100838 Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 240 / Friday, December 13, 2024 / Rules and Regulations 

For the reasons discussed in the 

preamble, the Coast Guard amends 46 

CFR part 401 as follows: 

PART 401—GREAT LAKES PILOTAGE 

REGULATIONS 

■ 1. The authority citation for part 401 

is revised to read as follows: 

Authority: 46 U.S.C. 2103, 2104(a), 6101, 

7701, 8105, 9303, 9304; DHS Delegation No. 

00170.1, Revision No. 01.4, paragraphs 

(II)(92)(a), (d), (e), (f). 

■ 2. Amend § 401.405 by revising 

paragraphs (a)(1) through (6) to read as 

follows: 

§ 401.405 Pilotage rates and charges. 

(a) * * * 

(1) The St. Lawrence River is $986; 

(2) Lake Ontario is $643; 

(3) Lake Erie is $576; 

(4) The navigable waters from 

Southeast Shoal to Port Huron, MI is 

$753; 

(5) Lakes Huron, Michigan, and 

Superior is $440; and 

(6) The St. Marys River is $825. 

* * * * * 

Dated: December 6, 2024. 

A.M. Beach, 

Captain, U.S. Coast Guard, Acting, Assistant 

Commandant for Prevention Policy. 

[FR Doc. 2024–29128 Filed 12–12–24; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 9110–04–P 

FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS 

COMMISSION 

47 CFR Parts 1, 90, 95, and 97 

[ET Docket No. 19–138; FCC 24–123; FR 

ID 265055] 

Use of the 5.850–5.925 GHz Band 

AGENCY: Federal Communications 

Commission. 

ACTION: Final rule. 

SUMMARY: In this document, the Federal 

Communications Commission 

(Commission) adopts rules and takes 

other steps to further address the 

transition of 5.9 GHz Intelligent 

Transportation System (ITS) operations 

from Dedicated Short Range 

Communications (DSRC)-based 

technology to cellular-vehicle-toeverything (C–V2X)-based technology. 

Specifically, the Commission adopts 

technical and operational rules 

governing devices using C–V2X-based 

technology, eliminates the DSRC 

requirement for communications zone 

designations, finalizes the timeline for 

sunsetting the use of DSRC-based 

technology, addresses the issue of 

additional spectrum allocations for ITS 

use, addresses the issue of reimbursing 

the transition costs of DSRC 

incumbents, and encourages the 

development of industry standards. 

DATES: This final rule is effective 

February 11, 2025. Existing licenses for 

DSRC systems may be renewed as 

necessary following this effective date 

but only for a period not to exceed 

December 14, 2026. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Jamie Coleman of the Office of 

Engineering and Technology, at 

Jamie.Coleman@fcc.gov or 202–418– 

2705. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This is a 

summary of the Commission’s Second 

Report and Order, ET Docket No. 19– 

138, FCC 24–123, adopted on November 

20, 2024, and released on November 21, 

2024. The full text of this document is 

available for public inspection and can 

be downloaded at https://docs.fcc.gov/ 

public/attachments/FCC-24-123A1.pdf. 

Alternative formats are available for 

people with disabilities (Braille, large 

print, electronic files, audio format) by 

sending an email to fcc504@fcc.gov or 

calling the Commission’s Consumer and 

Governmental Affairs Bureau at (202) 

418–0530 (voice), (202) 418–0432 

(TTY). 

Procedural Matters 

Regulatory Flexibility Act. The 

Regulatory Flexibility Act of 1980, as 

amended (RFA), requires that an agency 

prepare a regulatory flexibility analysis 

for notice and comment rulemakings, 

unless the agency certifies that ‘‘the rule 

will not, if promulgated, have a 

significant economic impact on a 

substantial number of small entities.’’ 

Accordingly, we have prepared a Final 

Regulatory Flexibility Analysis (FRFA) 

concerning the possible impact of the 

rule changes contained in the Second 

Report and Order on small entities. The 

FRFA is set forth in Appendix B of the 

FCC document, https://docs.fcc.gov/ 

public/attachments/FCC-24-123A1.pdf. 

Congressional Review Act. The 

Commission has determined, and the 

Administrator of the Office of 

Information and Regulatory Affairs, 

Office of Management and Budget 

concurs, that this rule is ‘‘major’’ under 

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

804(2). The Commission will send a 

copy of this Second Report and Order 

to Congress and the Government 

Accountability Office pursuant to 5 

U.S.C. 801(a)(1)(A). 

Synopsis 

Introduction 

The Intelligent Transportation System 

(ITS) holds promise to improve 

transportation safety and mobility by 

integrating advanced communications 

technologies into vehicles and 

infrastructure. The connected vehicle 

ecosystem of the future will make the 

nation’s transportation system more 

flexible, resilient, and safe. This 

ecosystem requires technical and 

operational rules governing devices 

using C–V2X (cellular-vehicle-toeverything) based technology. In the 

First Report and Order of the Federal 

Communications Commission’s (FCC) 

proceeding, 86 FR 23281 (May 1, 2021), 

the Commission retained the upper 30 

megahertz portion (5.895–5.925 GHz) of 

the 5.850–5.925 GHz (5.9 GHz) band for 

ITS operations. The Commission also 

required the ITS service to transition 

from Dedicated Short Range 

Communications (DSRC)-based 

technology to C–V2X-based technology 

as the connected mobility platform for 

implementing the future of ITS 

communications in the United States. In 

the Second Report and Order, the 

Commission further addresses the 

transition of 5.9 GHz ITS operations 

from DSRC to C–V2X by codifying C– 

V2X technical parameters in the 

Commission’s rules, including band 

usage, message priority, and channel 

bandwidth. The Commission 

promulgates rules governing equivalent 

isotropically radiated power (EIRP) and 

out-of-band emissions (OOBE) limits for 

C–V2X on-board units (OBUs) and 

roadside units (RSUs), and antenna 

height limits for RSUs. In addition, the 

Commission encourages the 

development of industry standards and 

finalizes the timeline for sunsetting the 

use of DSRC-based technology. Finally, 

the Commission addresses the issues of 

additional spectrum allocations for ITS 

use and reimbursing the transition costs 

of DSRC incumbents. 

Background 

The Commission adopted the First 

Report and Order in 2020, wherein it 

concluded that the most efficient use of 

the 75 megahertz of spectrum in the 5.9 

GHz band would be achieved by 

expanding unlicensed operations in the 

lower 45 megahertz of the band (5.850– 

5.895 GHz), and designating the upper 

30 megahertz of the band (5.895–5.925 

GHz) for the ITS service using C–V2X 

technology. Among other 

considerations, the Commission made 

this decision because (1) the DSRC 

services once contemplated for 

operations across the full 5.9 GHz band 


khammond on DSK9W7S144PROD with RULES
Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 240 / Friday, December 13, 2024 / Rules and Regulations 100839 

had not come to fruition in the 20 years 

since it allocated the spectrum for the 

ITS service; (2) those envisioned 

vehicle-safety features can be or are 

already being provided using other 

spectrum bands or alternative 

technology; and (3) the significant 

public interest benefits of adding 45 

megahertz of Unlicensed National 

Information Infrastructure (U–NII) 

spectrum to enable the next-generation 

Wi-Fi, which operates on wider 

channels and allows gigabit 

connectivity with lower latency, 

improved coverage, and power 

efficiency. To protect incumbent 5.9 

GHz band services, including federal 

incumbent operations, from potential 

harmful interference from unlicensed 

operations, the Commission imposed 

stringent power limits and operating 

requirements on unlicensed devices 

(i.e., access points, subordinate devices, 

and client devices) operating in the 

lower 45 megahertz and restricted 

unlicensed use of the lower 45 

megahertz to indoor locations. As the 

First Report and Order determined that 

the operators in the revised ITS band 

must use C–V2X technology, the Further 

Notice of Proposed Rulemaking 

(FNPRM), 86 FR 23323 (May 6, 2021), 

sought comment on further transition 

issues and proposed rules to finalize the 

technical parameters for C–V2X 

operations and the timing of when 

operations must transition from the 

DSRC technology. Although the FNPRM 

sought comment on the possibility for 

full-power outdoor unlicensed 

operations across the lower 45 

megahertz portion of the 5.9 GHz band, 

those unlicensed operations issues are 

not addressed in the Second Report and 

Order. In an Order on Reconsideration, 

89 FR 24835 (April 9, 2024), the 

Commission affirmed its decision in the 

First Report and Order to repurpose the 

lower 45 megahertz for indoor 

unlicensed operations and rejected 

various arguments regarding indoor 

unlicensed devices’ potential to cause 

harmful interference to ITS operations 

in the upper 30 megahertz. 

Recently, the Office of Engineering 

and Technology (OET), the Public 

Safety and Homeland Security Bureau 

(PSHSB), and the Wireless 

Telecommunications Bureau (WTB) 

(hereafter, ‘‘the Bureaus’’) granted rule 

waivers to parties requesting to deploy 

C–V2X operations in the upper 30- 

megahertz portion of the 5.9 GHz band 

(5.895–5.925 GHz) prior to adopting 

final C–V2X-based technical rules. 

Specifically, each waiver applicant 

sought waivers for rule sections that 

establish the technical requirements 

mandating DSRC-based technology in 

the upper 30 megahertz of the 5.9 GHz 

band, to allow C–V2X-based operations 

in the band, and to provide adjustments 

to the technical parameters where the 

two technologies differ. The Bureaus 

found that waiving those rules was 

warranted under 47 CFR 1.925, subject 

to the waiver applicants’ commitments 

to adhere to certain technical 

parameters and conditions developed to 

protect DSRC and federal incumbents 

from potential harmful interference 

caused by C–V2X operations in the 

upper 30 megahertz. All C–V2X 

operations pursuant to a waiver are 

limited to transportation and vehiclesafety related communications. Finally, 

the granted waivers were conditioned 

on the requirement that each waiver 

recipient would ensure that all 

operations and devices authorized 

under the waiver would comply with 

the final rules or other guidance 

provided by the Commission. 

Discussion 

In the Second Report and Order, the 

Commission finalizes rules concerning 

band usage, message prioritization, 

channel bandwidth, communications 

zones, power for RSUs and OBUs, and 

OOBE limits for C–V2X operations, 

along with other transition issues, 

including the transition timeline. 

Additionally, the Commission reaches 

several conclusions related to the 

incorporation of standards, the 

allocation of additional spectrum for 

ITS, and compensation to incumbents. 

The decisions in this document will not 

only promote the efficient use of 30 

megahertz of spectrum dedicated to ITS 

but also the safety benefits this 

technology promises to deliver to the 

American public. 

DSRC is defined in the Commission’s 

rules as the use of radio techniques to 

transfer data over short distances 

between roadside and mobile units, 

between mobile units, and between 

portable and mobile units to perform 

operations related to improving traffic 

flow, traffic safety, and other ITS 

applications in a variety of 

environments. DSRC systems may also 

transmit status and instructional 

messages related to the units involved. 

Currently, local government entities and 

entities eligible for Industrial/Business 

Pool licenses are eligible to operate 

RSUs using DSRC, while OBUs in 

vehicles are licensed by rule. The 

existing DSRC rules lay out a 

hierarchical priority system for 

messages. Communications involving 

safety of life have priority access over 

all other DSRC communications. 

Communications involving public safety 

have the next highest priority, with a 

presumption that RSUs operated by 

State or local governmental entities are 

engaged in public safety 

communications. The lowest tier in this 

communications hierarchy are nonpriority communications, which include 

all other communications not related to 

safety of life or public safety. 

As stated in the FNPRM, the 

Commission’s goal is to facilitate a 

smooth transition from DSRC-based 

operations to C–V2X-based operations. 

Accordingly, the Commission must 

address the need, if any, to adopt 

requirements analogous to existing 

DSRC requirements that would similarly 

govern C–V2X operations in the 5.895– 

5.925 GHz band. The Commission now 

addresses the technical issues necessary 

to ensure efficient and effective use of 

the band. 

C–V2X Standards 

In the 5.9 GHz NPRM, 85 FR 6841 

(February 6, 2020), the Commission 

proposed to incorporate by reference 

into the Commission’s rules the 3rd 

Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) 

C–V2X standard Release 14. The 

Commission did not receive significant 

comment on this issue. After the release 

of the 5.9 GHz NPRM, 3GPP announced 

the completion of Release 16, which 

includes enhanced 5G network 

capabilities. Accordingly, the FNPRM 

sought further comment on how the 

Commission should handle standards 

with respect to C–V2X. Specifically, the 

Commission asked whether either 3GPP 

C–V2X standard Release 16 or Release 

14, in whole or in part, should be 

incorporated into its rules; whether 

Release 14 should be incorporated 

initially with an eventual transition to 

Release 16; or whether there is a 

compelling argument for not 

incorporating either standard into the 

rules. 

Comments received in this regard 

suggest a variety of approaches to the 

issue. T-Mobile disputes the need for a 

general incorporation, stating that 

‘‘referencing specific 3GPP releases in 

the rules [would] quickly make them 

outdated and stifle innovation by 

freezing technologies in place, instead 

of allowing them to evolve naturally to 

satisfy customer needs and reflect 

innovation.’’ The Institute of 

Transportation Engineers (ITE) 

expresses similar views, suggesting that 

the Commission refrain from 

incorporating by reference any one 

particular standard, instead allowing 

industry to test and evaluate the 

technology and applicable standards 

without imposing a regulatory ceiling. 

Further, ITE asserts that the 


khammond on DSK9W7S144PROD with RULES
100840 Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 240 / Friday, December 13, 2024 / Rules and Regulations 

Commission’s question regarding a 

phased-in approach where it would 

adopt Release 14 now and replace it 

with Release 16 later does not correctly 

characterize the actual technology 

implementation process. Rather, ITE 

indicates that the 5G equipment based 

on Release 16 would enhance and 

complement Release 14 Long Term 

Evolution (LTE) operating equipment 

and Release 14 equipment would likely 

remain in use even after Release 16 

becomes dominant. Other commenters 

find merit in incorporating standard(s) 

references in some manner. 5G 

Americas, for example, citing the 

ongoing technology evolution, asks the 

Commission to generally refer to 3GPP 

releases covering C–V2X, instead of 

‘‘cementing a specific 3GPP release.’’ 

While skeptical that C–V2X can be 

sufficiently realized on the allocated 

spectrum, AT&T nonetheless suggests, 

without further specificity, that ‘‘the 

Commission should incorporate by 

reference those portions of both Release 

14 and Release 16 that are relevant to C– 

V2X, giving ITS band users sufficient 

latitude to innovate.’’ Autotalks 

indicates that ‘‘Releases 14, 15, and 16 

are non-interoperable’’ and it supports 

incorporating by reference ‘‘explicit’’ C– 

V2X releases to assure ‘‘wide-scale 

interoperability.’’ 

Based on the record before the 

Commission, the Commission is not 

incorporating by reference any one 

particular standard. The Commission 

encourages industry to develop a 

consensus concerning 3GPP releases 

covering C–V2X. The Commission 

believes this approach is necessary due 

to the constantly evolving nature of both 

3GPP standards and the functionality of 

C–V2X. As stated by ITE, new testing 

will undoubtedly lead to changes or 

enhancements to the applicable 

standards–and being held to a 

regulatory ceiling by imposing a 

particular standard may cap the 

potential of future C–V2X applications. 

