requirement. 

(a) Except as noted in this section, 

mobile and portable transmitters 

operating on narrowband channels in 

the 769–775 MHz and 799–805 MHz 

frequency bands must be capable of 

operating on all of the designated 

nationwide narrowband Interoperability 

channels pursuant to the standards 

specified in this part. 

* * * * * 

■ 55. Section 90.548 is amended by 

revising paragraph (a) introductory text 

to read as follows: 

§ 90.548 Interoperability technical 

standards. 

(a) Transmitters operating on those 

narrowband channels in the 769–775 

and 799–805 MHz band designated for 

interoperability (see § 90.531) shall 

conform to the following technical 

standards: 

* * * * * 

■ 56. Section 90.551 is revised to read 

as follows: 

§ 90.551 Construction requirements. 

Each station authorized under this 

subpart to operate in the 769–775 MHz 

and 799–805 MHz frequency bands 

must be constructed and placed into 

operation within 12 months from the 

date of grant of the authorization, except 

for State channels. However, licensees 

may request a longer construction 

period, up to but not exceeding 5 years, 

pursuant to § 90.155(b). State channels 

are subject to the build-out requirements 

in § 90.529. 

■ 57. Add subpart AA to part 90 as 

follows: 

Subpart AA—700 MHz Public/Private 

Partnership 

Sec. 

90.1401 Purpose and scope. 

90.1403 Public safety broadband license 

conditions. 

90.1405 Shared wireless broadband 

network. 

90.1407 Spectrum use in the network. 

90.1408 Organization and structure of the 

700 MHz public/private partnership. 

90.1410 Network sharing agreement. 

90.1415 Establishment, execution, and 

application of the network sharing 

agreement. 

90.1420 Failure to comply with the NSA or 

the Commission’s rules. 

90.1425 Resolution of disputes after grant of 

the upper 700 MHz D block license. 

90.1430 Local public safety build-out and 

operation. 

90.1432 Conditions for waiver to allow 

limited and temporary wideband 

operation in the 700 MHz public safety 

spectrum. 

90.1435 Prohibition on discontinuance of 

public safety operations. 

90.1440 Reporting obligations. 

§ 90.1401 Purpose and scope. 

The purpose of this subpart, in 

conjunction with subpart N of part 27, 

is to establish rules and procedures 

relating to the 700 MHz Public/Private 

Partnership entered between the 

winning bidder for the Upper 700 MHz 

D Block license, the Upper 700 MHz D 

Block licensee, the Network Assets 

Holder, the Operating Company, the 

Public Safety Broadband Licensee, and 

other related entities as the Commission 

may require or allow. Pursuant to this 

partnership, the Upper 700 MHz D 

Block licensee and the Operating 

Company will be responsible for 

constructing and operating a 

nationwide, shared interoperable 

wireless broadband network used to 

provide a commercial service and a 

broadband network service for public 

safety entities. The shared network 

assets will be held by the Network 

Assets Holder, and the Shared Wireless 

Broadband Network will operate on 

both the commercial spectrum licensed 

to the Upper 700 MHz D Block licensee 

and the public safety broadband 

spectrum licensed to the Public Safety 

Broadband Licensee. This subpart of the 

part 90 rules sets forth specific 

provisions relating to the Public Safety 

Broadband License and the Public 

Safety Broadband Licensee with respect 

to the 700 MHz Public/Private 

Partnership. Subpart N of the part 27 

rules sets forth related provisions 

applicable to the Upper 700 MHz D 

Block license, the Upper 700 MHz D 

Block licensee and other related entities 

as the Commission may require or 

allow, with respect to the 700 MHz 

Public/Private Partnership. 

§ 90.1403 Public safety broadband license 

conditions. 

(a) The Public Safety Broadband 

Licensee shall comply with all of the 

applicable requirements set forth in this 

subpart and shall comply with the terms 

of the Network Sharing Agreement and 

such other agreements as the 

Commission may require or allow. 

(b) The responsibilities of the Public 

Safety Broadband Licensee shall include 

the following: 

(1) Negotiation of the NSA and such 

other agreements as the Commission 

may require or allow with the winning 

bidder at auction for the Upper 700 

MHz D Block license, pursuant to the 

requirements set forth in § 90.1410. 

(2) General administration of access to 

the 763–768 MHz and 793–798 MHz 

bands by individual public safety 

entities, including assessment of usage 

fees and related frequency coordination 

duties. 

