Union Calendar No. 8

103D CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. R. 707

[Report No. 103–19]

A BILL

To establish procedures to improve the allocation

and for other purposes.and assignment of the electromagnetic spectrum,

FEBRUARY 24, 1993

Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the

State of the Union and ordered to be printed
IB

Union Calendar No. 8

103D CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. R. 707

[Report No. 103–19]

To establish procedures to improve the allocation and assignment of the

electromagnetic spectrum, and for other purposes.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

FEBRUARY 2, 1993

Mr. DINGELL (for himself and Mr. MARKEY) introduced the following bill;

which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce

FEBRUARY 24, 1993

Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union

and ordered to be printed

A BILL

To establish procedures to improve the allocation and assignment of the electromagnetic spectrum, and for other

purposes.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Emerging Tele5 communications Technologies Act of 1993’’.
2

•HR 707 RH

1 SEC. 2. AMENDMENT TO THE NATIONAL TELECOMMUNI2 CATIONS AND INFORMATION ADMINISTRA3 TION ORGANIZATION ACT.

4 The National Telecommunications and Information

5 Administration Organization Act is amended—

6 (1) by redesignating part B as part C; and

7 (2) by inserting after part A the following new

8 part:

9 ‘‘PART B—EMERGING TELECOMMUNICATIONS

10 TECHNOLOGIES

11 ‘‘SEC. 111. FINDINGS.

12 ‘‘The Congress finds that—

13 ‘‘(1) the Federal Government currently reserves

14 for its own use, or has priority of access to, approxi15 mately 40 percent of the electromagnetic spectrum

16 that is assigned for use pursuant to the Communica17 tions Act of 1934;

18 ‘‘(2) many of such frequencies are underutilized

19 by Federal Government licensees;

20 ‘‘(3) the public interest requires that many of

21 such frequencies be utilized more efficiently by Fed22 eral Government and non-Federal licensees;

23 ‘‘(4) additional frequencies are assigned for

24 services that could be obtained more efficiently from

25 commercial carriers or other vendors;
3

•HR 707 RH

1 ‘‘(5) scarcity of assignable frequencies for li2 censing by the Commission can and will—

3 ‘‘(A) impede the development and commer4 cialization of new telecommunications products

5 and services;

6 ‘‘(B) limit the capacity and efficiency of

7 the United States telecommunications systems;

8 ‘‘(C) prevent some State and local police,

9 fire, and emergency services from obtaining ur10 gently needed radio channels; and

11 ‘‘(D) adversely affect the productive capac12 ity and international competitiveness of the

13 United States economy;

14 ‘‘(6) a reassignment of these frequencies can

15 produce significant economic returns; and

16 ‘‘(7) the Secretary of Commerce, the President,

17 and the Federal Communications Commission should

18 be directed to take appropriate steps to correct these

19 deficiencies.

20 ‘‘SEC. 112. NATIONAL SPECTRUM PLANNING.

21 ‘‘(a) PLANNING ACTIVITIES.—The Assistant Sec22 retary and the Chairman of the Commission shall meet,

23 at least biannually, to conduct joint spectrum planning

24 with respect to the following issues—
4

•HR 707 RH

1 ‘‘(1) the future spectrum requirements for pub2 lic and private uses, including State and local gov3 ernment public safety agencies;

4 ‘‘(2) the spectrum allocation actions necessary

5 to accommodate those uses; and

6 ‘‘(3) actions necessary to promote the efficient

7 use of the spectrum, including spectrum manage8 ment techniques to promote increased shared use of

9 the spectrum that does not cause harmful inter10 ference as a means of increasing commercial access.

11 ‘‘(b) REPORTS.—The Assistant Secretary and the

12 Chairman of the Commission shall submit a joint annual

13 report to the Committee on Energy and Commerce of the

14 House of Representatives, the Committee on Commerce,

15 Science, and Transportation of the Senate, the Secretary,

16 and the Commission on the joint spectrum planning activi17 ties conducted under subsection (a) and recommendations

18 for action developed pursuant to such activities.