The Commission’s focus in the 

proceeding is to set objective 

performance expectations for C–V2X 

technology but let industry come to a 

consensus on the technology standard 

that should be applicable to C–V2X 

moving forward. Given the broad record 

support for not incorporating any one 

particular standard, the Commission 

will thus provide industry the flexibility 

to develop a technology standard that 

fits within the technical bounds 

prescribed in this document. 

In making this decision, the 

Commission reiterates its commitment 

to vehicle safety and the need for all 

vehicles that incorporate C–V2X 

technology to have the capability to 

successfully communicate with each 

other. Although the Commission is not 

mandating a particular standard through 

incorporation by reference, the 

Commission expects that the industry 

will ensure that all equipment, 

regardless of manufacturer or vehicle 

integrator, is interoperable and that 

future iterations of equipment based on 

evolving standards will be forwards and 

backwards compatible to ensure that C– 

V2X technology delivers the expected 

safety benefits to the American public. 

Finally, the Commission recognizes 

that safety-related wireless devices and 

services need to be secure to protect 

user privacy and ensure efficient and 

timely delivery of the intended safety 

service. The Commission prioritizes 

cybersecurity and privacy of consumer 

communications through rulemaking 

and other activities. In addition, 

cybersecurity and privacy actions 

specific to connected vehicles are the 

focus of ongoing actions at the U.S. 

Department of Transportation (U.S. 

DOT) with its C–V2X acceleration plan 

and at the U.S. Department of 

Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and 

Security with its proposed ban on the 

sale or importation of connected 

vehicles integrating specific pieces of 

hardware and software, or separately 

sold components, with a sufficient 

nexus to the People’s Republic of China 

or Russia. 89 FR 79088 (Sept. 26, 2024). 

The Commission expects that 

equipment manufacturers implementing 

C–V2X technology will comply with 

existing standards and best practices 

and collaborate with the automotive 

industry to develop new guidance, 

standards, and best practices that 

consider cybersecurity and privacy 

concerns to improve the C–V2X security 

posture. The FCC will continue to 

monitor and engage with federal and 

private sector partners on these vital 

issues. 

Band Usage 

The Commission’s existing ITS rules 

lay out a hierarchical priority system for 

messages. In the FNPRM, the 

Commission sought comment on 

whether to retain the message priority 

hierarchy for C–V2X deployment and 

whether the 5.895–5.925 GHz band 

should be limited to non-commercial 

services or safety-of-life applications, 

and if so, how such a restriction could 

be implemented. In this regard, the 

Commission noted that because the 

stated purpose of ITS is to promote 

safety, it was inclined to retain this 

message prioritization system in the 

rules to help ensure successful 

transmission of the most important 

messages. The Commission asked how 

‘‘safety-of-life’’ should be defined, how 

appropriate applications should be 

delineated, and whether such a 

limitation could be established via 

changes to the licensee eligibility 

requirements. Additionally, the 

Commission asked how the priority 

requirement would work in the C–V2X 

environment and whether the priority 

determination should continue to be 

associated with the type of licensee or 

a more granular approach that considers 

the type of message. As noted above, all 

C–V2X operations pursuant to the 

recently granted waivers are limited to 

transportation and vehicle-safety related 

communications. 

Several commenters state that the 

upper 30 megahertz (5.895–5.925 GHz) 

of the 5.9 GHz band should be limited 

to safety-of-life or non-commercial 

applications. In its comments, Auto 

Innovators states that safety-of-life 

messages should always have priority 

when competing for spectrum with 

other types of messages and that the 

Commission should retain its three-tier 

message priority hierarchy. The Motor 

and Equipment Manufacturers Assoc. 

(MEMA) also states that the Commission 

should retain its existing message 

priority hierarchy, given the need to 

ensure that the most important messages 

are successfully transmitted over less 

critical messages. Robert Bosch LLC 

(Bosch) comments that a hierarchical 

priority system is necessary to ensure 

safety-of-life messages. Therefore, Bosch 

states that the FCC should preserve the 

safety-of-life/public safety/non-priority 

framework for message prioritization. 

Bosch recommends that the 

Commission allocate a dedicated 

portion of the 30 megahertz to safety-oflife messages, which would help ensure 

uninterrupted transmission of related 

messages. Bosch claims that the 

remainder of the band could be used for 

both safety-of-life messages and/or 

advanced safety services, thereby 

reducing the risk of interference, while 

mitigating high channel load scenarios. 

However, Bosch states that advanced 

safety messages that are not strictly 

safety-of-life can also provide notable 

safety benefits as well as improved 

efficiency. For example, Bosch contends 

that vehicle platooning or timed vehicle 

intersection movement can be viewed as 

beneficial functionalities within the 

transportation sector. Bosch expressed 

agreement with the Alliance for 

Automotive Innovation that the 

Commission should not overly restrict 

operations in the upper 30 megahertz to 

only safety-of-life operations and that it 

is critical for the Commission to 

recognize the importance and value of 


khammond on DSK9W7S144PROD with RULES
Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 240 / Friday, December 13, 2024 / Rules and Regulations 100841 

additional functions, such as vehicle 

platooning, that require use of the 

spectrum. 

Responding to the Commission’s 

request that commenters address the 

need for granularity in the three-tier 

message priority hierarchy, MEMA 

states that, utilizing the existing 

framework, any messages that could 

reduce the risk of an accident should 

receive priority over other messages. For 

instance, MEMA mentions that public 

safety messages should defer to safetyof-life messages, while messages that 

strictly relate to traffic congestion, 

efficiency, or other non-safety issues 

should only be transmitted when there 

is little risk of harmful interference. On 

the other hand, MEMA asserts that 

commercial operations should be 

permitted in the ITS band because a 

prohibition on commercial operations 

‘‘will further disincentivize continued 

innovation in V2X applications’’ and, in 

any case, the distinction between 

‘‘commercial’’ vs. ‘‘non-commercial’’ 

services is undefined in this context. 

AT&T suggests that the Commission 

should limit the ITS band to noncommercial applications and services 

that promote road safety, but allow the 

U.S. DOT to define specific road-safety 

related applications and services that 

qualify for use in the 5.895–5.925 GHz 

band. New America’s Open Technology 

Institute (OTI) and Public Knowledge 

(PK) state that prohibiting commercial 

activity on the upper 30 megahertz 

would be consistent with the auto 

industry’s repeated insistence on the 

critical need for additional spectrum for 

public safety and collision avoidance 

purposes. Similarly, DSA questions the 

automotive industry’s claims that 30 

megahertz is an insufficient amount of 

spectrum for vehicular safety 

applications while it also advocates for 

the ability to use that same 30 

megahertz to support commercial, nonsafety applications and services. OTI/PK 

also state that if the Commission does 

not prohibit commercial use, it would 

be creating an incentive for both the 

auto and mobile industries to 

underinvest in potential safety-of-life 

signaling applications in favor of 

commercial applications that are 

quicker to monetize. OTI/PK ‘‘continues 

to believe that requiring licensees to use 

public safety spectrum exclusively for 

public safety best serves the public 

interest and avoids any potential 

conflict between maximizing safety and 

maximizing profit.’’ 

The Intelligent Transportation Society 

of America (ITS America) argues that 

spectrum use questions have 

traditionally been decided by groups 

that construct standards for these 

technologies—namely, the U.S. DOT, 

SAE International, or the Institute of 

Electrical and Electronics Engineers 

(‘‘IEEE’’). ITS America asserts that these 

groups have appropriately balanced the 

primacy of safety-of-life applications 

and the possibility of commercial 

applications that could incentivize V2X 

on-board unit deployment in private 

vehicle fleets. ITS America contends 

that OTI/PK’s suggestion to limit use of 

the 5.895–5.925 GHz band to safety-oflife and public safety communications 

would materially deter V2X investment 

and deployment, thereby limiting the 

number of vehicles utilizing V2X safety 

measures. NCTA—The internet & 

Television Association (NCTA) 

contends that it is unfair to allow 

licensees to gain access to valuable 

spectrum without an auction. AT&T 

states that limiting use of the spectrum 

to non-commercial applications and 

services would prevent undue 

commercial gain from those deploying 

C–V2X and allow the range of 

operations needed to improve road 

safety. ITE and ITS America join MEMA 

in arguing that it is impractical to try 

determining which applications are 

safety-of-life for the purposes of 

restricting the use of the spectrum. 

Given that the ITS remains focused on 

integrating radio-based technologies to 

enhance the transportation and 

vehicular-safety related ecosystem, the 

Commission agrees with those 

commenters that argue C–V2X 

operations should be governed by a 

prioritization system that is similar to 

the hierarchical system currently in 

place for DSRC. Thus, safety-of-life 

messages have top priority, followed by 

public safety communications, and then 

non-priority communications that 

promote road safety and efficient, 

effective road use. The Commission 

disagrees with commenters such as OTI/ 

PK who state that allowing non-priority 

communications in the band could lead 

to underinvestment in safety-of-life 

applications. The Commission also 

disagrees with commenters such as 

Bosch that the Commission allocate a 

dedicated portion of the 30 megahertz to 

safety-of-life messages. Given that the 

Commission is prioritizing safety-of-life 

and public safety usage, the 

Commission expects that C–V2X 

operators will focus their efforts on 

applications within this range in order 

to effectively utilize the 30 megahertz of 

spectrum made available to them in this 

document. The Commission adopts C– 

V2X rules that reflect the existing DSRC 

message prioritization hierarchy as 

follows (in order of precedence): safetyof-life, public safety, and non-priority 

communications. 

Based on the record in the FCC’s 

proceeding, the Commission believes 

that the communications prioritization 

hierarchy will ensure that the ITS 

spectrum is not being used for 

communications and applications that 

would impair the timely and reliable 

use of the spectrum for safety of life and 

public safety communications. As a 

practical matter, the Commission’s 

decision to adopt a prioritization system 

for C–V2X communications and the 

high priority to which safety-of-life and 

public safety usage messages are 

entitled will limit the extent to which 

other type of applications (such as those 

supporting paid advertising and 

marketing messages) can be effectively 

developed and deployed. The 

Commission notes that the distinction 

between ‘‘commercial’’ and ‘‘noncommercial’’ remains undefined in the 

C–V2X context, and find limited 

information in the record to help the 

Commission craft a meaningful and 

readily applicable definition at this 

time. The Commission further notes that 

there is fundamental disagreement in 

the record as to whether such a 

distinction would be helpful or harmful 

to the realization of C–V2X’s 

fundamental safety-related objectives. 

Finally, there is no ‘‘commercial’’ 

component to the definition the 

Commission adopts for C–V2X, which is 

limited to operations ‘‘related to the 

improvement of traffic flow, traffic 

safety, and other Intelligent 

Transportation System applications.’’ 

Given the evolving nature of the C–V2X 

technology integration, the Commission 

will continue to assess how the C–V2X 

technology in the upper 30 megahertz 

develops and promotes safety-of-life 

applications and public safety services 

and whether a further change to the 

band usage would maximize the 

spectrum usage without compromising 

the intended safety purposes to be 

supported by the 5.9 GHz band. 

The Commission also sees no reason 

to modify the structure by which C–V2X 

licenses are licensed under parts 90 and 

95 of its rules, notwithstanding NCTA’s 

contention that the value of the 

spectrum warrants use of an auction 

process unless the spectrum’s use is 

restricted to safety-of-life services. As an 

initial matter, RSU/OBU licenses are 

issued on a non-exclusive basis and the 

Commission sees no need to revise that 

approach based on the record here. 

Because the Commission’s RSU/OBU 

licensing process does not contemplate 

the acceptance of mutually exclusive 

applications, there is no basis to use an 

auction process. The Commission also 


khammond on DSK9W7S144PROD with RULES
100842 Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 240 / Friday, December 13, 2024 / Rules and Regulations 

sees no reason to deviate from the 

history of this band that supported the 

prior DSRC licensing process. Under the 

Transportation Equity Act for the 21st 

Century, Public Law 105–178, 112 Stat. 

107 section 5206(f) (1998), Congress 

directed the Commission to consider the 

spectrum needs for ITS. The subsequent 

allocation of the 5.9 GHz band was 

made based on a finding that DSRC 

applications would be a key element in 

meeting the nation’s transportation 

needs and improving highway safety. 

Additionally, in the DSRC Report and 

Order, 64 FR 66405 (November 26, 

1999), the Commission decided against 

an auction requirement for ITS 

licensees, as users would already be 

subject to licensing and regulatory fees. 

Channel Bandwidth 

In the FNPRM, the Commission 

proposed a ‘‘light touch’’ regarding C– 

V2X channel bandwidth, essentially 

retaining the remaining portion of the 

ITS band plan in place for the legacy 

DSRC technology beyond the transition 

to C–V2X-based technology. In this 

regard, the Commission described ‘‘the 

existing ITS band plan’’ in the upper 30 

megahertz as containing three, 10- 

megahertz DSRC channels: channels 

180, 182, and 184 corresponding to 

5.895–5.905 GHz, 5.905–5.915 GHz, and 

5.915–5.925 GHz, respectively. 

Channels 180 and 182 can be combined 

into channel 181 (5.895–5.915 GHz) to 

provide a single 20-megahertz channel. 

In the FNPRM, the Commission sought 

comment on whether this band plan, 

specifying three 10-megahertz channels, 

inter alia, should apply to C–V2X 

operations. Specifically, the 

Commission asked whether the band 

plan should continue to accommodate 

combining two channels into a single 

20-megahertz channel; whether 

channels 182 and 184 should be 

permitted to be combined into a single 

20-megahertz channel; and whether all 

three channels should be permitted to 

be combined and used as a single 30- 

megahertz channel. The Commission 

further asked what consequences any of 

these channel bandwidths would have 

on C–V2X deployment and adoption 

and how a completely flexible band 

plan versus a prescriptive band plan 

would affect the ability of C–V2X 

technology to maximize efficient and 

effective use of the band. In this regard, 

the Commission urged commenters to 

provide sufficient detail regarding their 

preferred band plan and how such a 

plan could work with C–V2X and all 

other operational and technical rules 

being addressed, such as power limits 

and out-of-band emissions limits. 

Some commenters state that the 

Commission should refrain from an 

overly prescriptive plan and instead 

allow C–V2X operators to utilize the 

upper 30 megahertz in a flexible 

manner. Other commenters state that C– 

V2X channelization issues should be 

determined by the transportation 

industry. Arguing for maximum 

flexibility, AT&T cites the continued 

evolution of C–V2X and states that the 

Commission should continue to allow 

‘‘10 MHz channels and, through their 

aggregation, wider 20 MHz and 30 MHz 

channels.’’ The Utah Department of 

Transportation (UDOT) similarly echoes 

the desire for the band plan to continue 

to accommodate combining two 10- 

megahertz channels into a single 20- 

megahertz channel for C–V2X. The 

Motor Equipment and Manufacturers 

Association (MEMA) argues for 

retaining the existing ITS 30-megahertz 

band plan following the transition to C– 

V2X, saying that ‘‘by retaining separate 

channels within the ITS band, licensees 

can better support safety-of-life use 

cases which rely on more stringent 

requirements in terms of safety, 

security, prioritization, and resource 

availability.’’ 