(3) Regular interaction with and 

promotion of the needs of the public 

safety entities with respect to access and 

use of the 763–768 MHz and 793–798 

MHz bands, within the technical and 

operational confines of the NSA. 

(4) Dealings with equipment vendors 

on its own or in partnership with the 

Upper 700 MHz D Block licensee, as 

appropriate, to achieve and pass on the 

benefits of economies of scale 

concerning network and subscriber 

equipment and applications. 

(5) Sole authority, which cannot be 

waived in the NSA, to approve, in 

consultation with the Upper 700 MHz D 

Block licensee, equipment and 

applications for use by public safety 

entities on the public safety broadband 

network. State or local entities may seek 

review of a decision by the Public Safety 

Broadband Licensee not to permit 

certain equipment or applications, or 

particular specifications for equipment 

or applications, from the Chief, Public 

Safety and Homeland Security Bureau. 

(6) Coordination of stations operating 

on 700 MHz public safety broadband 

spectrum with 700 MHz public safety 

narrowband stations, including 

management of the internal public 

safety guard band. 

(7) Oversight and implementation of 

the relocation of narrowband public 

safety operations in television channels 

63 and 68, and the upper one megahertz 

of channels 64 and 69. 

(8) Exercise of sole discretion, 

pursuant to § 2.103 of this chapter, 

whether to permit Federal public safety 

agency use of the public safety 

broadband spectrum, with any such use 


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subject to the terms and conditions of 

the NSA. 

(9) Review of requests for waiver 

submitted by public safety entities to 

conduct wideband operations pursuant 

to the procedures and restrictions in 

connection with such waivers as 

described in § 90.1432. 

§ 90.1405 Shared wireless broadband 

network. 

The Shared Wireless Broadband 

Network developed by the 700 MHz 

Public/Private Partnership must be 

designed to meet requirements 

associated with a nationwide, public 

safety broadband network. At a 

minimum, the network must 

incorporate the following features: 

(a) Design for operation over a 

broadband technology platform that 

provides mobile voice, video, and data 

capability that is seamlessly 

interoperable across public safety local 

and state agencies, jurisdictions, and 

geographic areas, and which includes 

current and evolving state-of-the-art 

technologies reasonably made available 

in the commercial marketplace with 

features beneficial to the public safety 

community. 

(b) Sufficient signal coverage to 

ensure reliable operation throughout the 

service area consistent with typical 

public safety communications systems. 

(c) Sufficient robustness to meet the 

reliability and performance 

requirements of public safety. 

(d) Sufficient capacity to meet the 

needs of public safety. 

(e) Security and encryption consistent 

with state-of-the-art technologies. 

(f) A mechanism to automatically 

prioritize public safety communications 

over commercial uses on a real-time 

basis consistent with the requirements 

of § 90.1407(c). 

(g) Operational capabilities consistent 

with features and requirements that are 

typical of current and evolving state-ofthe-art public safety systems. 

(h) Operational control of the network 

by the Public Safety Broadband 

Licensee to the extent necessary to 

ensure that public safety requirements 

are met. 

§ 90.1407 Spectrum use in the network. 

(a) Spectrum use. The Shared 

Wireless Broadband Network will 

operate using spectrum associated with 

the Upper 700 MHz D Block license in 

the 758–763 MHz and 788–793 MHz 

bands and the Public Safety Broadband 

License in the adjacent 763–768 MHz 

and 793–798 MHz bands. 

(b) Access to spectrum in the 763–768 

MHz and 793–798 MHz bands. The 

Public Safety Broadband Licensee 

which holds the Public Safety 

Broadband License, pursuant to part 90 

rules, must lease the spectrum rights 

associated with this license, pursuant to 

a spectrum manager leasing 

arrangement set forth in part 1 subpart 

X, to the Upper 700 MHz D Block 

licensee and the Operating Company for 

the entire remaining term of the Public 

Safety Broadband License to effectuate 

the 700 MHz Public/Private Partnership. 

The Upper 700 MHz D Block licensee 

and the Operating Company, are the 

only entities that are eligible to lease the 

spectrum usage rights associated with 

the Public Safety Broadband License to 

operate on the 763–768 and 793–798 

MHz bands. If the Upper 700 MHz D 

Block license is cancelled, this spectrum 

leasing arrangement will automatically 

terminate. 