19 ‘‘(c) REPORTING REQUIREMENTS.—The first annual

20 report submitted after the date of the report by the advi21 sory committee under section 113(d)(4) shall—

22 ‘‘(1) include an analysis of and response to that

23 committee report; and

24 ‘‘(2) include an analysis of the effect on spec25 trum efficiency and the cost of equipment to Federal
5

•HR 707 RH

1 spectrum users of maintaining separate allocations

2 for Federal Government and non-Federal Govern3 ment licensees for the same or similar services.

4 ‘‘SEC. 113. IDENTIFICATION OF REALLOCABLE FRE5 QUENCIES.

6 ‘‘(a) IDENTIFICATION REQUIRED.—The Secretary

7 shall, within 24 months after the date of the enactment

8 of this part, prepare and submit to the President and the

9 Congress a report identifying bands of frequencies that—

10 ‘‘(1) are allocated on a primary basis for Fed11 eral Government use and eligible for licensing pursu12 ant to section 305(a) of the Act (47 U.S.C. 305(a));

13 ‘‘(2) are not required for the present or identifi14 able future needs of the Federal Government;

15 ‘‘(3) can feasibly be made available, as of the

16 date of submission of the report or at any time dur17 ing the next 15 years, for use under the Act (other

18 than for Federal Government stations under such

19 section 305);

20 ‘‘(4) will not result in costs to the Federal Gov21 ernment, or losses of services or benefits to the pub22 lic, that are excessive in relation to the benefits that

23 may be obtained by non-Federal licensees; and
6

•HR 707 RH

1 ‘‘(5) are most likely to have the greatest poten2 tial for productive uses and public benefits under the

3 Act.

4 ‘‘(b) MINIMUM AMOUNT OF SPECTRUM REC5 OMMENDED.—

6 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Based on the report re7 quired by subsection (a), the Secretary shall rec8 ommend for reallocation, for use other than by Fed9 eral Government stations under section 305 of the

10 Act (47 U.S.C. 305), bands of frequencies that span

11 a total of not less than 200 megahertz, that are lo12 cated below 6 gigahertz, and that meet the criteria

13 specified in paragraphs (1) through (4) of subsection

14 (a). The Secretary may not include, in such 200

15 megahertz, bands of frequencies that span more

16 than 20 megahertz and that are located between 5

17 and 6 gigahertz. If the report identifies (as meeting

18 such criteria) bands of frequencies spanning more

19 than 200 megahertz, the report shall identify and

20 recommend for reallocation those bands (spanning

21 not less than 200 megahertz) that meet the criteria

22 specified in paragraph (5) of such subsection.

23 ‘‘(2) MIXED USES PERMITTED TO BE COUNT24 ED.—Bands of frequencies which the Secretary’s re25 port recommends be partially retained for use by
7

•HR 707 RH

1 Federal Government stations, but which are also

2 recommended to be reallocated to be made available

3 under the Act for use by non-Federal stations, may

4 be counted toward the minimum spectrum required

5 by paragraph (1) of this subsection, except that—

6 ‘‘(A) the bands of frequencies counted

7 under this paragraph may not count toward

8 more than one-half of the minimum required by

9 paragraph (1) of this subsection;

10 ‘‘(B) a band of frequencies may not be

11 counted under this paragraph unless the assign12 ments of the band to Federal Government sta13 tions under section 305 of the Act (47 U.S.C.

14 305) are limited by geographic area, by time, or

15 by other means so as to guarantee that the po16 tential use to be made by such Federal Govern17 ment stations is substantially less (as measured

18 by geographic area, time, or otherwise) than the

19 potential use to be made by non-Federal sta20 tions; and

21 ‘‘(C) the operational sharing permitted

22 under this paragraph shall be subject to coordi23 nation procedures which the Commission shall

24 establish and implement to ensure against

25 harmful interference.
8

•HR 707 RH

1 ‘‘(c) CRITERIA FOR IDENTIFICATION.—

2 ‘‘(1) NEEDS OF THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT.—

3 In determining whether a band of frequencies meets

4 the criteria specified in subsection (a)(2), the Sec5 retary shall—

6 ‘‘(A) consider whether the band of fre7 quencies is used to provide a communications