Given the Commission’s preference 

for a light touch to minimize disruption 

to ongoing transition activities, the 

Commission will continue to provide 

for 10-megahertz channel bandwidths, 

resulting in three channels: 5.895–5.905 

GHz, 5.905–5.915 GHz, and 5.915–5.925 

GHz, respectively. The Commission will 

allow users to combine the 10- 

megahertz channels into 20 megahertz 

contiguous channels or a single 30- 

megahertz channel without restriction, 

thus accommodating various ITS 

applications and services. Additionally, 

because the current channel number 

designations reflect the original DSRC 

band plan and related standards, such 

designations are not relevant to C–V2X 

and the Commission therefore do not 

assign channel number designations to 

the 10-megahertz bandwidths in the C– 

V2X rules adopted in this document. 

This band plan will provide maximum 

flexibility to enable the ITS industry, 

which is in the early stages of 

implementing C–V2X systems, to evolve 

and modify operations as necessary to 

use the band in the most efficient way 

possible to deliver safety applications to 

the American public. 

Communications Zones 

The 5.9 GHz band ITS spectrum is 

shared and licensed in non-exclusive 

geographic areas based on geo-political 

boundaries. To maximize the use within 

this shared spectrum, the Commission’s 

rules require that each registered RSU 

designate its intended area of operation 

or ‘‘communications zone’’ and that 

such communications zones be the 

smallest necessary. Under the rules, a 

communications zone is defined as the 

service area associated with an 

individual fixed RSU. The 

communications zone radius is derived 

from the RSU equipment class specified 

in 47 CFR 90.375. In the FNPRM, the 

Commission proposed to retain the 

‘‘communications zone’’ designations 

currently in the rules and require RSUs 

to specify their intended zone, believing 

this would maximize spectrum use 

among all users, continue to ensure that 

stations only cover their intended area, 

and provide opportunities for other 

licensees to install RSUs for other 

nearby areas without mutually 

interfering. The Commission asked 

commenters to address whether the 

current communications zone distance 

limits should be retained without 

change, modified, or eliminated. The 

Commission also sought comment on 

what effect any proposed changes 

would have on the ability for C–V2X to 

deploy new systems and continue 

operating into the future. The 

Commission also sought comment on 

whether it should continue to specify 

both transmitter output power and 

radiated power levels for 

communications zones. 

In response, 5GAA states that, while 

DSRC technology theoretically was 

required to utilize RSU communications 

zones to manage congestion, use of 

communications zones did not occur in 

practice, and C–V2X does not require a 

similar mechanism for congestion 

control. 5GAA recommends revisions to 

47 CFR 90.375 and 90.377 of the rules 

to remove references to communications 

zones and the associated output power 

limits. Furthermore, as noted in this 

document, the Bureaus recently granted 

waivers to parties requesting to deploy 

C–V2X operations in the upper 30- 

megahertz portion of the 5.9 GHz band 

(5.895–5.925 GHz) prior to adopting 

final C–V2X-based rules. Notably, C– 

V2X waiver applicants did not specify 

communications zones in their waiver 

requests and requested waiver of that 

rule section. Consequently, as part of 

those grants, the Bureaus permitted C– 

V2X RSUs and OBUs to operate with a 

33 dBm EIRP and without transmitter 

output power limits. Waiver grant 

recipients are not required to designate 

communications zones or limit their 

transmitter output power or EIRP for 

designated communications zone sizes 

in their areas of operation. 

The Commission finds that retaining 

the existing communications zone 

construct is unnecessary as ITS evolves 


khammond on DSK9W7S144PROD with RULES
Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 240 / Friday, December 13, 2024 / Rules and Regulations 100843 

from DSRC to C–V2X technology. Based 

on information contained in the record 

indicating that DSRC operations did not 

utilize communications zones to 

manage congestion and that C–V2X 

operations do not require such a 

mechanism to manage congestion, along 

with the fact that no C–V2X waiver 

applicants requested communications 

zone designations, the Commission 

concludes that the communications 

zone definitions, designations, and 

associated reduced power limits are 

unnecessary to manage congestion 

control in C–V2X operations. Thus, the 

C–V2X rules adopted herein do not 

include communications zone 

requirements. See the Final Rules, 47 

CFR 90.7, 90.375, 90.377 for these rule 

changes. 

C–V2X Technical Requirements 

Power and Antenna Height Limits for 

C–V2X Roadside Units (RSUs) 

Power. The Commission’s current 

DSRC rules specify the maximum 

radiated RSU power permitted on each 

channel, ranging generally from 23 dBm 

to 33 dBm, but permitting State and 

local government entities to radiate at 

higher levels on the control channel 

(channel 178) at up to 44.8 dBm and on 

the public safety priority channel 

(channel 184) at up to 40 dBm. In the 

FNPRM, the Commission sought 

comment on what RSU power levels 

should be associated with each 

communications zone, channel, and 

user under the modified ITS band plan, 

and whether the rules should continue 

to permit higher radiated power for 

State and local government entities or 

be consistent among all users as a way 

of maximizing spectrum use and 

controlling potential harmful 

interference between users. The 

Commission sought comment on 

whether RSU radiated power should be 

limited to 23 dBm as specified for some 

channels, 33 dBm as specified for 

others, or some other value, such as 

permitting higher power on a control 

channel; whether the rules should 

continue to specify both output power 

(power delivered to the input of the 

transmitting antenna) and radiated 

power levels for communications zone/ 

channel combinations, or whether it 

would be more appropriate to specify 

only a radiated power limit, and specify 

power as a power density (power per 

unit of frequency, commonly known as 

power spectral density (PSD)) to 

normalize power for wider bandwidth 

channels, if the use of such channels is 

still permitted; and whether compliance 

with the limits should be determined 

with a root mean square (RMS) detector 

(i.e., average measurement) or with a 

peak detector. 

5GAA recommends adopting a 

maximum 33 dBm EIRP without 

transmitter output power limits for C– 

V2X RSUs to promote more robust 

safety services and maximize the overall 

benefits of C–V2X safety services. A 

broad range of commenters support 

5GAA’s recommendation. Auto 

Innovators contends that raising the 

RSU EIRP limit in this manner would 

provide more flexibility to C–V2X 

operations. DENSO International 

America, Inc., on behalf of DENSO 

Corporation and its US affiliate 

(DENSO) supports a maximum 33 dBm 

EIRP for C–V2X RSUs to provide more 

protection from unlicensed device outof-band emissions from the adjacent 

5.850–5.895 GHz U–NII–4 band. 5G 

Americas supports 5GAA’s 

recommendation for C–V2X RSU’s inband power limit because the proposal 

is consistent with 3GPP physical layer 

standards. In response to the 5.9 GHz 

NPRM proposal, the National 

Telecommunications and Information 

Administration (NTIA) supported a 

maximum RSU EIRP limit of 33 dBm. In 

its comments on the Joint Waiver Parties 

C–V2X waiver request, which only 

specified the 5.905–5.925 GHz band, 

NTIA supported an RSU EIRP limit of 

33 dBm over a 20-megahertz channel 

(33 dBm/20 MHz) at 5.905–5.925 GHz, 

and then, in its October 2020 Technical 

Report, an RSU EIRP limit of 33 dBm in 

the lower 10-megahertz channel (33 

dBm/10 MHz) at 5.895–5.905 GHz. In its 

June 7, 2024 letter, NTIA further 

expressed support for the 33 dBm limit 

throughout the entire 30 megahertz. 

NTIA expressed agreement with the 

Commission’s conclusion that requiring 

coordination for ITS RSU installations 

located within a section 90.371 

coordination zone is the best approach 

to facilitate sharing with federal 

systems. The Commission received no 

comments on whether it would be 

appropriate to specify the EIRP as a 

PSD, or whether compliance with the 

EIRP limits should be evaluated using 

RMS or peak measurements. 

After consideration of the record, the 

Commission adopts an EIRP PSD limit 

for C–V2X RSU operations, without any 

limit on the transmitter output power. 

Because the PSD limit will limit the 

overall EIRP, the Commission sees no 

need to also adopt a corresponding 

maximum EIRP limit. By specifying 

radiated power limits, without a 

transmitter output power limit, the 

Commission offers more flexibility for 

RSU stations to provide reliable service 

in a given coverage area, and enable 

licensees to select the most efficient and 

effective equipment parameters to meet 

their coverage requirements, while 

protecting incumbent federal 

radiolocation stations from harmful 

interference. An EIRP PSD limit will 

keep the power even across the channel 

to avoid RSUs concentrating energy in 

a narrow bandwidth, thereby keeping 

the harmful interference potential low, 

and promoting more efficiency/higher 

data throughput by making the use of 

wider bandwidth channels more 

attractive when RSUs are transmitting. 

Although the Commission adopts these 

general limits, the Commission notes 

that if C–V2X RSUs are to be located 

within a coordination zone identified in 

47 CFR 90.387(b), they must first be 

coordinated with NTIA. As 

recommended in the NTIA letter and 

supported in the record, the 

Commission adopts a 33 dBm/10 MHz, 

33 dBm/20 MHz, and 33 dBm/30 MHz 

EIRP PSD limits for C–V2X RSUs These 

power levels will enable ITS systems to 

operate over their intended service areas 

and protect federal incumbent radar 

systems for any RSU location outside 

the coordination zones. 

Consistent with the measurement 

procedure for out-of-band emissions 

from unlicensed devices that operate in 

the 5.850–5.895 GHz (U–NII–4) and 

5.925–6.425 GHz (U–NII–5) bands, the 

Commission permits compliance with 

the RSU EIRP limits to be determined 

using RMS measurements rather than 

requiring peak measurements. As the 

Commission has previously determined, 

RMS measurements are more 

appropriate to characterize a 

transmitter’s operation because peak 

power may only be reached occasionally 

and for short periods of time, whereas 

RMS measurements represent the 

continuous power being generated from 

a device. 

Antenna height. The Commission’s 

rules restrict DSRC RSU antenna height 

to limit their signals within their 

designated zones to the extent 

practicable. RSU antenna height is 

currently limited to 8 meters at full 

power and may be as high as 15 meters 

with a corresponding power reduction. 

In the FNPRM, the Commission sought 

comment on whether the existing RSU 

antenna height limitations in the rules 

are justified, if there are any reasons to 

permit higher antenna heights, and 

whether licensees should continue to be 

required to reduce their power for 

higher RSU antenna heights as a way of 

controlling coverage area and reducing 

the potential for harmful interference. In 

the C–V2X waiver grants noted in this 

document, the Commission requires 

compliance with the existing RSU 

antenna height limitation requirements. 


khammond on DSK9W7S144PROD with RULES
100844 Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 240 / Friday, December 13, 2024 / Rules and Regulations 

In its comments, 5GAA recommends 

that the Commission retain the existing 

RSU antenna height limitations and 

associated power reduction requirement 

for roadside antennas over 8 meters in 

height up to a maximum of 15 meters. 

DENSO contends that the power and 

antenna height issues require sufficient 

technical study and should be agreed to 

by all stakeholders because these 

technical requirements have a 

significant impact on V2X 

communication system performance 

and cost. 

The Commission agrees with 5GAA 

that the existing limitations on roadside 

unit transmitting antenna height and 

associated power reduction requirement 

for RSU transmitting antennas over 8 

meters in height up to a maximum of 15 

meters should be retained in the 

Commission’s rules. These limitations 

have been successful in enabling 

coexistence within the band and 

preventing harmful interference 

between ITS DSRC operations and to 

other incumbent operations in the 5.9 

GHz band while also enabling sufficient 

signal coverage over the localized areas 

being served by each RSU. Retaining the 

roadside antenna height limits and the 

associated power reduction 

requirements for antennas more than 8 

meters in height will continue to 

provide a known spectral environment 

for C–V2X systems so that network 

designers can create efficient systems 

while reducing the potential for harmful 

interference with other ITS licensees 

and incumbents in the 5.895–5.925 GHz 

band. Thus, the Commission retains the 

roadside unit antenna height limitations 

and associated power reduction 

requirement currently specified in the 

Commission’s rules. In instances where 

the maximum RSU EIRP must be 

reduced due to an antenna height 

greater than 8 meters above the roadway 

surface, the RSU PSD limits must be 

equivalently reduced. 

Power Limits for C–V2X On-Board Units 

(OBUs) 

Under the Commission’s part 95 rules, 

DSRC OBU transmitters operating in the 

5.895–5.925 GHz band must comply 

with technical standard Institute of 

Electrical and Electronics Engineers 

(IEEE) 802.11p–2010 for wireless access 

in vehicular environments. For 

vehicular and portable on-board units, 

IEEE standard 802.11p–2010 specifies 

maximum transmitter output power 

(power supplied to the input of the 

transmitting antenna) limits ranging 

from 1 mW (0 dBm) to 760 mW (28.8 

dBm), and maximum radiated power 

(EIRP) permitted on each channel 

ranging generally from 23 dBm to 33 

dBm, but permitting State and local 

government entities to radiate at higher 

levels up to 44.8 dBm. In the FNPRM, 

the Commission sought comment on 

whether it should modify these power 

rules for application to C–V2X on-board 

units. The Commission proposed to 

limit C–V2X OBU transmitter output 

power to no more than 20 dBm and 

EIRP to no more than 23 dBm, believing 

these power levels to be appropriate for 

C–V2X vehicular and portable devices. 

The Commission sought comment on 

whether it should increase the OBU 

EIRP limit to 33 dBm and whether such 

an increase would affect the ability of 

C–V2X roadside units to co-exist with 

and protect federal radiolocation 

stations. Further, in this context, the 

Commission also reminded commenters 

of the need to simultaneously ensure 

that portable on-board units comply 

with the Commission’s radiofrequency 

(RF) radiation exposure limits. 

In its comments, 5GAA recommends 

increasing the C–V2X OBU EIRP limit to 

33 dBm and eliminating the transmitter 

output power limit requirement. A 

broad range of commenters support this 

5GAA recommendation. Ford Motor 

Company (Ford) stated ‘‘that the 

transmit power limit for OBUs should 

be specified only as an EIRP of 33 dBm 

RMS to provide broader coverage 

including emergency/public safety 

vehicles.’’ Ford submits that ‘‘an 

increased EIRP limit (achieved through 

a combination of higher transmit power 

and antenna gain) will allow C–V2X– 

OBU equipped vehicles to communicate 

more effectively among each other and 

with C–V2X RSUs. This additional 

flexibility can be useful to first 

responders and public safety vehicles in 

providing higher reliability and range 

for their safety critical needs (e.g., traffic 

light preemption).’’ Auto Innovators 

similarly supports 5GAA’s proposed 

power limits to provide more flexibility 

for C–V2X operations. 