(c) Commercial operations in the 763–

768 MHz and 793–798 MHz bands. 

Commercial operations in the 763–768 

MHz and 793–798 MHz bands through 

the spectrum manager leasing 

arrangement shall not cause harmful 

interference to primary users (i.e., 

public safety users) and cannot claim 

protection from harmful interference 

from the primary public safety 

operations in the 763–768 MHz and 

793–798 MHz bands. The network 

providing commercial operations in the 

763–768 MHz and 793–798 MHz bands 

through the spectrum manager leasing 

arrangement must be designed to 

automatically assign priority to public 

safety users, to the exclusion and/or 

immediate preemption of any 

commercial use on a dynamic, real-time 

priority basis, and to guarantee that 

public safety users suffer no harmful 

interference or interruption or 

degradation of service due to 

commercial operations in the 763–768 

MHz and 793–798 MHz bands. 

§ 90.1408 Organization and structure of 

the 700 MHz public/private partnership. 

(a) The Upper 700 MHz D Block 

licensee and the Network Assets Holder 

and such other related entities as the 

Commission may require or allow shall 

be formed by the winning bidder of the 

Upper 700 MHz D Block license. The 

Upper 700 MHz D Block licensee, the 

Network Assets Holder, and related 

entities as the Commission may require 

or allow must be Special Purpose 

Bankruptcy Remote Entities formed to 

hold the license, to hold the shared 

network assets, or for such other 

purpose as the Commission may require 

or allow. The winning bidder of the 

Upper 700 MHz D Block license shall 

also form the Operating Company, 

which must also be a Special Purpose 

Bankruptcy Remote Entity. Upon 

issuance of the Upper 700 MHz D Block 

license, the winning bidder will assign 

all of its rights and obligations under the 

NSA to the Upper 700 MHz D Block 

licensee, Network Assets Holder, the 

Operating Company, and any other 

related entities that the Commission 

may require or allow. 

(b) The Upper 700 MHz D Block 

licensee and other related entities as the 

Commission may require or allow shall 

have the obligation to build out the 

Shared Wireless Broadband Network, as 

provided for in the NSA or otherwise as 

authorized by the Commission. 

§ 90.1410 Network sharing agreement. 

The relationship between the Upper 

700 MHz D Block licensee, the Public 

Safety Broadband Licensee, and related 

entities as the Commission may require 

or allow will be governed by the 

Network Sharing Agreement (NSA) and 

such other separate agreements as the 

Commission may require or allow that 

are negotiated and entered into between 

the parties. The NSA must, at a 

minimum, include the following terms: 

(a) All of the substantive rights and 

obligations of the parties relating to the 

NSA, as established by the Commission 

concerning the 700 MHz Public/Private 

Partnership. 

(b) Network specifications that 

comply with § 27.1305 of this chapter. 

(c) The definition of ‘‘emergency’’ for 

purposes of emergency priority access. 

(d) All service fees to be imposed for 

services to public safety, including fees 

for normal network service and fees for 

priority access to the D Block spectrum 

in an emergency. 

(e) A detailed build-out schedule 

consistent with § 27.1327 of this 

chapter, including coverage of major 

highways and interstates, as well as 

incorporated communities with a 

population in excess of 3,000. 

(f) The right of the Public Safety 

Broadband Licensee to determine and 

approve the specifications of public 

safety equipment used on the network 

and the right to purchase its own 

subscriber equipment from any vendor 

it chooses, to the extent such 

specifications and equipment are 

consistent with reasonable network 

control requirements established in the 

NSA. 

(g) The Upper 700 MHz D Block 

licensee must offer at least one handset 

suitable for public safety use that 

includes a seamlessly integrated 

satellite solution pursuant to the terms, 

conditions, and timeframes set forth in 

the NSA. 

(h) Any major modification of the 

terms of the NSA, related agreements or 

documents, or such other agreements as 


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the Commission may require or allow 

must be submitted to the Commission 

for prior approval. All other 

modifications must be submitted to the 

Chiefs of the Wireless 

Telecommunications Bureau and the 

Public Safety and Homeland Security 

Bureau for prior approval. 