8 service that is or could be available from a com9 mercial carrier or other vendor;

10 ‘‘(B) seek to promote—

11 ‘‘(i) the maximum practicable reliance

12 on commercially available substitutes;

13 ‘‘(ii) the sharing of frequencies (as

14 permitted under subsection (b)(2));

15 ‘‘(iii) the development and use of new

16 communications technologies; and

17 ‘‘(iv) the use of nonradiating commu18 nications systems where practicable; and

19 ‘‘(C) seek to avoid—

20 ‘‘(i) serious degradation of Federal

21 Government services and operations; and

22 ‘‘(ii) excessive costs to the Federal

23 Government and users of Federal Govern24 ment services.
9

•HR 707 RH

1 ‘‘(2) FEASIBILITY OF USE.—In determining

2 whether a frequency band meets the criteria speci3 fied in subsection (a)(3), the Secretary shall—

4 ‘‘(A) assume such frequencies will be as5 signed by the Commission under section 303 of

6 the Act (47 U.S.C. 303) over the course of not

7 less than 15 years;

8 ‘‘(B) assume reasonable rates of scientific

9 progress and growth of demand for tele10 communications services;

11 ‘‘(C) determine the extent to which the

12 reallocation or reassignment will relieve actual

13 or potential scarcity of frequencies available for

14 licensing by the Commission for non-Federal

15 use;

16 ‘‘(D) seek to include frequencies which can

17 be used to stimulate the development of new

18 technologies; and

19 ‘‘(E) consider the immediate and recurring

20 costs to reestablish services displaced by the

21 reallocation of spectrum.

22 ‘‘(3) ANALYSIS OF BENEFITS.—In determining

23 whether a band of frequencies meets the criteria

24 specified in subsection (a)(4), the Secretary shall

25 consider—
10

•HR 707 RH

1 ‘‘(A) the extent to which equipment is or

2 will be available that is capable of utilizing the

3 band;

4 ‘‘(B) the proximity of frequencies that are

5 already assigned for commercial or other non6 Federal use; and

7 ‘‘(C) the activities of foreign governments

8 in making frequencies available for experimen9 tation or commercial assignments in order to

10 support their domestic manufacturers of equip11 ment.

12 ‘‘(4) POWER AGENCY FREQUENCIES.—

13 ‘‘(A) ELIGIBLE FOR MIXED USE ONLY.—

14 The frequencies assigned to any Federal power

15 agency may only be eligible for mixed use under

16 subsection (b)(2) in geographically separate

17 areas and shall not be recommended for the

18 purposes of withdrawing that assignment. In

19 any case where a frequency is to be shared by

20 an affected Federal power agency and a non21 Federal user, such use by the non-Federal user

22 shall, consistent with the procedures established

23 under subsection (b)(2)(C), not cause harmful

24 interference to the affected Federal power agen-
11

•HR 707 RH

1 cy or adversely affect the reliability of its power

2 system.

3 ‘‘(B) DEFINITION.—As used in this para4 graph, the term ‘Federal power agency’ means

5 the Tennessee Valley Authority, the Bonneville

6 Power Administration, the Western Area Power

7 Administration, or the Southwestern Power

8 Administration.

9 ‘‘(d) PROCEDURE FOR IDENTIFICATION OF

10 REALLOCABLE BANDS OF FREQUENCIES.—

11 ‘‘(1) SUBMISSION OF PRELIMINARY IDENTIFICA12 TION TO CONGRESS.—Within 12 months after the

13 date of the enactment of this part, the Secretary

14 shall prepare and submit to the Congress a report

15 which makes a preliminary identification of

16 reallocable bands of frequencies which meet the cri17 teria established by this section.

18 ‘‘(2) CONVENING OF ADVISORY COMMITTEE.—

19 Not later than the date the Secretary submits the

20 report required by paragraph (1), the Secretary shall

21 convene an advisory committee to—

22 ‘‘(A) review the bands of frequencies iden23 tified in such report;

24 ‘‘(B) advise the Secretary with respect to

25 (i) the bands of frequencies which should be in-
12

•HR 707 RH

1 cluded in the final report required by subsection

2 (a), and (ii) the effective dates which should be

3 established under subsection (e) with respect to

4 such frequencies;

5 ‘‘(C) receive public comment on the Sec6 retary’s report and on the final report; and

7 ‘‘(D) prepare and submit the report re8 quired by paragraph (4).