Fiat Chrysler Automobiles supports 

swift adoption of 5GAA’s proposed C– 

V2X service rules to facilitate 

deployment in the U.S. 5G Americas 

supports 5GAA’s proposed C–V2X 

technical rules, including the OBU inband power limit, because it is 

consistent with 3GPP physical layer 

standards. OTI/PK agree that the 

Commission should adopt 5GAA’s 

proposal and authorize on board units 

to operate at up to 33 dBm, if feasible. 

Dynamic Spectrum Alliance (DSA), a 

global, cross-industry alliance focused 

on increasing dynamic access to unused 

radio frequencies and unlicensed usage 

proponent, supports 5GAA’s request for 

OBUs to operate with a 33 dBm EIRP. 

In its reply comments, NCTA states 

that the 5GAA proposal would increase 

power tenfold without addressing NTIA 

guidance relating to the protection of 

radiolocation exclusion zones. Further, 

NCTA suggests that ‘‘if the Commission 

determines that C–V2X OBUs can 

operate at such high power (i.e., up to 

33 dBm) without the need for exclusion 

zones, it should also permit U–NII–4 

devices to operate using at least the 

same power level without exclusion 

zones, as they would pose a 

significantly lower risk of potential 

harmful interference to federal radars 

than similarly powered C–V2X 

devices.’’ 

Subsequent to the comment period, 

5GAA modified its original support for 

a general 33 dBm EIRP limit by 

suggesting that the Commission’s rules 

should allow the OBU EIRP limits that 

were granted in the C–V2X waivers i.e., 

OBUs operating in the 5.905–5.925 GHz 

band may operate at 33 dBm EIRP, but 

not exceed 27 dBm EIRP within ±5 

degrees of horizontal. 5GAA states that 

OBUs that seek to operate at up to 33 

dBm within ±5 degrees of horizontal can 

implement a geolocation function to 

reduce their power to the 27 dBm EIRP 

level when operating near federal radar 

sites that require protection. 

In its Technical Report submitted in 

response to the 5.9 GHz NPRM, NTIA 

determined that OBUs operating at 23 

dBm EIRP or less would not need to be 

coordinated to protect federal 

operations in the 5.905–5.925 GHz 

band, thus providing an implied power 

limitation for non-NTIA coordinated 

ITS operations. Subsequently, in its 

comments on the Joint Waiver Request 

filing, NTIA supported a maximum 33 

dBm OBU EIRP limit for the C–V2X 

operations in the 5.905–5.925 GHz 

band. However, to adequately protect 

the primary federal radiolocation 

services operating in the 5.9 GHz band 

during the period in which devices are 

operating under a waiver, NTIA 

requested that C–V2X OBUs be limited 

to 27 dBm EIRP within ±5 degrees in 

elevation from the horizontal plane. The 

granted waivers limit OBU operations 

and power reduction conditions to the 

5.905–5.925 GHz band, as requested by 

NTIA. 

On June 7, 2024, NTIA submitted a 

letter to the Commission providing 

additional information in response to 

the 5.9 GHz FNPRM. The NTIA letter 

addressed, among other things, the C– 

V2X OBU EIRP limits necessary for ‘‘the 

protection of federal radiolocation 

systems.’’ As the NTIA’s OBU proposal, 

which was similar to the most recent 

5GAA proposal, differed from the 

Commission’s initial 5.9 GHz FNPRM 


khammond on DSK9W7S144PROD with RULES
Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 240 / Friday, December 13, 2024 / Rules and Regulations 100845 

proposal, OET issued a Public Notice on 

June 11, 2024 inviting comment on the 

proposal. The NTIA proposal, as set 

forth in the OET Public Notice, would 

permit OBU devices to optionally 

incorporate geofencing techniques to 

protect federal radiolocation sites from 

harmful interference, while operating 

with higher power in otherwise 

unaffected areas. In sum, for geofenced 

devices, the Public Notice proposal 

would provide a 33 dBm EIRP PSD limit 

over the operating bandwidth in areas 

outside of coordination zones. Such 

devices would rely on a geofencing 

capability to limit the EIRP PSD to 23 

dBm for operations that utilize the 

5.895–5.905 GHz band within 

coordination zone areas and 27 dBm 

within ±5 degrees of horizontal for 

coordination area operations that 

exclusively use the 5.905–5.925 GHz 

band. Geofenced devices operating in 

any portion of the 5.895–5.905 GHz 

band would have to abide by the 

‘‘worse-case’’ 23 dBm limit if operating 

within the coordination zones. Devices 

that do not incorporate a geofencing 

capability would be required to meet the 

aforementioned restrictions at all 

locations. 

Additionally, NTIA asks that the 

Commission adopt specific compliance 

requirements to ensure geofencing 

capabilities are properly implemented. 

In this regard, NTIA suggests that 

manufacturers implementing a 

geofencing capability would need to 

specifically demonstrate and certify 

compliance of the capability within the 

FCC’s equipment certification process 

specified in part 2 of the Commission’s 

rules. Further, in the event that 

interference protection requirements are 

changed, resulting in updated 

protection zones, the device should 

include a mechanism to update the 

OBUs with new information within a 

reasonable timeframe. 

Comments filed in response to the 

Public Notice support the optional use 

of geofencing techniques. In its 

comments, the Intelligent 

Transportation Society of America (ITS 

America) states that it supports NTIA’s 

proposal related to optional geofencing 

capabilities and appreciates the 

flexibility that the proposal provides to 

C–V2X operations with regards to power 

levels. ITS America further states that 

updating geofencing parameters for 

deployed devices poses challenges and 

will require collaboration among 

government and industry stakeholders 

to successfully implement. Auto 

Innovators also supports the use of 

geofencing techniques to enable 

operations at less restrictive EIRP levels. 

Support for geofencing techniques 

also came from additional commenters, 

including the 5G Automotive 

Association, the American Association 

of State Highway and Transportation 

Officials, the Institute of Transportation 

Engineers, and the Wireless 

Infrastructure Association. These 

commenters recommend the 

Commission define two distinct C–V2X 

channels, specifically focusing on the 

lower 10 megahertz channel at 5.895– 

5.905 GHz and the upper 20 megahertz 

channel at 5.905–5.925 GHz. Doing so, 

they say, will ensure interoperability 

within the band. These commenters also 

request that the Commission adopt rules 

requiring C–V2X operators to look to the 

NTIA website for information on the 

location of coordination zones. Both the 

Commission’s rules and the NTIA’s 

comments in this document specify 47 

CFR 90.371(b) of the rules as the 

location of the coordination zones 

necessary to protect federal 

radiolocation systems. Lastly, these 

commenters also recommend including 

provisions in the rules that would 

require an OBU equipped with 

geofencing capability to lower its 

transmit EIRP to the appropriate level 

within 60 seconds of entering the power 

reduction zone. 

Based on consideration of the record, 

the Commission adopts power limit 

rules for C–V2X OBUs that provide for 

optional use of ‘‘geofencing’’ techniques 

to allow the OBUs to operate at a higher 

radiated power in some locations. As 

the Commission has discussed, 

geofencing technique involves a 

radiofrequency device using a 

geolocation capability to determine 

whether its geographic coordinates are 

within a defined geographic area. In the 

instant case, ‘‘geofenced’’ OBU devices 

would incorporate a geolocation 

capability to be aware of the appropriate 

protection areas around federal 

radiolocation sites. The OBUs would be 

programmed with the existing 5.895– 

5.925 GHz band federal radiolocation 

sites’ coordination zones (specified by 

geographic coordinates and a radius) to 

ensure that they operate with lower 

power levels within the protected areas. 

OBU equipment that does not 

incorporate this geolocation capability 

would be required to comply with the 

more restrictive OBU EIRP limit. 

Thus, reflective of NTIA’s June 7, 

2024 recommendation and to allow the 

maximum flexibility possible for C–V2X 

OBU operations while still protecting 

incumbent federal radar operations in 

the band from harmful interference, the 

Commission will permit C–V2X OBUs 

with geolocation capabilities to operate 

with up to the maximum 33 dBm/10 

MHz, 33 dBm/20 MHz, and 33 dBm/30 

MHz EIRP PSD outside of a 47 CFR 

90.387(b) coordination zone. Within the 

coordination zones, the following limits 

will apply: all operations that include 

use of the 5.895–5.905 GHz channel 

(i.e., 5.895–5.905 GHz, 5.895–5.915 

GHz, and 5.895–5.925 GHz) are limited 

to a 23 dBm EIRP over the channel 

bandwidth; all other channels (i.e., 

5.905–5.915 GHz, 5.915–5.925 GHz, 

5.905–5.925 GHz operations) are limited 

to 33 dBm over the channel bandwidth, 

but must be reduced to 27 dBm over the 

channel bandwidth within ±5 degrees of 

horizontal in elevation. OBUs not 

equipped with geofencing capability 

will be limited to the power levels 

specified for operation within the 

coordination zones. Manufacturers 

incorporating geofencing capability for 

an OBU will need to specifically 

demonstrate and certify that the device 

implements the capability in a manner 

that complies with the requirements 

discussed herein when seeking an FCC 

Equipment Certification under part 2 of 

the Commission’s rules. If geofencing 

locations and parameters are 

subsequently modified, a mechanism 

should be available such that OBUs can 

be updated with the new information. 

The Commission further declines to 

implement recommendations from 

parties responding to the Public Notice 

that the Commission re-channelizes C– 

V2X operations into two distinct 10 

megahertz and 20 megahertz channels. 

As stated in the channel bandwidth 

section above, the Commission is 

providing maximum flexibility to enable 

the ITS industry to evolve and modify 

operations as necessary to use the band 

in the most efficient way possible to 

deliver safety applications to the 

American public. The Commission also 

declines these parties’ recommendation 

that the Commission adopt rules 

requiring C–V2X operators obtain 

coordination zone information from 

NTIA’s website. However, the 

Commission does support industry and 

government collaboration on additional 

means of obtaining this information. To 

that end, the Commission notes that 

NTIA has developed machine readable 

KML files for download from its website 

that can be used by C–V2X devices for 

determining if they are within a 

coordination zone. The Commission 

also declines to implement a 60-second 

EIRP adjustment requirement after an 

OBU enters a coordination zone. The 

rules require C–V2X devices to comply 

with the power limits for their location 

and manufacturers must ensure that 

devices operate such that they comply 

with the rules for their location. Thus, 


khammond on DSK9W7S144PROD with RULES
100846 Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 240 / Friday, December 13, 2024 / Rules and Regulations 

a specific requirement, such as a 60- 

second adjustment period is not 

necessary. 

Although the rules the Commission 

adopts today permit OBUs to operate at 

up to 33 dBm (with geolocation 

capability), the Commission declines to 

grant similar power limits for U–NII–4 

devices at this time. The Second Report 

and Order is focused solely on C–V2X 

operations in the 5.9 GHz band and 

issues related to U–NII–4operations as 

contemplated in the FNPRM remain 

pending. Although NCTA suggested that 

the Commission should simultaneously 

address U–NII–4 outdoor rules and C– 

V2X service rules, the record has not 

been sufficiently developed to address 

the interference dynamics to licensed 

operations from the outdoor U–NII–4 

operations, including the federal radar 

operations. Application of the 2023 

Policy Statement regarding the spectrum 

management will be considered when 

outdoor U–NII–4 operation is addressed. 

Out-of-Band Emissions Limits for C– 

V2X Roadside Units and On-Board 

Units 

Under the Commission’s part 90 and 

95 rules, DSRC RSU and OBU 

transmitters operating in the 5.895– 

5.925 GHz band must comply with IEEE 

standard 802.11p–2010 for wireless 

access in vehicular environments. 

Under this standard, the applicable outof-band emissions (OOBE) EIRP limits 

are: 

• ¥16.0 dBm/100 kHz at the channel 

edge; 

• ¥22.0 dBm/100 kHz at 1 megahertz 

from the channel edge; 

• ¥30.0 dBm/100 kHz at 10 

megahertz from the channel edge; and 

• ¥40 dBm/100 kHz at 20 megahertz 

from the channel edge. 

In the recently granted C–V2X 

waivers, the Bureaus require C–V2X 

RSUs and OBUs to comply with these 

IEEE 802.11p–2010 OOBE limits. 

In the FNPRM, the Commission 

proposed that all C–V2X equipment 

limit OOBE measured at the antenna 

input (i.e., conducted limits) to: 

• ¥29 dBm/100 kHz at the band 

edge; 

• ¥35 dBm/100 kHz at ±1 megahertz 

from the band edge; 

• ¥43 dBm/100 kHz at ±10 

megahertz from the band edge; and 

• ¥53 dBm/100 kHz at ±20 

megahertz from the band edge. 

The Commission also proposed to 

limit out-of-band radiated emissions to 

–25 dBm/100 kHz or less EIRP outside 

the 5.895 GHz and 5.925 GHz band 

edges. The Commission sought 

comment on these proposed limits and 

whether they would continue to be 

appropriate for C–V2X equipment. 

Additionally, in the FNPRM, the 

Commission noted that 5GAA, in its 

comments to the 5.9 GHz NPRM, 

recommended the following C–V2X 

conducted OOBE limits for RSUs and 

OBUs: 

• ¥16 dBm/100 kHz at ±1 megahertz 

of the band edge; 

• ¥13 dBm/MHz at ±1 megahertz to 

± 5 megahertz of the band edge; 

• ¥16 dBm/MHz at ±5 megahertz to 

± 30 megahertz of the band edge; and 

• ¥28 dBm/MHz beyond 30 

megahertz from the band edges. 

The Commission sought comment on 

5GAA’s proposed limits, asking whether 

it should adopt those alternative OOBE 

limits; what effect those relaxed limits 

would have on the ability to design and 

manufacture C–V2X equipment; how 

they would affect equipment cost; and 

whether the limits would ensure 

compatibility with adjacent U–NII 

devices in both the U–NII–4 (5.850– 

5.895 GHz) and U–NII–5 (5.925–6.425 

GHz) bands, which are below and above 

the modified ITS band, respectively; 

and what effects those limits would 

have on adjacent band fixed services in 

the 6 GHz band. The Commission also 

sought comment on the measurement 

standards that should be associated with 

equipment approval for verifying that 

C–V2X equipment meets whatever 

OOBE limits it ultimately adopts. 

In response, 5GAA recommends that 

the Commission provide more flexibility 

for C–V2X operations by adopting the 

OOBE limits for RSUs and non-public 

safety OBUs that it had previously 

proposed. Their proposed limits are less 

restrictive than the OOBE limits the 

Commission proposed in the FNPRM 

and specified in the C–V2X waiver 

grants. For RSUs and non-public safety 

OBUs, 5GAA recommends that the 

Commission adopt the following 

conducted OOBE limits: 

• ¥16 dBm/100 kHz at ±1 megahertz 

of the band edge; 

• ¥13 dBm/MHz at ±1 megahertz to 

±5 megahertz of the band edge; 

• ¥16 dBm/MHz at ±5 megahertz to 

±30 megahertz of the band edge; and 

• ¥28 dBm/MHz beyond 30 

megahertz from the band edges. 