(i) The NSA shall require, in a 

separate agreement, the granting of an 

irrevocable and assignable right of first 

refusal to purchase the network assets if 

and whenever such assets are otherwise 

to be sold and an irrevocable and 

assignable option in favor of the Public 

Safety Broadband Licensee to purchase 

the network and all network assets if 

and whenever the Upper 700 MHz D 

Block license is cancelled or terminated, 

by reason of default or for any other 

reason, for a consideration equivalent to 

the fair market value of the tangible and 

intangible assets sold. This right and 

option shall be senior to, and have 

priority over, any other right, claim, or 

interest in or to the network or the 

network assets. The NSA shall also 

include a fair market valuation 

methodology to determine the fair 

market value of the shared wireless 

broadband network assets. 

(j) The NSA must have a term, not to 

exceed 10 years from February 17, 2009, 

that coincides with the terms of the 

Upper 700 MHz D Block license and the 

Public Safety Broadband License. 

§ 90.1415 Establishment, execution, and 

application of the network sharing 

agreement. 

The following requirements and 

processes relate to the establishment, 

execution, and application of the NSA: 

(a) Approval of NSA as pre-condition 

for granting the Upper 700 MHz D Block 

License. The Public Safety Broadband 

Licensee must negotiate an NSA and 

such other agreements as the 

Commission may require or allow with 

the winning bidder for the Upper 700 

MHz D Block license. The NSA and 

related agreements or documents must 

be approved by the Commission and 

then executed by the relevant parties. 

Parties to the NSA must also include the 

Upper 700 MHz D Block licensee, the 

Network Assets Holder, and the 

Operating Company, as these entities 

are defined in § 90.7. 

(b) Requirement of negotiation. 

Negotiation of an NSA between the 

winning bidder for the Upper 700 MHz 

D Block license and the Public Safety 

Broadband Licensee must commence by 

the date the winning bidder files its long 

form application or the date on which 

the Commission designates the Public 

Safety Broadband Licensee, whichever 

is later, and must conclude within six 

months of that date. Parties to this 

negotiation are required to negotiate in 

good faith. Two members of the 

Commission staff, one from the Wireless 

Telecommunications Bureau and one 

from the Public Safety and Homeland 

Security Bureau, shall be present at all 

stages of the negotiation as neutral 

observers. 

(c) Reporting requirements. Beginning 

three months from the triggering of the 

six-month negotiation period, the Public 

Safety Broadband Licensee and the 

winning bidder for the Upper 700 MHz 

D Block license must jointly provide 

detailed reports, on a monthly basis and 

subject to a request for confidential 

treatment, on the progress of the 

negotiations throughout the remainder 

of the negotiations. These reports must 

include descriptions of all material 

issues that the parties have yet to 

resolve. 

(d) Submission of final agreement. As 

soon as the parties have reached an 

agreement on all the terms of the NSA, 

related agreements or documents, and 

such other agreements as the 

Commission may require or allow but 

not later than five business days after 

the six-month period for negotiation has 

expired, they must submit the NSA 

together with all agreements and related 

documents referenced in the NSA, for 

review and approval by the full 

Commission. The Commission will act 

on the NSA within 60 days of receipt. 

The Commission may approve the NSA 

in its entirety, approve with 

modifications, or require the parties to 

address additional terms or re-draft 

existing terms within a specified 

timeframe. After the NSA is approved, 

the parties must execute the NSA and 

such other agreements as the 

Commission may require or allow and 

submit executed copies to the 

Commission within 10 business days of 

approval. 

(e) Submission of disputed issues. If 

the parties have not reached agreement 

on all terms of the NSA and related 

agreements by the end of the six-month 

period, they must notify the 

Commission not later than five business 

days after the expiration of the sixmonth period of the terms on which 

they have agreed, the nature of the 

remaining issues, each party’s position 

on each issue, whether additional 

negotiation is likely to produce an 

agreement, and, if so, a proposed 

deadline for reaching agreement on the 

NSA. Authority is delegated jointly to 

the Chiefs of the Wireless 

Telecommunications Bureau and the 

Public Safety and Homeland Security 

Bureau to resolve any remaining 

disputes. 

(f) Resolution of disputes. Actions to 

resolve disputes may include, but are 

not limited to: 

(1) Granting additional time for 

negotiation; 

(2) Issuing a decision on the disputed 

issues and requiring the submission of 

a draft agreement consistent with the 

decision; 

(3) Directing the parties to further 

brief the remaining issues in full for 

immediate Commission decision; and/or 

(4) Immediate denial of the long-form 

application filed by the winning bidder 

for the Upper 700 MHz D Block license. 