9 The advisory committee shall meet at least monthly

10 until each of the actions required by section 114(a)

11 have taken place.

12 ‘‘(3) COMPOSITION OF COMMITTEE; CHAIR13 MAN.—The advisory committee shall include—

14 ‘‘(A) the Chairman of the Commission and

15 the Assistant Secretary, and one other rep16 resentative of the Federal Government as des17 ignated by the Secretary; and

18 ‘‘(B) representatives of—

19 ‘‘(i) United States manufacturers of

20 spectrum-dependent telecommunications

21 equipment;

22 ‘‘(ii) commercial carriers;

23 ‘‘(iii) other users of the electro24 magnetic spectrum, including radio and

25 television broadcast licensees, State and
13

•HR 707 RH

1 local public safety agencies, and the avia2 tion industry; and

3 ‘‘(iv) other interested members of the

4 public who are knowledgeable about the

5 uses of the electromagnetic spectrum.

6 A majority of the members of the committee shall be

7 members described in subparagraph (B), and one of

8 such members shall be designated as chairman by

9 the Secretary.

10 ‘‘(4) RECOMMENDATIONS ON SPECTRUM ALLO11 CATION PROCEDURES.—The advisory committee

12 shall, not later than 36 months after the date of the

13 enactment of this part, submit to the Secretary, the

14 Commission, the Committee on Energy and Com15 merce of the House of Representatives, and the

16 Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transpor17 tation of the Senate, a report containing such rec18 ommendations as the advisory committee considers

19 appropriate for the reform of the process of allocat20 ing the electromagnetic spectrum between Federal

21 and non-Federal use, and any dissenting views

22 thereon.

23 ‘‘(e) TIMETABLE FOR REALLOCATION AND LIMITA24 TION.—
14

•HR 707 RH

1 ‘‘(1) TIMETABLE REQUIRED.—The Secretary

2 shall, as part of the report required by subsection

3 (a), include a timetable that recommends immediate

4 and delayed effective dates by which the President

5 shall withdraw or limit assignments on the fre6 quencies specified in the report.

7 ‘‘(2) EXPEDITED REALLOCATION OF INITIAL 30

8 MHZ PERMITTED.—The Secretary may prepare and

9 submit to the President a report which specifically

10 identifies an initial 30 megahertz of spectrum that

11 meets the criteria described in subsection (a) and

12 that can be made available for reallocation imme13 diately upon issuance of the report required by this

14 section.

15 ‘‘(3) DELAYED EFFECTIVE DATE.—The rec16 ommended delayed effective dates shall—

17 ‘‘(A) permit the earliest possible

18 reallocation of the frequency bands, taking into

19 account the requirements of section 115(1);

20 ‘‘(B) be based on the useful remaining life

21 of equipment that has been purchased or con22 tracted for to operate on identified frequencies;

23 ‘‘(C) be based on the need to coordinate

24 frequency use with other nations; and
15

•HR 707 RH

1 ‘‘(D) take into account the relationship be2 tween the costs to the Federal Government of

3 changing to different frequencies and the bene4 fits that may be obtained from commercial and

5 other non-Federal uses of the reassigned fre6 quencies.

7 ‘‘SEC. 114. WITHDRAWAL OF ASSIGNMENT TO FEDERAL

8 GOVERNMENT STATIONS.

9 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The President shall—

10 ‘‘(1) within 6 months after receipt of the Sec11 retary’s report under section 113(a), withdraw the

12 assignment to a Federal Government station of any

13 frequency which the report recommends for imme14 diate reallocation;

15 ‘‘(2) within such 6-month period, limit the as16 signment to a Federal Government station of any

17 frequency which the report recommends be made im18 mediately available for mixed use under section

19 113(b)(2);

20 ‘‘(3) by the delayed effective date recommended

21 by the Secretary under section 113(e) (except as

22 provided in subsection (b)(4) of this section), with23 draw or limit the assignment to a Federal Govern24 ment station of any frequency which the report rec-
16