To help ‘‘improve the performance 

and speed the delivery of critical C–V2X 

services to fire trucks, police vehicles, 

ambulances, and other public safety 

vehicles,’’ 5GAA recommends that the 

Commission adopt the following 

conducted OOBE limits for OBUs 

operating from such vehicles: 

• ¥10 dBm/100 kHz at the band edge 

linearly decreasing to ¥26 dBm/100 

kHz at ±20 megahertz from the band 

edges; 

• ¥16 dBm/MHz within 20 to 30 

megahertz from the upper band edge 

and within ¥30 megahertz to ¥20 

megahertz from the lower band edge; 

and 

• ¥28 dBm/MHz beyond 30 

megahertz from the band edges. 

A broad range of commenters support 

5GAA’s recommended C–V2X OOBE 

limits. 5G Americas supports adopting 

5GAA’s recommended OOBE limits 

because they are consistent with 3GPP 

physical layer standards. Auto 

Innovators urges the Commission to 

adopt 5GAA’s recommended C–V2X 

OOBE limits, rather than the OOBE 

limits proposed in the FNPRM, because 

the more relaxed OOBE limits 

recommended by 5GAA would 

‘‘facilitate both C–V2X’s evolution and 

more robust safety services for 

travelers’’ given V2X’s reduced 

spectrum allotment. CNH Industrial 

America LLC urges the Commission to 

provide slightly more relaxed OOBE 

limits for safety messages transmitted in 

‘‘off-road’’ rural areas. Qualcomm 

expresses support for 5GAA’s 

recommended OOBE limits for RSUs 

and OBUs that operate in the upper 30- 

megahertz portion of the 5.9 GHz band. 

Fiat Chrysler Automobiles also supports 

5GAA’s recommended C–V2X service 

rules to facilitate deployment in the U.S. 

Ford expresses its belief that the power 

and emissions rules 5GAA specified in 

its comments on the FNPRM are 

essential. 

T-Mobile expresses support for 

technical rules for C–V2X operations 

that are based on 3GPP standards and 

potentially more permissive 

requirements if they are necessary to 

fully maximize C–V2X operations and 

are based on sound technical analyses. 

However, Autotalks urges the 

Commission not to adopt the 3GPP’s C– 

V2X OOBE values because they are too 

strict, would be challenging to 

implement, require a filter in most 

systems that would increase costs, and 

add an insertion loss that would 

decrease the system reception 

sensitivity and communication range. 

According to Autotalks, 5GAA’s 

recommended OOBE limits can be 

supported without adding a filter. 

On the other hand, NCTA—The 

internet & Television Association, 

argues that 5GAA’s push for relaxed 

OOBE limits for C–V2X operations in 

the 5.895–5.925 GHz band threatens to 

undermine Wi-Fi across the country; 

those OOBE limits could erode reliance 

on Wi-Fi in the new U–NII–4 band 

adjacent to C–V2X operations in the 

5.895–5.925 GHz band. Instead of 

adopting 5GAA’s recommended limits, 

NCTA recommends adopting the C–V2X 


khammond on DSK9W7S144PROD with RULES
Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 240 / Friday, December 13, 2024 / Rules and Regulations 100847 

OOBE limits the Commission proposed 

in the FNPRM, claiming those limits are 

sufficient for C–V2X operations and 

support compatibility with adjacent U– 

NII operations. NCTA argues that the 

Commission should reject 5GAA’s 

proposed OOBE limits because C–V2X 

advocates have failed to describe the 

impact of these more permissive levels 

on the Commission’s goal of making the 

U–NII–4 and U–NII–5 bands a success 

for Wi-Fi service. In response, 5GAA 

asserts that the Commission should 

dismiss NCTA’s assertion, which 5GAA 

characterizes as baseless both because it 

is made without any technical support 

and because unlicensed broadband 

communications inside buildings 

should not be impacted, much less 

undermined, by C–V2X operations 

occurring on roadways. 

Based on consideration of the record, 

the Commission adopts 5GAA’s 

recommended set of OOBE limits for all 

RSUs and OBUs. The Commission 

declines to adopt different OOBE limits 

for public safety OBUs because there is 

not enough information in the record to 

justify how more relaxed OOBE limits 

for public safety OBUs can improve the 

performance of critical safety message 

delivery. Also, because of the wide 

variety of vehicles associated with 

public safety and uncertainty in 

whether they get outfitted with ITS 

equipment by the manufacturer or 

through aftermarket vehicle alterations, 

it would be administratively 

burdensome for entities within the 

supply chain, equipment integrators and 

installers, and agencies themselves to 

track different classes of OBUs for 

different vehicles. Furthermore, having 

a single class of OBUs would lower 

manufacturing costs as separate public 

safety and non-public safety models are 

not necessary to design and build. Thus, 

consistent with the limits recommended 

by 5GAA, the Commission adopts the 

following conductive OOBE limits 

outside of the authorized 5.895–5.925 

GHz band for all RSUs and OBUs: 

• ¥16 dBm/100 kHz within ±1 

megahertz of the band edges; 

• ¥13 dBm/MHz within ±1 

megahertz to ±5 megahertz of the band 

edges; 

• ¥16 dBm/MHz within ±5 

megahertz to ±30 megahertz of the band 

edges; and 

• ¥28 dBm/MHz beyond 30 

megahertz from the band edges. 

The OOBE limits the Commission is 

adopting are consistent with OOBE 

limits the Commission has previously 

adopted to protect operations in 

adjacent bands from harmful 

interference. These limits will provide 

equipment manufacturers and C–V2X 

operators with the flexibility to design, 

manufacture, and operate RSUs and 

OBUs, respectively, that will help 

ensure reliable service while protecting 

adjacent bands operations from harmful 

interference. Furthermore, the 

Commission does not expect that the 

OOBE limits will impact, much less 

undermine, unlicensed broadband 

communications inside buildings, as 

claimed by NCTA. The separation 

distance between 5.895–5.925 GHz band 

C–V2X transmitters operated on 

roadways and indoor unlicensed 

devices operating in frequency bands 

adjacent to the 5.895–5.925 GHz band, 

coupled with signal losses due to the 

angular antenna discrimination between 

the respective transmitting and 

receiving antennas, and building 

attenuation, will significantly reduce 

the power level of any C–V2X OOBE 

received by a receiver operating on an 

unlicensed basis. 

Technology Transition 

In order to complete the transition to 

C–V2X technology in a timely manner, 

in the FNPRM, the Commission 

proposed that all ITS operations in the 

5.895–5.925 GHz band either convert to 

C–V2X or cease operating two years 

after the effective date of this document. 

The Commission indicated that two 

years would be a sufficient timeframe to 

allow ITS supply chains to amass C– 

V2X equipment and to allow the 

remaining DSRC incumbents to sunset 

DSRC technology. The Commission 

asked commenters for input on various 

timeline-related issues, including the 

state of C–V2X equipment development, 

whether supply chains could readily 

distribute such equipment, and whether 

vehicle manufacturers could install C– 

V2X equipment within the proposed 

two-year timeframe. Further, the 

Commission asked several questions 

related to the technical implications of 

C–V2X and DSRC operations occurring 

simultaneously in the 5.895–5.925 GHz 

band during the transition period. In 

this regard, the Commission asked 

whether any geographic or spectral 

separation requirements are necessary to 

ensure that simultaneous DSRC and C– 

V2X operations do not result in harmful 

interference and generally suggested 

that commenters address any 

transitional operation concerns in the 

context of any comments addressing 

technical parameters. Additionally, the 

Commission sought comment on how it 

should treat DSRC OBUs after the final 

transition date. The Commission asked 

commenters whether OBUs could be 

turned off by that date, whether they 

could be modified to become C–V2X 

compatible through hardware or 

software updates, whether the potential 

for harmful interference existed if DSRC 

OBUs continued to communicate after 

the final transition date, and whether 

the Commission should take affirmative 

steps to notify the owners of vehicles 

equipped with DSRC OBUs of the 

transition. 

Commenters generally expressed 

agreement with the Commission’s 

proposal to mandate a two-year 

timeframe for DSRC incumbents to 

cease operations. In its comments, the 

UDOT states that the two-year 

timeframe is reasonable and adequate 

for most public agencies, but stipulates 

that the process to replace its existing 

DSRC system would make any 

timeframe shorter than two years 

unacceptable. Other commenters 

suggest that issues such as procurement, 

engineering, workforce training, testing, 

installation, and different budgetary 

concerns all necessitate a minimum 

timeframe of two years. In its reply 

comments, Hyundai states that an 

unreasonably short transition period 

could prematurely discontinue ongoing 

deployments and research projects or 

add an undue investment burden to 

entities that operate within tighter 

budgetary constraints. The Institute of 

Transportation Engineers, however, 

states that C–V2X testing and 

deployment should serve as the main 

influence on the length of the transition 

timeframe, rather than a strictly 

calendar view of the issue. MEMA 

suggests that, during the transition 

period, 20 megahertz should be 

dedicated exclusively to C–V2X, 

permitting DSRC operations on the 

remaining 10 megahertz until the phase 

out is complete. MEMA suggests this 

proposal would reduce the chances of 

harmful interference occurring between 

DSRC and C–V2X operations during the 

transition. 

Given the time already elapsed since 

the Commission’s decision to adopt C– 

V2X technology in the 5.9 GHz band, 

and the information provided in the 

record, the Commission believes that 

two years will provide sufficient time 

for incumbents, industry, and suppliers 

to sunset DSRC operations. The 

Commission believes this timeframe 

adequately allows public entities with 

longer budgetary timelines to procure 

compliant equipment and complete the 

sunsetting of DSRC. This two year 

period will commence on the Federal 

Register publication date of the rules 

adopted in the Second Report and 

Order. The Commission finds good 

cause to start the two-year DSRC sunset 

effective with this Federal Register 

publication of the Second Report and 

Order, rather than the effective date of 


khammond on DSK9W7S144PROD with RULES
100848 Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 240 / Friday, December 13, 2024 / Rules and Regulations 

the rules, because the Commission has 

provided ample notice of the pending 

action and the intent to sunset DSRC 

operations. To effectuate this transition 

period, new licenses issued after the 

effective date of the final rules will only 

authorize C–V2X operations (not DSRC). 

Recognizing the Commission will need 

time to update Universal Licensing 

System (ULS) consistent with the new 

rules and policies here, the PSHSB and 

WTB are directed to issue licensing and 

filing guidance to licensees during the 

transition. Because of the lack of 

interoperability between DSRC and C– 

V2X operations and the issuance of 

multiple waivers allowing early C–V2X 

deployment, ceasing licensing of DSRC 

as of the effective date of these rules 

will prevent circumvention of the rules 

the Commission adopts here and ensure 

a timely transition. Moreover, the period 

of time between release of the Second 

Report and Order and the effective date 

of the rules provides additional time to 

finalize or modify any pending license 

applications. The Commission directs 

PSHSB and WTB to work with any 

prospective licensees with pending 

applications to ensure compliance with 

this timeframe. Existing licensees may 

use DSRC technology during the twoyear transition period and may file RSU 

modification applications as necessary 

to continue operations during the 

transition period. The Commission 

delegates authority to PSHSB and WTB 

to issue a public notice, if necessary, 

detailing any filing requirements for 

licensees transitioning from DSRC to C– 

V2X operations. The Commission also 

makes conforming and non-substantive 

edits to the Commission’s rules that are 

necessitated by the decision to sunset 

DSRC technology in this document. 

Regarding waivers for deployment of 

C–V2X operations in the upper 30- 

megahertz portion of the 5.9 GHz band 

(5.895–5.925 GHz), the Commission 

hereby terminates those waivers issued 

prior to adopting final C–V2X-based 

technical rules upon the effective date 

of the final rules adopted herein. The 

Commission directs PSHSB and WTB to 

implement any necessary license 

modifications in accordance with final 

rules. As to equipment authorizations 

granted pursuant to the same waiver 

authority, the Commission notes that 

the power limits and out-of-band 

emissions limits permitted under waiver 

authority are within those that the 

Commission adopted herein, with the 

exception of optional geofencing. Thus, 

the Commission does not expect that 

such devices would cause harmful 

interference and they may continue to 

be operated and marketed under their 

existing equipment authorizations if the 

authorization is received or in process 

(i.e., all required information has been 

provided to a Telecommunication 

Certification Body) as of the effective 

date of the final rules adopted herein. 

However, if any such devices are 

subsequently modified, the device must 

comply with all currently applicable 

rules, including those rules adopted 

herein. 

The Commission declines to dedicate 

10 megahertz to DSRC operations during 

the transition, as MEMA suggests. Doing 

so would deprive C–V2X operators of 

the opportunity to utilize the full 

bandwidth made available through the 

FCC’s proceeding during the transition, 

only to require additional modifications 

and filings at the end of the transition. 

Similarly, many existing DSRC devices 

would require modification in order to 

operate on a dedicated channel or cease 

operation on the C–V2X channels, an 

inefficient process given that any 

requirement would only be temporary. 

The Commission further notes that 

because most licensees provide the sole 

service within defined geographic areas, 

such licensees can provision their 

systems accordingly, if necessary, 

without a Commission imposed 

mandate. Thus, the Commission expects 

instances where C–V2X and DSRC 

operations may cause harmful 

interference to each other to be unlikely. 

In any event, if harmful interference 

does occur, under the Commission’s 

rules, the later-filed licensee would be 

required to take any steps necessary to 

protect the incumbent. 

The Commission recognizes that there 

are existing DSRC OBUs that have been 

deployed and are currently in operation, 

many of which are operated on a 

licensed-by-rule basis. Commenters urge 

the Commission not to dictate a 

particular method of compliance with 

any transition deadline for OBUs. For 

example, the UDOT states that it would 

not be possible to turn off these units 

remotely, nor would such an operation 

be acceptable. UDOT further states that 

all of its DSRC OBUs will be replaced 

with C–V2X OBUs before the final 

transition date, with the replacement 

taking place at night to minimize service 

disruptions. The Commission 

anticipates that other OBU operators 

will likely follow a similar replacement 

strategy to replace DSRC OBUs with C– 

V2X OBUs, or cease to use DSRC OBUs 

altogether, consistent with the cessation 

of DSRC RSU operations. The 

Commission expects that any remaining 

DSRC OBUs are unlikely to present 

significant interference concerns 

because the opportunities for such 

devices to communicate with DSRC 

RSUs will be significantly reduced 

throughout the transition period and 

eventually eliminated, and the 

Commission believes that the continued 

operation of DSRC OBUs will be 

minimal. Consistent with stakeholders’ 

calls for flexibility, while the 

Commission completes the sunset of 

DSRC operations, the Commission will 

provide flexibility in ceasing DSRC OBU 

operations. To assist licensees and 

operators, the Commission directs 

PSHSB and WTB to conduct outreach 

providing appropriate reminders and 

information to facilitate compliance 

with the DSRC sunset date. 