(g) Default by winning bidder for 

Upper 700 MHz D Block license. If the 

winning bidder for the Upper 700 MHz 

D Block fails to comply with negotiation 

or dispute resolution requirements or 

fails to execute a Commission-approved 

NSA, its long form application will be 

denied. If the long form application of 

the winning bidder of the Upper 700 

MHz D Block license is denied for any 

reason, including as a consequence of 

an action taken pursuant to paragraphs 

(e) and (f) of this section, it will be 

deemed to have defaulted under 

§ 1.2109(c) of this chapter and will be 

liable for the default payment specified 

in § 1.2104(g) of this chapter. 

§ 90.1420 Failure to comply with the NSA 

or the Commission’s rules. 

(a) Failure to comply with the 

Commission’s rules or the terms of the 

NSA may warrant cancelling the Public 

Safety Broadband License. The potential 

remedies also include, but are not 

limited to, assigning the license to 

another entity, directing the Public 

Safety Broadband Licensee to transfer 

the assignable right to purchase the 

assets at fair market value, ordering 

specific performance, or ordering 

removal and replacement of individual 

officers, directors or member 

organizations of the Public Safety 

Broadband Licensee. 

(b) If the Commission cancels or 

terminates the Upper 700 MHz D Block 

license, a fair market valuation of the 

shared wireless broadband network 

assets shall be performed immediately, 

pursuant to the fair market valuation 

methodology set forth in the NSA. In the 

event that the Upper 700 MHz D Block 

license is awarded to a new entity, the 

Public Safety Broadband Licensee’s 

option to purchase the network and all 

network assets if and whenever the 

Upper 700 MHz D Block license is 

cancelled or terminated and its right of 

first refusal to purchase the network 

assets if and whenever such assets are 

otherwise to be sold shall be assigned to 

the new Upper 700 MHz D Block 


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licensee and the new Network Assets 

Holder. 

§ 90.1425 Resolution of disputes after 

grant of the upper 700 MHz D block license. 

(a) The Public Safety Broadband 

Licensee, the Operating Company, the 

Network Assets Holder, and the Upper 

700 MHz D Block licensee may at any 

time bring a complaint to the 

Commission based on a claim that 

another party to the NSA has deviated 

from the terms of the NSA, or a petition 

for a declaratory ruling to resolve the 

proper interpretation of an NSA term or 

provision. The Commission also may at 

any time, on its own motion, determine 

to address any material breach or 

interpret any NSA term or provision. 

(b) The Commission shall have 

primary responsibility and jurisdiction 

for adjudicating disputes that arise 

following execution of the NSA. The 

Commission may, however, require the 

parties to first seek a settlement to the 

dispute or authorize the parties to 

resolve the dispute through litigation or 

other means. Breach of license terms, 

the NSA, or the Commission’s rules may 

result in cancellation of the Public 

Safety Broadband License, the Upper 

700 MHz D Block license, or both. 

(c) The Chiefs of the Public Safety and 

Homeland Security Bureau and the 

Wireless Telecommunications Bureau 

are delegated joint responsibility for 

adjudicating disputes. 

§ 90.1430 Local public safety build-out and 

operation. 

(a) The Upper 700 MHz D Block 

licensee and the Operating Company 

through its lease arrangements shall, 

except in the two limited circumstances 

set forth herein, have the exclusive right 

to build and operate the Shared 

Wireless Broadband Network. 

(b) Rights to early build-out in areas 

with a build-out commitment. In an area 

where the Upper 700 MHz D Block 

licensee has committed, in the NSA, to 

build out by a certain date, a public 

safety entity may, with the pre-approval 

of the Public Safety Broadband Licensee 

and subject to the requirements set forth 

herein, construct a broadband network 

in that area at its own expense so long 

as the network is capable of operating 

on the Shared Wireless Broadband 

Network and meets all the requirements 

and specifications of the network 

required under the NSA. 

(1) Options for early build-out in 

areas with a build-out commitment. In 

order to obtain authorization to 

construct a broadband network as set 

forth in paragraph (b) of this section, the 

requesting public safety entity must 

agree to one of the following: 

(i) To, on its own, or through the 

Public Safety Broadband Licensee acting 

on its behalf, construct the network at 

its own expense, and upon completion 

of construction, transfer the network to 

the Upper 700 MHz D Block licensee, 

which shall then integrate that network 

into the Shared Wireless Broadband 

Network constructed pursuant to the 

NSA; or 

(ii) To, in agreement with the Upper 

700 MHz D Block licensee, provide all 

funds necessary for the Upper 700 MHz 

D Block licensee to complete the early 

construction of the network, including 

any and all additional resource and 

personnel costs, allowing the Upper 700 

MHz D Block licensee at all times to 

own, operate, and manage the network 

as an integrated part of the Shared 

Wireless Broadband Network. 