•HR 707 RH

1 ommends be reallocated or made available for mixed

2 use on such delayed effective date;

3 ‘‘(4) assign or reassign other frequencies to

4 Federal Government stations as necessary to adjust

5 to such withdrawal or limitation of assignments; and

6 ‘‘(5) transmit a notice and description to the

7 Commission and each House of Congress of the ac8 tions taken under this subsection.

9 ‘‘(b) EXCEPTIONS.—

10 ‘‘(1) AUTHORITY TO SUBSTITUTE.—If the

11 President determines that a circumstance described

12 in paragraph (2) exists, the President—

13 ‘‘(A) may substitute an alternative fre14 quency or band of frequencies for the frequency

15 or band that is subject to such determination

16 and withdraw (or limit) the assignment of that

17 alternative frequency or band in the manner re18 quired by subsection (a); and

19 ‘‘(B) shall submit a statement of the rea20 sons for taking the action described in subpara21 graph (A) to the Committee on Energy and

22 Commerce of the House of Representatives and

23 the Committee on Commerce, Science, and

24 Transportation of the Senate.
17

•HR 707 RH

1 ‘‘(2) GROUNDS FOR SUBSTITUTION.—For pur2 poses of paragraph (1), the following circumstances

3 are described in this paragraph:

4 ‘‘(A) the reassignment would seriously

5 jeopardize the national defense interests of the

6 United States;

7 ‘‘(B) the frequency proposed for reassign8 ment is uniquely suited to meeting important

9 governmental needs;

10 ‘‘(C) the reassignment would seriously

11 jeopardize public health or safety; or

12 ‘‘(D) the reassignment will result in costs

13 to the Federal Government that are excessive in

14 relation to the benefits that may be obtained

15 from commercial or other non-Federal uses of

16 the reassigned frequency.

17 ‘‘(3) CRITERIA FOR SUBSTITUTED FRE18 QUENCIES.—For purposes of paragraph (1), a fre19 quency may not be substituted for a frequency iden20 tified by the report of the Secretary under section

21 113(a) unless the substituted frequency also meets

22 each of the criteria specified by section 113(a).

23 ‘‘(4) DELAYS IN IMPLEMENTATION.—If the

24 President determines that any action cannot be com25 pleted by the delayed effective date recommended by
18

•HR 707 RH

1 the Secretary pursuant to section 113(e), or that

2 such an action by such date would result in a fre3 quency being unused as a consequence of the Com4 mission’s plan under section 115, the President

5 may—

6 ‘‘(A) withdraw or limit the assignment to

7 Federal Government stations on a later date

8 that is consistent with such plan, except that

9 the President shall notify each committee speci10 fied in paragraph (1)(B) and the Commission

11 of the reason that withdrawal or limitation at

12 a later date is required; or

13 ‘‘(B) substitute alternative frequencies pur14 suant to the provisions of this subsection.

15 ‘‘(c) LIMITATION ON DELEGATION.—Notwithstand16 ing any other provision of law, the authorities and duties

17 established by this section may not be delegated.

18 ‘‘SEC. 115. DISTRIBUTION OF FREQUENCIES BY THE COM19 MISSION.

20 Not later than 1 year after the President notifies the

21 Commission pursuant to section 114(a)(5), the Commis22 sion shall prepare, in consultation with the Assistant Sec23 retary when necessary, and submit to the President and

24 the Congress, a plan for the distribution under the Act
19

•HR 707 RH

1 of the frequency bands reallocated pursuant to the re2 quirements of this part. Such plan shall—

3 ‘‘(1) not propose the immediate distribution of

4 all such frequencies, but, taking into account the

5 timetable recommended by the Secretary pursuant to

6 section 113(e), shall propose—

7 ‘‘(A) gradually to distribute the frequencies

8 remaining, after making the reservation re9 quired by subparagraph (B), over the course of

10 a period of not less than 10 years beginning on

11 the date of submission of such plan; and

12 ‘‘(B) to reserve a significant portion of

13 such frequencies for distribution beginning after

14 the end of such 10-year period;