Finally, with respect to administrative 

issues associated with ITS station 

licenses during this transition, in the 

First Report and Order, the Commission 

modified all ITS licenses by eliminating 

authorization to transmit in the 5.850– 

5.895 GHz band (lower 45 megahertz), 

thus limiting authority to channels in 

the 5.895–5.925 GHz band (upper 30 

megahertz). The Commission also 

required those licensees to exit the 

lower 45 megahertz by a date certain 

and file a notification confirming their 

timely exit. Where licensees failed to 

timely transition out of the lower 45 

megahertz and notify the Commission, 

those licenses terminated automatically 

(but operators may seek a new license 

if they wish to operate in the upper 30 

megahertz). Today, the Commission 

adopts flexible channelization rules 

permitting any licensee to operate on 

any 10-megahertz channel (or 

aggregation of channels) in the upper 

band. In light of this flexible approach, 

going forward, the Commission will 

streamline its licensing mechanism to 

authorize each licensee to use the entire 

30-megahertz band on all of its RSUs, 

following registration of those RSUs 

with the Bureaus. 

Other Spectrum for ITS 

The Commission sought comment on 

whether, notwithstanding its 

determination that current safety-of-life 

services can continue to operate using 

30 megahertz of spectrum, it should 

consider allocating additional spectrum 

for ITS applications. In this regard, the 

Commission directed commenters to 

provide specific information indicating 

why existing spectrum resources were 

inadequate and what specific safety 

benefits would result from additional 

spectrum allocations for ITS 

applications. Given that the 

Commission designated C–V2X as the 

sole technology for 5.9 GHz ITS 

applications, it also sought comment on 

how additional spectrum could be used 

to leverage C–V2X and aid in its 

deployment. 


khammond on DSK9W7S144PROD with RULES
Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 240 / Friday, December 13, 2024 / Rules and Regulations 100849 

Commenters generally support the 

prospect of the Commission providing 

additional spectrum for C–V2X 

deployment. Some, such as University 

of Michigan Transportation Research 

Institute (UMTRI) and UDOT, take 

specific issue with the Commission’s 

conclusion in the First Report and Order 

that the record supported that 30 

megahertz of spectrum is sufficient to 

provide ITS basic safety functions, both 

current and those under consideration 

in the near future. The Institute of 

Transportation Engineers specifically 

states that it is ‘‘important to note that 

advanced C–V2X applications, 

including those that rely on collective 

perception messages (CPM), maneuver 

coordination messages (MCM), and 

personal safety messages (PSM) will 

likely be lost.’’ Multiple commenters 

echo this sentiment, collectively stating 

that if the Commission fails to provide 

additional mid-band spectrum for 

safety-of-life and advanced safety 

applications, the utility of C–V2X will 

be limited. 

Many commenters that dispute the 

need for additional spectrum express 

concerns that ITS advocates seeking 

additional spectrum under the guise of 

providing safety-of-life services in fact 

intend to use the additional spectrum 

for commercial, non-safety applications 

and services. OTI/PK, in their reply 

comments, raise this exact concern, 

stating that the Commission should 

ensure that it does not ‘‘create 

incentives for the auto and mobile 

industries to preempt future safety 

mandates or needs by occupying ITS 

spectrum for commercial applications or 

services.’’ 

Commenters, such as 5GAA and the 

Alliance for Automotive Innovation, 

request that the Commission identify an 

additional 40 megahertz of contiguous, 

mid-band spectrum for advanced V2X 

operations. Multiple commenters 

implore the Commission to convene a 

working group consisting of 

representatives from the U.S. DOT, 

NTIA, State departments of 

transportation, and the private sector to 

identify and validate additional 

spectrum for V2X services. 

The Commission concluded in the 

First Report and Order that the 30 

megahertz provided for ITS is sufficient 

to provide basic safety services 

consistent with the objectives for this 

technology and the Commission 

remains convinced that such spectrum 

is sufficient for that purpose without the 

need for additional spectrum. Moreover, 

given that the Commission is adopting 

a safety-of-life communication priority 

hierarchy in the FCC’s proceeding, the 

Commission is confident that this 

spectrum will be preserved for those 

vital safety applications. As C–V2X 

deployments are only just beginning, 

the Commission encourages industry to 

fully test the bounds of the current 

spectrum allocation, the C–V2X 

technology itself, and the technical 

parameters the Commission prescribes 

in this document for its operation in 

order to reach a full consensus on 

whether there is a need for additional 

spectrum to support safety-of-life 

services. The Commission anticipates 

that industry testing, system 

optimization, and evaluation of the 

currently allotted spectrum will obviate 

the need for additional spectrum 

allocations to support basic safety 

services. 

Compensation or Reimbursement for 

Transition Costs 

In the FNPRM, the Commission 

sought comment on the possibility of 

compensating for transition costs, how 

such costs would be documented, and 

the process by which such 

compensation would be determined or 

implemented. The UDOT states that 

incumbent DSRC users must be 

compensated for the cost of replacing 

their systems and that it should be the 

manufacturers and users who benefit 

and profit from using unlicensed 

technologies in the lower 45 megahertz 

that should pay those transition costs. In 

comments considering the process by 

which such costs would be 

implemented, UDOT references the 

method by which microwave licensees 

in the 2 GHz band that were displaced 

in the mid-1990’s to make way for 

broadband Personal Communications 

Services were compensated. 

The Institution of Transportation 

Engineers (ITE) makes similar 

arguments regarding compensating 

incumbents, stating that ‘‘[t]he funding 

source for these reimbursements could 

be covered by those who are gaining 

benefit from the newly available 45 

MHz of spectrum.’’ The Alliance for 

Automotive Innovation also states that 

the Commission should require 

unlicensed new entrants to the band to 

compensate ITS incumbents for their 

reasonable relocation costs. 

Other commenters, however, dispute 

the need for unlicensed entrants to 

reimburse DSRC incumbents. The 

National Cable and 

Telecommunications Association 

(NCTA) states that ‘‘it would be 

arbitrary and unreasonable for the 

Commission to require individual 

purchasers of unlicensed equipment or 

the broadband providers, companies, 

schools, libraries, and hospitals that 

provide Wi-Fi networks to pay existing 

operators for access to the U–NII–4 

band, particularly after DSRC licensees 

failed to make meaningful use of the 

band for 20 years.’’ NCTA further 

expounds on the lack of a reasonable 

mechanism to collect a levy on the 

unlicensed entities, as well as the lack 

of a legal structure to force payment. 

OTI/PK also strongly oppose 

imposing a reimbursement mechanism. 

OTI/PK cite the Commission’s broad 

authority under 47 U.S.C. 316 to modify 

licenses under the public interest 

standard, as well as arguments against 

reimbursing incumbents for investing in 

failed technology, and the impracticality 

of assessing and collecting user fees 

from unlicensed users. The Wireless 

internet Service Providers Association 

(WISPA) states that, in the instances 

cited by proponents of the third-party 

reimbursement mechanism, such as 

UDOT above, the Commission has never 

required unlicensed users to reimburse 

transitioning licensees. 

The Commission agrees with NCTA, 

OTI/PK, and WISPA regarding 

reimbursement for DSRC incumbents. 

As the Supreme Court has held, ‘‘[n]o 

licensee obtains any vested interest in 

any frequency.’’ Moreover, Courts have 

repeatedly upheld the Commission’s 

broad authority under 47 U.S.C. 316 to 

modify licenses so long as it is in the 

public interest. 47 U.S.C. 304 and 316 

grant the Commission broad authority to 

alter a spectrum license while also 

eliminating any claim that an 

incumbent licensee has on the spectrum 

it was originally allocated. Nothing in 

these provisions obligates the 

Commission to compensate a licensee 

when it exercises its authority to modify 

a license. 

As the Commission stated in the First 

Report and Order, ‘‘existing DSRC 

licensees have recently begun to employ 

C–V2X on an experimental basis, telling 

the Commission that the transition to C– 

V2X is ongoing.’’ It was at this stage that 

the Commission determined that, due to 

the DSRC to C–V2X transition already 

being underway, including the cost of 

transitioning to C–V2X in the transition 

calculation was inappropriate. Further, 

in the First Report and Order, the 

Commission, acting in the public 

interest, modified all existing 5.9 GHz 

licenses to operate in the upper 30 

megahertz. This action, coupled with 

the long timeline between the 

Commission’s issuing of the FNPRM 

and the two-year transition date adopted 

herein, should provide all licensees 

sufficient time to work within their 

normal budgetary cycles to procure C– 

V2X equipment in cases where they 

may have previously planned for DSRC 

equipment. Further, given the 


khammond on DSK9W7S144PROD with RULES
100850 Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 240 / Friday, December 13, 2024 / Rules and Regulations 

Commission’s broad authority to modify 

licenses when doing so would be in the 

public interest, the aforementioned 

ongoing transition to C–V2X currently 

underway, and the impracticality of 

levying fees on unlicensed entities and 

entrants, the Commission will not take 

action on reimbursement at this time. 

Cost-Benefit Analysis 

The rules that the Commission adopts 

in this document enable the repurposing 

and transition of ITS spectrum sought in 

the First Report and Order, in particular, 

by codifying C–V2X technical 

parameters in the Commission’s rules, 

including band usage, message priority, 

channel bandwidth, and channelization 

building. The sources of benefits and 

costs of those outcomes have therefore 

not changed from those analyzed in the 

First Report and Order. In that analysis, 

the Commission concluded that the 

expected $17.2 billion of benefits 

outweigh the costs. The benefits and 

costs of that analysis were calculated to 

occur over the time period 2022 to 2025. 

Because of the court challenges to, and 

petitions to reconsider, the First Report 

and Order, some of the benefits and 

costs that the Commission calculated 

could only be fully realized over a 

deferred time horizon, following the 

Second Report and Order. However, the 

Commission notes that demand for 

unlicensed use has remained strong in 

the intervening years, and the 

Commission finds that the benefits from 

the transition of ITS, while delayed, 

have not been reduced. Further, the 

First Report and Order recognized costs 

with regards to the ITS transition only, 

and the delay in implementation has 

likely reduced costs going forward as 

some efforts in the ITS transition have 

already occurred in the time since the 

release of the First Report and Order. 

The Commission therefore concludes 

that the benefits continue to outweigh 

costs for the Second Report and Order. 

Ordering Clauses 

Accordingly, it is ordered that, 

pursuant to the authority found in 

sections 1, 4(i), 301, 302, 303, 309, 316, 

and 332 of the Communications Act of 

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

301, 302, 303, 309, 316, and 332 that 

this Second Report and Order is hereby 

adopted. 

It is further ordered that, except as 

otherwise provided below, the rules and 

requirements adopted herein are 

effective sixty days after the date of 

publication in the Federal Register. 

It is further ordered that no Intelligent 

Transportation System license will be 

issued for Dedicated Short Range 

Communications (DSRC) systems after 

the effective date of the Final Rules 

adopted herein. Existing licenses may 

be renewed as necessary following the 

effective date of the Final Rules but only 

for a period not to exceed the date two 

years after publication of Final Rules in 

the Federal Register. ITS licenses that 

reflect DSRC will cancel automatically 

on the date two years after publication 

of Final Rules in the Federal Register. 

It is further ordered that the 

Commission’s Office of the Secretary 

shall send a copy of the Second Report 

and Order, including the Final 

Regulatory Flexibility Analysis, 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 1 

Administrative practice and 

procedure, Communications, Radio, and 

Telecommunications. 

47 CFR Part 90 

Communications equipment, Radio, 

Reporting and recordkeeping 

requirements. 

47 CFR Part 95 

Communications equipment, Radio, 

Reporting and recordkeeping 

requirements. 

47 CFR Part 97 

Administrative practice and 

procedures, Communications, 

Communications equipment, Disaster 

assistance, Radio, Reporting and 

recordkeeping requirements, and 

Telecommunications. 

Federal Communications Commission. 

Marlene Dortch, 

Secretary. 

For the reasons discussed in the 

preamble, the Federal Communications 

Commission amends 47 CFR parts 1, 90, 

95, and 97 as follows: 

PART 1—PRACTICE AND 

PROCEDURE 

■ 1. The authority citation for part 1 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 47 U.S.C. chs. 2, 5, 9, 13; 28 

U.S.C. 2461 note; 47 U.S.C. 1754, unless 

otherwise noted. 

■ 2. Amend § 1.907 by revising the 

definition of ‘‘Covered geographic 

licenses’’ to read as follows: 

§ 1.907 Definitions. 

* * * * * 

Covered geographic licenses. Covered 

geographic licenses consist of the 

following services: 1.4 GHz Service (part 

27, subpart I, of this chapter); 1.6 GHz 

Service (part 27, subpart J); 24 GHz 

Service and Digital Electronic Message 

Services (part 101, subpart G, of this 

chapter); 218–219 MHz Service (part 95, 

subpart F, of this chapter); 220–222 

MHz Service, excluding public safety 

licenses (part 90, subpart T, of this 

chapter); 600 MHz Service (part 27, 

subpart N); 700 MHz Commercial 

Services (part 27, subparts F and H); 700 

MHz Guard Band Service (part 27, 

subpart G); 800 MHz Specialized Mobile 

Radio Service (part 90, subpart S); 900 

MHz Specialized Mobile Radio Service 

(part 90, subpart S); 900 MHz 

Broadband Service (part 27, subpart P); 

3.45 GHz Service (part 27, subpart Q); 

3.7 GHz Service (part 27, subpart O); 

Advanced Wireless Services (part 27, 

subparts K and L); Air-Ground 

Radiotelephone Service (Commercial 

Aviation) (part 22, subpart G, of this 

chapter); Broadband Personal 

Communications Service (part 24, 

subpart E, of this chapter); Broadband 

Radio Service (part 27, subpart M); 

Cellular Radiotelephone Service (part 

22, subpart H); Citizens Broadband 

Radio Service (part 96, subpart C, of this 

chapter); Intelligent Transportation 

Systems Radio Service in the 5895–5925 

MHz band, excluding public safety 

licenses (part 90, subpart M); 

Educational Broadband Service (part 27, 

subpart M); H Block Service (part 27, 

subpart K); Local Multipoint 

Distribution Service (part 101, subpart 

L); Multichannel Video Distribution and 

Data Service (part 101, subpart P); 

Multilateration Location and Monitoring 

Service (part 90, subpart M); Multiple 

Address Systems (EAs) (part 101, 

subpart O); Narrowband Personal 

Communications Service (part 24, 

subpart D); Paging and Radiotelephone 

Service (part 22, subpart E; part 90, 

subpart P); VHF Public Coast Stations, 

including Automated Maritime 

Telecommunications Systems (part 80, 

subpart J, of this chapter); Upper 

Microwave Flexible Use Service (part 30 

of this chapter); and Wireless 

Communications Service (part 27, 

subpart D). 

* * * * * 

PART 90—PRIVATE LAND MOBILE 

RADIO SERVICES 

■ 3. The authority citation for part 90 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 47 U.S.C. 154(i), 161, 303(g), 

303(r), 332(c)(7), 1401–1473. 

Subpart A—General Information 

■ 4. Amend § 90.7 by adding in 

alphabetical order the definition of 


khammond on DSK9W7S144PROD with RULES
Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 240 / Friday, December 13, 2024 / Rules and Regulations 100851 

‘‘Cellular Vehicle to Everything (C– 

V2X)’’, and revising the definitions of 

‘‘On-Board Unit (OBU)’’, ‘‘Roadside 

Unit (RSU)’’, and ‘‘Roadway bed 

surface’’ to read as follows: 

§ 90.7 Definitions. 