(2) Negotiation of amendment to NSA. 

Under either early build out option set 

forth in paragraph (b)(1) of this section, 

the Public Safety Broadband Licensee, 

the Upper 700 MHz D Block licensee, 

and the public safety entity must, prior 

to any construction, negotiate an 

amendment to the NSA regarding this 

part of the network, specifying 

ownership rights, fees, and other terms, 

which may be distinct from the 

analogous terms governing the Shared 

Wireless Broadband Network, and such 

amendment must be approved by the 

Commission. 

(i) Such amendment must provide the 

terms under which the Upper 700 MHz 

D Block licensee shall receive full 

ownership rights and shall compensate 

the public safety entity (or the Public 

Safety Broadband Licensee, where 

appropriate) for the construction of the 

network; and shall, absent agreement to 

the contrary, provide for such transfer 

and compensation to occur prior to the 

scheduled build out date for such 

network in the NSA. 

(ii) Any right to compensation from 

the Upper 700 MHz D Block licensee 

related to such early build-out shall be 

limited to the cost that would have been 

incurred had the Upper 700 MHz D 

Block licensee constructed the network 

itself in accordance with the original 

terms and specifications of the NSA, as 

reasonably determined by the parties 

and negotiated as part of the required 

NSA amendment required in paragraph 

(b)(2) of this section. Such costs shall 

not include costs attributable solely to 

advancing the date of construction or 

otherwise expediting the construction 

process. 

(3) Operations. The public safety 

entity may not commence operations on 

the network until ownership of the 

network has been transferred to the 

Upper 700 MHz D Block licensee. 

Further, no operations shall be allowed 

except those authorized and conducted 

pursuant to the authority of the Public 

Safety Broadband Licensee. 

(4) Attribution of early build-out to 

national benchmarks. Upon completion 

of construction, transfer of ownership to 

the Upper 700 MHz D Block licensee, 

and compensation as required herein, if 

applicable, the Upper 700 MHz D Block 

licensee may include the network 

constructed pursuant to the early buildout provisions herein for purposes of 

determining whether it has met its 

national build-out benchmarks and the 

build-out requirements of the NSA. 

(5) Rights to build out and operate in 

areas without a build-out commitment. 

In areas for which the NSA does not 

require the Upper 700 MHz D Block 

licensee to build out the Shared 

Wireless Broadband Network, a public 

safety entity may build out and operate 

a separate, exclusive network in the 700 

MHz public safety broadband spectrum 

at any time, provided the public safety 

entity has received the written approval 

of the Public Safety Broadband Licensee 

and operates its independent network 

pursuant to a spectrum leasing 

arrangement into which the public 

safety entity has entered with the Public 

Safety Broadband Licensee. 

(i) Such leasing arrangement shall not 

require the approval or consent of the 

Upper 700 MHz D Block licensee; 

however, the Public Safety Broadband 

Licensee must provide the Upper 700 

MHz D Block licensee with notice of the 

public safety entity’s intent to construct 

in that area within 30 days of receipt of 

a request from a public safety entity 

seeking to exercise this option, and shall 

inform the Upper 700 MHz D Block 

licensee of the public safety entity’s 

anticipated build-out date(s). 

(ii) Should the Upper 700 MHz D 

Block licensee, within 30 calendar days 

from receipt of notice of the public 

safety entity’s intent to construct in that 

area, certify in writing to the Public 

Safety Broadband Licensee that it will 

build out the shared network in the area 

within a reasonable time of the 

anticipated build-out date(s), as 

determined by the Public Safety 

Broadband Licensee, the Public Safety 

Broadband Licensee shall not allow the 

public safety entity to build and operate 

its own separate exclusive network in 

that area, provided that the Upper 700 

MHz D Block licensee and the Public 

Safety Broadband Licensee execute an 

amendment to the NSA indicating the 

Upper 700 MHz D Block licensee’s 

commitment to build the network in 

that area. Such commitment shall 

become enforceable against the Upper 


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700 MHz D Block licensee as part of its 

overall build-out requirements. 