15 ‘‘(2) contain appropriate provisions to ensure—

16 ‘‘(A) the availability of frequencies for new

17 technologies and services in accordance with the

18 policies of section 7 of the Act (47 U.S.C. 157);

19 and

20 ‘‘(B) the availability of frequencies to stim21 ulate the development of such technologies;

22 ‘‘(3) address (A) the feasibility of reallocating

23 spectrum from current commercial and other non24 Federal uses to provide for more efficient use of the

25 spectrum, and (B) innovation and marketplace de-
20

•HR 707 RH

1 velopments that may affect the relative efficiencies

2 of different spectrum allocations; and

3 ‘‘(4) not prevent the Commission from allocat4 ing bands of frequencies for specific uses in future

5 rulemaking proceedings.

6 ‘‘SEC. 116. AUTHORITY TO RECOVER REASSIGNED FRE7 QUENCIES.

8 ‘‘(a) AUTHORITY OF PRESIDENT.—Subsequent to the

9 withdrawal of assignment to Federal Government stations

10 pursuant to section 114, the President may reclaim reas11 signed frequencies for reassignment to Federal Govern12 ment stations in accordance with this section.

13 ‘‘(b) PROCEDURE FOR RECLAIMING FRE14 QUENCIES.—

15 ‘‘(1) UNALLOCATED FREQUENCIES.—If the fre16 quencies to be reclaimed have not been allocated or

17 assigned by the Commission pursuant to the Act,

18 the President shall follow the procedures for substi19 tution of frequencies established by section 114(b) of

20 this part.

21 ‘‘(2) ALLOCATED FREQUENCIES.—If the fre22 quencies to be reclaimed have been allocated or as23 signed by the Commission, the President shall follow

24 the procedures for substitution of frequencies estab25 lished by section 114(b) of this part, except that the
21

•HR 707 RH

1 notification required by section 114(b)(1)(A) shall

2 include—

3 ‘‘(A) a timetable to accommodate an or4 derly transition for licensees to obtain new fre5 quencies and equipment necessary for its utili6 zation; and

7 ‘‘(B) an estimate of the cost of displacing

8 spectrum users licensed by the Commission.

9 ‘‘(c) COSTS OF RECLAIMING FREQUENCIES; APPRO10 PRIATIONS AUTHORIZED.—The Federal Government shall

11 bear all costs of reclaiming frequencies pursuant to this

12 section, including the cost of equipment which is rendered

13 unusable, the cost of relocating operations to a different

14 frequency band, and any other costs that are directly at15 tributable to the reclaiming of the frequency pursuant to

16 this section. There are authorized to be appropriated such

17 sums as may be necessary to carry out the purposes of

18 this section.

19 ‘‘(d) EFFECTIVE DATE OF RECLAIMED FRE20 QUENCIES.—The Commission shall not withdraw licenses

21 for any reclaimed frequencies until the end of the fiscal

22 year following the fiscal year in which the President’s noti23 fication is received.

24 ‘‘(e) EFFECT ON OTHER LAW.—Nothing in this sec25 tion shall be construed to limit or otherwise affect the au-
22

•HR 707 RH

1 thority of the President under sections 305 and 706 of

2 the Act (47 U.S.C. 305, 606).

3 ‘‘SEC. 117. DEFINITIONS.

4 As used in this part:

5 ‘‘(1) The term ‘allocation’ means an entry in

6 the National Table of Frequency Allocations of a

7 given frequency band for the purpose of its use by

8 one or more radiocommunication services.

9 ‘‘(2) The term ‘assignment’ means an author10 ization given to a station licensee to use specific fre11 quencies or channels.

12 ‘‘(3) The term ‘commercial carrier’ means any

13 entity that uses a facility licensed by the Federal

14 Communications Commission pursuant to the Com15 munications Act of 1934 for hire or for its own use,

16 but does not include Federal Government stations li17 censed pursuant to section 305 of the Act (47

18 U.S.C. 305).

19 ‘‘(4) The term ‘the Act’ means the Communica20 tions Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 151 et seq.).’’.

HR 707 RH——2

HR 707 RH——3