* * * * * 

Cellular Vehicle to Everything (C– 

V2X). The use of cellular radio 

techniques to transfer data between 

roadside and on-board units or between 

on-board units to perform operations 

related to the improvement of traffic 

flow, traffic safety, and other Intelligent 

Transportation System applications in a 

variety of environments. C–V2X systems 

may also transmit status and 

instructional messages related to the 

units involved. 

* * * * * 

On-Board Unit (OBU). An On-Board 

Unit is an Intelligent Transportation 

System transceiver, operating in the 

5895–5925 MHz band, that is normally 

mounted in or on a vehicle, or which in 

some instances may be a portable unit. 

An OBU can be operational while a 

vehicle or person is either mobile or 

stationary. The OBUs receive and 

transmit on one or more radio frequency 

(RF) channels. Except where specifically 

excluded, OBU operation is permitted 

wherever vehicle operation or human 

passage is permitted. The OBUs 

mounted in vehicles are licensed by rule 

under part 95 of this chapter and 

communicate with Roadside Units 

(RSUs) and other OBUs. Portable OBUs 

also are licensed by rule under part 95 

of this chapter. 

* * * * * 

Roadside Unit (RSU). A Roadside 

Unit is an Intelligent Transportation 

System transceiver, operating in the 

5895–5925 MHz band, that is mounted 

along a road or pedestrian passageway. 

An RSU may also be mounted on a 

vehicle or is hand carried, but it may 

only operate when the vehicle or handcarried unit is stationary. Furthermore, 

an RSU operating under this part is 

restricted to the location where it is 

licensed to operate. However, portable 

or hand-held RSUs are permitted to 

operate where they do not interfere with 

a site-licensed operation. An RSU 

broadcasts data to or exchanges data 

with OBUs. For DSRC-based RSUs 

operating in the Intelligent 

Transportation System until December 

14, 2026, an RSU also provides channel 

assignments and operating instructions 

to OBUs in its communications zone, 

when required. 

Roadway bed surface. For the 

Intelligent Transportation System Radio 

Service, the road surface at ground 

level. 

* * * * * 

§ 90.7 [Amended] 

■ 5. Effective December 14, 2026, 

further amend § 90.7 by removing the 

definitions of ‘‘Communications zone,’’ 

‘‘Dedicated Short Range 

Communication Service (DSRCS),’’ and 

the last sentence in the definition of 

‘‘Roadside Units (RSU)’’. 

Subpart B—Public Safety Radio Pool 

■ 6. Amend § 90.20 by revising 

paragraph (d)(86) to read as follows: 

§ 90.20 Public Safety Pool. 

* * * * * 

(d) * * * 

(86) Subpart M of this part contains 

rules for assignment of frequencies in 

the 5895–5925 MHz band. 

* * * * * 

Subpart C—Industrial/Business Radio 

Pool 

■ 7. Amend § 90.35 by revising 

paragraph (b)(91) to read as follows: 

§ 90.35 Industrial/Business Pool. 

* * * * * 

(b) * * * 

(91) Subpart M of this part contains 

rules for assignment of frequencies in 

the 5895–5925 MHz band. 

* * * * * 

Subpart G—Applications and 

Authorizations 

■ 8. Amend § 90.149 by revising 

paragraph (b) to read as follows: 

§ 90.149 License term. 

* * * * * 

(b) Non-exclusive geographic area 

licenses for Intelligent Transportation 

Systems radio service Roadside Units 

(RSUs) in the 5895–5925 MHz band 

under subpart M of this part will be 

issued for a term not to exceed ten years 

from the date of original issuance or 

renewal. The registration dates of 

individual RSUs (see §§ 90.375 and 

90.389 of this part) will not change the 

overall renewal period of the single 

license. 

■ 9. Effective December 14, 2026, 

further amend § 90.149 by revising the 

second sentence of paragraph (b) to read 

as follows: 

§ 90.149 License term. 

* * * * * 

(b) * * * The registration dates of 

individual RSUs (see § 90.389 of this 

part) will not change the overall renewal 

period of the single license. 

■ 10. Amend § 90.155 by revising 

paragraph (i) to read as follows: 

§ 90.155 Time in which station must be 

placed in operation. 

* * * * * 

(i) Intelligent Transportation Systems 

radio service Roadside Units (RSUs) 

under subpart M of this part in the 

5895–5925 MHz band must be placed in 

operation within 12 months from the 

effective date of registration (see 

§§ 90.375, 90.389 of this part) or the 

authority to operate the RSUs cancels 

automatically (see § 1.955 of this 

chapter). Such registration date(s) do 

not change the overall renewal period of 

the single license. Licensees must notify 

the Commission in accordance with 

§ 1.946 of this chapter when registered 

units are placed in operation within 

their construction period. 

■ 11. Effective December 14, 2026, 

further amend § 90.155 by revising the 

first sentence of paragraph (i) to read as 

follows: 

§ 90.155 Time in which station must be 

placed in operation. 

* * * * * 

(i) Intelligent Transportation Systems 

radio service Roadside Units (RSUs) 

under subpart M of this part in the 

5895–5925 MHz band must be placed in 

operation within 12 months from the 

effective date of registration (see 

§ 90.389 of this part) or the authority to 

operate the RSUs cancels automatically 

(see § 1.955 of this chapter).* * * 

Subpart H—Policies Governing the 

Assignment of Frequencies 

■ 12. Amend § 90.175 by revising 

paragraph (j)(16) to read as follows: 

§ 90.175 Frequency coordinator 

requirements. 

* * * * * 

(j) * * * 

(16) Applications for licenses in the 

Intelligent Transportation Systems radio 

service (as well as registrations for 

Roadside Units) under subpart M of this 

part in the 5895–5925 MHz band. 

* * * * * 

■ 13. Amend § 90.179 by revising 

paragraph (f) to read as follows: 

§ 90.179 Shared use of radio stations. 

* * * * * 

(f) Above 800 MHz, shared use on a 

for-profit private carrier basis is 

permitted only by SMR, Private Carrier 

Paging, LMS, and C–V2X and DSRCS 

licensees. See subparts M, P, and S of 

this part. 

* * * * * 


khammond on DSK9W7S144PROD with RULES
100852 Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 240 / Friday, December 13, 2024 / Rules and Regulations 

■ 14. Effective December 14, 2026, 

further amend § 90.179 by revising the 

first sentence of paragraph (f) to read as 

follows: 

§ 90.179 Shared use of radio stations. 

* * * * * 

(f) Above 800 MHz, shared use on a 

for-profit private carrier basis is 

permitted only by SMR, Private Carrier 

Paging, LMS, and C–V2X 

licensees.* * * 

* * * * * 

Subpart I—General Technical 

Standards 

■ 15. Effective December 14, 2026, 

amend § 90.210 by removing the entry 

of ‘‘5895–5925’’ and footnote 4 from 

Table 1. 

■ 16. Effective December 14, 2026, 

amend § 90.213 by revising Table 1 

heading and footnote 10 of paragraph (a) 

to read as follows: 

§ 90.213 Frequency stability. 

* * * * * 

Table 1 to § 90.213—Minimum 

Frequency Stability 

* * * * * 10For all equipment, frequency 

stability is to be specified in the station 

authorization. 

* * * * * 

Subpart M—Intelligent Transportation 

Systems Radio Service 

■ 17. Revise § 90.350 to read as follows: 

§ 90.350 Scope. 

The Intelligent Transportation 

Systems (ITS) radio service is for the 

purpose of integrating radio-based 

technologies into the nation’s 

transportation infrastructure and 

developing and implementing the 

nation’s intelligent transportation 

systems. It includes the Location and 

Monitoring Service (LMS), Dedicated 

Short Range Communications Service 

(DSRCS), and Cellular Vehicle to 

Everything (C–V2X). Rules regarding 

eligibility for licensing, frequency 

availability, and any special 

requirements for services in the ITS 

radio service are set forth in this 

subpart. 

(a) DSRCS stations must cease 

operations in the 5895–5925 MHz band 

no later than December 14, 2026. No 

applications for new DSRCS station 

licenses will be issued after February 

11, 2025. 

(b) DSRCS stations licensed as of 

February 11, 2025 may continue to 

operate and make modifications in 

accordance with the rules in this 

subpart until December 14, 2026. 

■ 18. Effective December 14, 2026, 

amend § 90.350 by revising the 

introductory paragraph and deleting 

paragraphs (a) and (b), to read as 

follows: 

§ 90.350 Scope. 

The Intelligent Transportation 

Systems (ITS) radio service is for the 

purpose of integrating radio-based 

technologies into the nation’s 

transportation infrastructure and 

developing and implementing the 

nation’s intelligent transportation 

systems. It includes the Location and 

Monitoring Service (LMS) and Cellular 

Vehicle to Everything (C–V2X). Rules 

regarding eligibility for licensing, 

frequency availability, and any special 

requirements for services in the ITS 

radio service are set forth in this 

subpart. 

■ 19. In subpart M, add an undesignated 

center heading after § 90.350 to read as 

follows: 

Regulations Governing the Location 

and Monitoring Service (LMS) 

■ 20. Amend § 90.371 by revising the 

first sentence of paragraph (a) and the 

first sentence of paragraph (b) to read as 

follows: 

§ 90.371 Dedicated short range 

communications service. 

(a) These provisions pertain to 

systems in the 5895–5925 MHz band for 

Dedicated Short-Range Communications 

Service (DSRCS).* * * 

(b) DSRCS Roadside Units (RSUs) 

operating in the band 5895–5925 MHz 

shall not receive protection from 

Government Radiolocation services in 

operation prior to the establishment of 

the DSRCS station.* * * 

* * * * * 

■ 21. Amend § 90.377 by revising 

paragraph (b) to read as follows: 

§ 90.377 Frequencies available; maximum 

EIRP and antenna height, and priority 

communications. 

* * * * * 

(b) Frequencies available for 

assignment to eligible applicants within 

the 5895–5925 MHz band for RSUs and 

the maximum EIRP permitted for an 

RSU with an antenna height not 

exceeding 8 meters above the roadway 

bed surface are specified in the table 

below. Where two EIRP limits are given, 

the higher limit is permitted only for 

State or local governmental entities. 

TABLE 1 TO PARAGRAPH (b) 

Channel No. Frequency range 

(MHz) 

Max. EIRP 

(dBm) Channel use 

180 ............................................................................. 5895–5905 23 Service Channel. 

181 ............................................................................. 5895–5915 23 Service Channel. 

182 ............................................................................. 5905–5915 23 Service Channel. 

184 ............................................................................. 5915–5925 33/40 Service Channel. 

(1) An RSU may employ an antenna 

with a height exceeding 8 meters but not 

exceeding 15 meters provided the EIRP 

specified in the table above is reduced 

by a factor of 20 log(Ht/8) in dB where 

Ht is the height of the radiation center 

of the antenna in meters above the 

roadway bed surface. The EIRP is 

measured as the maximum EIRP toward 

the horizon or horizontal, whichever is 

greater, of the gain associated with the 

main or center of the transmission 

beam. The RSU antenna height shall not 

exceed 15 meters above the roadway 

bed surface. 

(2) Channels 180/182 may be 

combined to create a twenty-megahertz 

channel, designated Channel No. 181. 

(3) Channel 184 is designated for 

public safety applications involving 

safety of life and property. Only those 

entities meeting the requirements of 

§ 90.373(a) are eligible to hold an 

authorization to operate on this channel. 

* * * * * 

§ § 90.370 through 90.384 [Removed] 

■ 22. Effective December 14, 2026, 

remove §§ 90.370 through 90.384. 

■ 23. After § 90.384, add an 

undesignated center heading and 

§§ 90.386 through 90.394 to read as 

follows: 


khammond on DSK9W7S144PROD with RULES
Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 240 / Friday, December 13, 2024 / Rules and Regulations 100853 

Regulations Governing the Licensing 

and Use of Frequencies in the 5895– 

5925 MHz Band for Cellular Vehicle to 

Everything (C–V2X) Roadside Units 

(RSUs) 

§ 90.386 Permitted frequencies. 

(a) Cellular Vehicle to Everything (C– 

V2X) Roadside Units (RSUs) are 

permitted to operate in the 5895–5925 

MHz band. 

(b) Frequencies in the 5895–5925 

MHz band will not be assigned for the 

exclusive use of any licensee. Channels 

are available on a shared basis only for 

use in accordance with the 

Commission’s rules. All licensees shall 

cooperate in the selection and use of 

channels in order to reduce interference. 

This includes monitoring for 

communications in progress and any 

other measures as may be necessary to 

minimize interference. 

(c) Licensees of C–V2X RSUs suffering 

or causing harmful interference are 

expected to cooperate and resolve this 

problem by mutually satisfactory 

arrangements. If the licensees are unable 

to do so, the Commission may impose 

restrictions including specifying the 

transmitter power, antenna height and 

direction, additional filtering, or area or 

hours of operation of the stations 

concerned. The use of any channel at a 

given geographical location may be 

denied when, in the judgment of the 

Commission, its use at that location is 

not in the public interest; use of any 

such channel may be restricted as to 

specified geographical areas, maximum 

power, or such other operating 

conditions, contained in this part or in 

the station authorization. 

§ 90.387 Cellular Vehicle to Everything (C– 

V2X). 

(a) These provisions pertain to 

Cellular Vehicle to Everything (C–V2X) 

Roadside Units (RSUs) operating in the 

5895–5925 MHz band. C–V2X On-Board 

Units are authorized under part 95, 

subpart L of this chapter. 

(b) C–V2X RSUs operating in the band 

5895–5925 MHz shall not receive 

protection from Government 

Radiolocation services in operation 

prior to the establishment of the RSU. 

Operation of RSU stations within the 

radius centered on the locations listed 

in the table below, must be coordinated 

through National Telecommunications 

and Information Administration (NTIA). 