(iii) If the Upper 700 MHz D Block 

licensee does not exercise its option to 

commit to build out the network in the 

requested area within 30 calendar days 

of receipt of notice of the public safety 

entity’s intent to construct in such area, 

the Public Safety Broadband Licensee 

and the public safety entity may 

proceed with a spectrum leasing 

arrangement, which must be filed with 

and approved by the Commission prior 

to the public safety entity commencing 

any operations. The spectrum leasing 

arrangement must take the form of a 

spectrum manager leasing arrangement 

under the rules specified in § 1.9020 of 

this chapter, and incorporate the 

following conditions: 

(A) The network must provide 

broadband operations; 

(B) The network must be fully 

interoperable with the Shared Wireless 

Broadband Network; 

(C) The network must be available for 

use by any public safety entity in the 

area; 

(D) The network must satisfy any 

other terms or conditions required by 

the Public Safety Broadband Licensee; 

and 

(E) The public safety entity must 

construct and place into operation its 

network within one year of the effective 

date of the spectrum manager leasing 

arrangement. If the public safety entity 

fails to place the network into operation 

within one year, the Public Safety 

Broadband Licensee shall terminate the 

spectrum leasing arrangement pursuant 

to § 1.9020(h)(3) of this chapter. The 

public safety entity may also seek 

extended implementation authority 

from the Commission pursuant to the 

requirements of § 90.629. 

(6) Except as set forth herein, the 

separate network is not required to meet 

the other specifications of the Shared 

Wireless Broadband Network. Absent 

agreement of the public safety entity, 

the Public Safety Broadband Licensee, 

and the Upper 700 MHz D Block 

licensee, the separate network may not 

operate using any spectrum associated 

with the Upper 700 MHz D Block 

license. 

(7) The Public Safety Broadband 

Licensee must file with the Commission 

any spectrum manager leasing 

arrangement as specified in § 1.9020(e) 

of this chapter; such filing shall identify 

the public safety entity leasing the 

spectrum, the particular areas of 

spectrum leased as part of this build-out 

option, and the specific network 

infrastructure and equipment deployed 

on such leased spectrum. 

§ 90.1432 Conditions for waiver to allow 

limited and temporary wideband operations 

in the 700 MHz public safety spectrum. 

(a) Wideband operations in the 700 

MHz Public Safety spectrum. Wideband 

operations are prohibited in the public 

safety allocation of the 700 MHz band 

public safety spectrum except where the 

Commission has granted a waiver 

pursuant to §§ 1.3 and 1.925 of this 

chapter and subject to the additional 

conditions and requirements specified 

in this section. Grants of waiver are 

restricted to the deployment of a 

wideband system in the consolidated 

narrowband portion or the internal 

public safety guard band portion of the 

public safety broadband spectrum. 

Where spectrum in the narrowband 

segment or internal guard band segment 

is unavailable for wideband operations, 

public safety entities may request a 

waiver to operate in the upper 1.25 

megahertz of the public safety 

broadband spectrum. 

(b) Any public safety entity seeking to 

conduct wideband operations within 

the public safety allocation must file a 

request for waiver that is accompanied 

by an application for authorization and 

includes the following information: 

(1) A letter from the Public Safety 

Broadband Licensee, confirming that the 

proposed wideband deployment is not 

inconsistent with the broadband 

deployment plan for the affected or 

adjacent service areas; and 

(2) A description of the conditions or 

transition requirements, if any, agreed to 

between the applicant and the Public 

Safety Broadband Licensee. 

(c) Additional requirement for 

wideband operations in the narrowband 

segment and Internal Guard Band. If an 

applicant seeks permission to deploy 

wideband systems in the narrowband 

segment, its waiver request must also 

include a letter from the appropriate 

regional planning committee or state 

licensee confirming that the proposed 

wideband deployment will not disrupt 

any regional or state planning efforts 

that are underway. 

(d) Additional requirements and 

conditions for wideband operations in 

the broadband segment. Permission to 

conduct wideband operations in the 

broadband segment will be granted only 

where spectrum in the narrowband 

segment or the internal guard band is 

unavailable for wideband operations. In 

no event will permission be granted to 

conduct wideband operations in 

geographic areas scheduled for 

broadband deployment within the first 

three years of the build-out plan for the 

Shared Wireless Broadband Network. 

(1) An applicant seeking permission 

to deploy wideband systems in the 

broadband segment must have first 

issued a request for proposal (RFP) that 

permitted interested parties to submit 

broadband proposals that are 

technically consistent with the Shared 

Wireless Broadband Network. 

(2) A request for waiver that seeks 

permission to deploy wideband systems 

in the broadband segment must include 

the following information: 

(i) A substantially supported, detailed 

technical showing demonstrating that 

insufficient spectrum in the narrowband 

segment or the internal guard band is 

available to support the desired 

wideband operations; 

(ii) A showing that rejected responses 

to the required broadband network RFP 

were more costly, provided less 

coverage as measured by throughput at 

the network edge, or were otherwise 

inferior to the accepted wideband 

proposal; and 

(iii) A detailed plan for integration of 

such wideband system into the Shared 

Wireless Broadband Network. This plan 

must specify how and by what date the 

wideband applicant will integrate its 

proposed wideband system into Shared 

Wireless Broadband Network and must 

include a certification that the public 

safety entity will not seek 

reimbursement for any costs involved in 

converting the wideband system to 

Shared Wireless Broadband Network 

upon completion of that network in the 

applicant’s geographic area. 

(3) Authority to conduct wideband 

operations in the broadband segment of 

the public safety spectrum will be 

subject to the following conditions: 

(i) All devices operating on the 

wideband system must be designed to 

interoperate with Shared Wireless 

Broadband Network; 

(ii) All waivers will expire 

automatically upon the Upper 700 MHz 

D Block licensee’s initiation of service 

in the service area covered by such 

waiver. 

(e) Secondary status of wideband 

operations. All wideband operations 

permitted under this section shall be 

secondary to the authorized narrowband 

or broadband applications, as 

applicable. 

(f) License terms for wideband 

operations. Any secondary license to 

conduct wideband operations in the 

public safety spectrum shall have a term 

of no more than five years. 

(g) Renewal of wideband 

authorization. Any request for renewal 

of an initial authorization to conduct 

wideband operations shall be filed not 

less than 180 days prior to expiration of 

the license. All renewal requests must 

include a showing that continued 

operation of the wideband system is in 


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48868 Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 164 / Friday, August 24, 2007 / Rules and Regulations 

the public interest and must be 

accompanied by a letter from the Public 

Safety Broadband Licensee confirming 

that continuing wideband operations are 

not inconsistent with the broadband 

deployment plan for the affected or 

adjacent service areas. The license term 

for any renewal of a license granted 

under the waiver provisions herein shall 

not exceed three years. No more than 

one license renewal will be granted. 

(h) Grandfathered wideband STA 

operations. Upon request, the Public 

Safety and Homeland Security Bureau 

may grant a public safety entity that has 

constructed, deployed, and was 

operating a wideband system as of July 

31, 2007 pursuant to STA to extend the 

STA grant for periods of no more than 

180 days until, but not later than, six 

months following the selection of the 

Public Safety Broadband Licensee. 

§ 90.1435 Prohibition on discontinuance of 

public safety operations. 

The Upper 700 MHz D Block licensee, 

the Operating Company, and the 

Network Assets Holder are prohibited 

from discontinuing or degrading the 

broadband network service provided to 

the Public Safety Broadband Licensee or 

to public safety entities unless either at 

the request of the entity or entities in 

question or it has first obtained the 

approval of the Commission. The Upper 

700 MHz D Block licensee shall notify 

the affected public safety entity or 

entities and the Public Safety 

Broadband Licensee at least 30 days 

prior to any unrequested discontinuance 

or degradation of network service. 

§ 90.1440 Reporting obligations. 

(a) The Upper 700 MHz D Block 

licensee and the Public Safety 

Broadband Licensee shall jointly file 

quarterly reports with the Commission. 

These reports shall include audited 

financial statements, how the specific 

requirements of public safety are being 

met, detailed information on the areas 

where broadband service has been 

deployed, which public safety entities 

are using the broadband network in 

each area of operation, what types of 

applications are in use in each area of 

operation, and the number of declared 

emergencies in each area of operation. 

(b) The Public Safety Broadband 

Licensee and the Upper 700 MHz D 

Block licensee have joint responsibility 

to register the base station locations 

with the Commission, providing basic 

technical information, including 

geographic location. 

[FR Doc. 07–4123 Filed 8–23–07; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6712–01–P 


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