TABLE 1 TO § 90.387(b)—COORDINATION LOCATIONS

Location Latitude Longitude Coordination 

zone radius 

Anclote, Florida ............................................................................................................................ 28–11–18 82–47–40 45 

Cape Canaveral, Florida .............................................................................................................. 28–28–54 80–34–35 47 

Cape San Blas, Florida ............................................................................................................... 29–40–31 85–20–48 47 

Carabelle Field, Florida ............................................................................................................... 29–50–38 84–39–46 36 

Charleston, South Carolina ......................................................................................................... 32–51–48 79–57–48 16 

Edwards, California ...................................................................................................................... 34–56–43 117–54–50 53 

Eglin, Florida ................................................................................................................................ 30–37–51 86–24–16 103 

Fort Walton Beach, Florida .......................................................................................................... 30–24–53 86–39–58 41 

Kennedy Space Center, Florida .................................................................................................. 28–25–29 80–39–51 47 

Key West, Florida ........................................................................................................................ 24–33–09 81–48–28 12 

Kirtland AFB, New Mexico ........................................................................................................... 34–59–51 106–28–54 15 

Kokeepark, Hawaii ....................................................................................................................... 22–07–35 159–40–06 5 

MacDill, Florida ............................................................................................................................ 27–50–37 82–30–04 47 

NV Test Training Range, Nevada ............................................................................................... 37–18–27 116–10–24 186 

Patuxent River, Maryland ............................................................................................................ 38–16–55 76–25–12 6 

Pearl Harbor, Hawaii ................................................................................................................... 21–21–17 157–57–51 16 

Pillar Point, California .................................................................................................................. 37–29–52 122–29–59 36 

Poker Flat, Alaska ....................................................................................................................... 65–07–36 147–29–21 13 

Port Canaveral, Florida ................................................................................................................ 28–24–42 80–36–17 19 

Port Hueneme, California ............................................................................................................ 34–08–60 119–12–24 24 

Point Mugu, California ................................................................................................................. 34–07–17 119–09–1 18 

Saddlebunch Keys, Florida .......................................................................................................... 24–38–51 81–36–22 29 

San Diego, California ................................................................................................................... 32–43–00 117–11–00 11 

San Nicolas Island, California ..................................................................................................... 33–14–47 119–31–07 195 

Tonopah Test Range, Nevada .................................................................................................... 37–44–00 116–43–00 2 

Vandenberg, California ................................................................................................................ 34–34–58 120–33–42 55 

Venice, Florida ............................................................................................................................. 27–04–37 82–27–03 50 

Wallops Island, Virginia ............................................................................................................... 37–51–23 75–30–41 48 

White Sands Missile Range, New Mexico .................................................................................. 32–58–26 106–23–43 158 

Yuma, Arizona ............................................................................................................................. 32–54–03 114–23–10 2 

(c) NTIA may authorize additional 

station assignments in the federal 

radiolocation service and may amend, 

modify, or revoke existing or additional 

assignments for such service. Once a 

federal assignment action is taken, the 

Commission’s Universal Licensing 

System (ULS) database will be updated 

accordingly and the list in paragraph (b) 

of this section will be updated as soon 

as practicable. 

§ 90.388 Eligibility. 

The following entities are eligible to 

hold an authorization to operate C–V2X 

RSUs: 

(a) Any territory, possession, State, 

city, county, town or similar 

governmental entity. 

(b) Any entity meeting the eligibility 

requirements of §§ 90.20, 90.33 or 90.35. 

§ 90.389 RSU license areas and 

registrations. 

(a) Roadside Units (RSUs) in the 

5895–5925 MHz band are licensed on 

the basis of non-exclusive geographic 

areas. Governmental applicants will be 

issued a geographic area license based 

on the geo-political area encompassing 

the legal jurisdiction of the entity. All 

other applicants will be issued a 

geographic area license for their 

proposed area of operation based on 

county(s), State(s) or nationwide. 


khammond on DSK9W7S144PROD with RULES
100854 Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 240 / Friday, December 13, 2024 / Rules and Regulations 

(b) Applicants who are approved in 

accordance with FCC Form 601 will be 

granted non-exclusive licenses for the 

channel(s) corresponding to their 

intended operations (see § 90.386). Such 

licenses serve as a prerequisite of 

registering individual RSUs located 

within the licensed geographic area 

described in paragraph (a) of this 

section. Licensees must register each 

RSU in the Universal Licensing System 

(ULS) before operating such RSU. RSU 

registrations are subject, inter alia, to the 

requirements of § 1.923 of this chapter 

as applicable (antenna structure 

registration, environmental concerns, 

international coordination, and quiet 

zones). Additionally, RSUs at locations 

subject to NTIA coordination (see 

§ 90.387(b)) may not begin operation 

until NTIA approval is received. 

Registrations are not effective until the 

Commission posts them on the ULS. It 

is the licensee’s responsibility to delete 

from the ULS registration database any 

RSUs that have been discontinued. 

(c) Licensees must operate each C– 

V2X RSU in accordance with the 

Commission’s rules and the registration 

data posted on the ULS for such C–V2X 

RSU. 

§ 90.390 Channels and priority 

communications. 

(a) Channels. C–V2X may operate on 

the following band segments: 

TABLE 1 TO PARAGRAPH (a) 

10-megahertz channels: 20-megahertz channels: 30-megahertz channel: 

5895–5905 MHz ................................................. 5895–5915 MHz ............................................... 5895–5925 MHz. 

5905–5915 MHz ................................................. 5905–5925 MHz.

(b) Safety/public safety priority. The 

following access priority governs all C– 

V2X operations: 

(1) Communications involving the 

safety of life have access priority over 

all other C–V2X communications; 

(2) C–V2X communications involving 

public safety have access priority over 

all other C–V2X except those 

communications described in (b)(1) of 

this section. Roadside Units (RSUs) 

operated by State or local governmental 

entities are presumptively engaged in 

public safety priority communications. 

(c) Non-priority communications. C– 

V2X communications not listed in 

paragraph (b) of this section, are nonpriority communications. 

(1) If a dispute arises concerning nonpriority communications, the licensee of 

the later-registered RSU must 

accommodate the operation of the early 

registered RSU, i.e., interference 

protection rights are date-sensitive, 

based on the date that the RSU is first 

registered (see § 90.389) and the laterregistered RSU must modify its 

operations to resolve the dispute in 

accordance with paragraph (c)(2) of this 

section. 

(2) For purposes of this paragraph (c), 

objectionable interference will be 

considered to exist when the 

Commission receives a complaint and 

the difference in signal strength between 

the earlier-registered RSU and the laterregistered RSU is 18 dB or less (cochannel). Later-registered RSUs causing 

objectionable interference must correct 

the interference immediately unless 

written consent is obtained from the 

licensee of the earlier-registered RSU. 

§ 90.391 Maximum EIRP and antenna 

height. 

(a) C–V2X licensees must limit RSU 

equivalent isotropically radiated power 

(EIRP) to 33 dBm. This limit applies to 

any operation within the 5895–5925 

MHz band as follows: 

(1) 33 dBm/10 MHz EIRP; 

(2) 33 dBm/20 MHz EIRP; and 

(3) 33 dBm/30 MHz EIRP. 

(b) For purposes of this section, the 

EIRP is root mean squared (RMS) 

measured as the maximum EIRP toward 

the horizon or horizontal, whichever is 

greater, of the gain associated with the 

main or center of the transmission 

beam. 

(c) The radiation center of an RSU 

antenna shall not exceed 8 meters above 

the roadway bed surface, except that an 

RSU may employ an antenna with a 

height exceeding 8 meters but not 

exceeding 15 meters provided the EIRP 

specified in paragraph (a) of this section 

is reduced by a factor of 20 log(Ht/8) in 

dB where Ht is the height of the 

radiation center of the antenna in meters 

above the roadway bed surface. The 

RSU antenna height must not exceed 15 

meters above the roadway bed surface. 

§ 90.392 C–V2X emissions limits. 

C–V2X Roadside Units (RSUs) must 

comply with the following out-of-band 

emissions limits. 

(a) Conducted limits measured at the 

antenna input must not exceed: 

(1) ¥16 dBm/100 kHz within ±1 

megahertz of the band edges; 

(2) ¥13 dBm/MHz within ±1 

megahertz to ±5 megahertz of the band 

edges; 

(3) ¥16 dBm/MHz within ±5 

megahertz to ±30 megahertz of the band 

edges; and 

(4) ¥28 dBm/MHz beyond 30 

megahertz from the band edges 

(b) [Reserved] 

§ 90.393 RSU sites near the U.S./Canada or 

U.S./Mexico border. 

Until such time as agreements 

between the United States and Canada 

or the United States and Mexico, as 

applicable, become effective governing 

border area use of the 5895–5925 MHz 

band, authorizations to operate 

Roadside Units (RSUs) are granted 

subject to the following conditions: 

(a) RSUs must not cause harmful 

interference to stations in Canada or 

Mexico that are licensed in accordance 

with the international table of frequency 

allocations for Region 2 (see § 2.106 of 

this chapter) and must accept any 

interference that may be caused by such 

stations. 

(b) Authority to operate RSUs is 

subject to modifications and future 

agreements between the United States 

and Canada or the United States and 

Mexico, as applicable. 

§ 90.395 [Redesignated as § 90.384] 

■ 24. Redesignate § 90.395 as § 90.384. 

Subpart N—Operating Requirements 

■ 25. § 90.421 is amended by adding 

paragraph (d) to read as follows: 

§ 90.421 Operation of mobile station units 

not under the control of the licensee. 

* * * * * 

(d) C–V2X On-Board Units licensed 

by rule under part 95 of this chapter 

may communicate with any C–V2X 

roadside unit authorized under this part 

or any licensed commercial mobile 

radio service station as defined in part 

20 of this chapter. 

■ 26. Amend § 90.425 by revising 

paragraph (d)(10) to read as follows: 

§ 90.425 Station identification. 

* * * * * 

(d) * * * 

(10) It is a Roadside Unit (RSU) in an 

Intelligent Transportation System 

operating in the 5895–5925 MHz band. 


khammond on DSK9W7S144PROD with RULES
Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 240 / Friday, December 13, 2024 / Rules and Regulations 100855 

PART 95—PERSONAL RADIO 

SERVICES 

■ 27. The authority citation for part 95 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 47 U.S.C. 154, 303, 307. 

■ 28. Amend subpart L by revising the 

subpart heading to read as follows: 

Subpart L—Intelligent Transportation 

Systems (ITS) On-Board Units (OBUs) 

in the 5895–5925 MHz Band 

■ 29. Revise § 95.3101 to read as 

follows: 

§ 95.3101 Scope. 

This subpart contains rules that apply 

only to ITS On-Board Units (OBUs) 

transmitting in the 5895–5925 MHz 

frequency band. ITU Roadside Units 

(RSUs) are authorized under part 90, 

subpart M of this chapter. 

■ 30. Amend § 95.3103 by: 

■ a. Revising the section heading. 

■ b. Adding in alphabetical order the 

definition of ‘‘Cellular Vehicle to 

Everything (C–V2X)’’; 

■ c. Revising the definition of 

‘‘Dedicated Short-Range 

Communications Services (DSRCS)’’; 

■ d. Adding in alphabetical order 

definitions of ‘‘Geofenced Onboard 

Unit’’ and ‘‘Geofencing’’ and 

■ e. Revising the definition of ‘‘Onboard 

Unit (OBU)’’. 

The additions and revisions read as 

follows: 

§ 95.3103 Definitions. 

Cellular Vehicle to Everything (C– 

V2X). See § 90.7 of this chapter. 

Dedicated Short-Range 

Communications Services (DSRCS). See 

§ 90.7 of this chapter. 

Geofenced Onboard Unit. An OBU 

that incorporates geofencing to protect 

the appropriate areas around federal 

radiolocation sites currently enumerated 

in 47 CFR 90.387(b) by reducing power 

within those areas. Such OBUs 

programmed with information about 

these sites have the option of operation 

under the transmit power limits set 

forth in section 95.3404 of this subpart. 

Geofencing. For the purposes of this 

subpart, geofencing is used to create a 

virtual boundary around a physical 

location by enabling a radiofrequency 

device using a geolocation capability to 

determine whether its geographic 

coordinates are within a defined 

geographic area. 

On-Board Unit (OBU). See § 90.7 of 

this chapter. 

* * * * * 

■ 31. Add an undesignated center 

heading after § 95.3103 to read as 

follows: 

Regulations Governing the Use of 

Frequencies in the 5895–5925 MHz 

Band for Dedicated Short-Range 

Communications Services (DSRCS) On 

Board Units (OBUs) 

* * * * * 

§ 95.3105 through 95.3189 [Removed] 

■ 32. Effective December 14, 2026, 

further amend subpart L, by removing 

the centered heading ‘‘Regulations 

Governing the Use of Frequencies in the 

5895–5925 MHz Band for Dedicated 

Short-Range Communications Services 

(DSRCS) On Board Units (OBUs)’’ and 

§§ 95.3105 through 95.3189. 

■ 33. After § 95.3189, add the 

undesignated center heading and 

§§ 95.3201 through 95.3205 to read as 

follows: 

Regulations Governing the Use of 

Frequencies in the 5895–5925 MHz 

Band for Cellular Vehicle to Everything 

(C–V2X) On Board Units (OBUs) 

§ 95.3201 Permissible uses. 

C–V2X OBUs may transmit signals to 

other C–V2X OBUs and to C–V2X 

Roadside Units (RSUs) authorized under 

part 90 of this chapter or any licensed 

commercial mobile radio service station 

as defined in part 20 of this chapter. 

§ 95.3202 OBU transmitter certification. 

(a) Each C–V2X OBU that operates or 

is intended to operate in the 5895–5925 

MHz band must be certified in 

accordance with this subpart and 

subpart J of part 2 of this chapter. 

(b) A grant of equipment certification 

for this subpart will not be issued for 

any C–V2X OBU transmitter type that 

fails to comply with all of the applicable 

rules in this subpart. 

§ 95.3203 OBU frequencies. 

C–V2X OBUs are permitted to operate 

in the 5895–5925 MHz band. 

§ 95.3204 OBU transmit power limit. 

(a) The following power limits apply 

for OBUs without a geofencing 

capability at all locations and for OBUs 

with a geofencing capability when 

operating within any coordination zone 

specified in § 90.387(b) of this chapter: 

(1) 10 MHz channel (5895–5905 

MHz): 23 dBm/10 MHz EIRP; 

(2) 10 MHz channel (5905–5915 

MHz): 33 dBm/10 MHz EIRP, reduced to 

27 dBm within ±5 degrees of horizontal; 

(3) 10 MHz channel (5915–5925 

MHz): 33 dBm/10 MHz EIRP, reduced to 

27 dBm within ±5 degrees of horizontal; 

(4) 20 MHz channel (5895–5915 

MHz): 23 dBm/20 MHz EIRP; 

(5) 20 MHz channel (5905–5925 

MHz): 33 dBm/20 MHz EIRP, reduced to 

27 dBm within ±5 degrees of horizontal; 

and 

(6) 30 MHz channel: 23 dBm/30 MHz 

EIRP. 

(b) The following power limits apply 

to OBUs with a geofencing capability 

when operating at locations outside any 

coordination zone specified in 

§ 90.387(b) of this chapter: 

(1) 10 MHz channel (5895–5905 

MHz): 33 dBm/10 MHz EIRP; 

(2) 10 MHz channel (5905–5915 

MHz): 33 dBm/10 MHz EIRP; 

(3) 10 MHz channel (5915–5925 

MHz): 33 dBm/10 MHz EIRP; 

(4) 20 MHz channel (5895–5915 

MHz): 33 dBm/20 MHz EIRP; 

(5) 20 MHz channel (5905–5925 

MHz): 33 dBm/20 MHz EIRP; and 

(6) 30 MHz channel: 33 dBm/30 MHz 

EIRP. 

(c) For purposes of this section, the 

EIRP is root mean squared (RMS) 

measured as the maximum EIRP toward 

the horizon or horizontal, whichever is 

greater, of the gain associated with the 

main or center of the transmission 

beam. 

(d) For purposes of this section, a 

portable unit is a transmitting device 

designed to be used so that the radiating 

structure(s) of the device is/are within 

20 centimeters of the body of the user. 

§ 95.3205 Unwanted emissions limits. 

(a) C–V2X OBUs must comply with 

the following out-of-band emissions 

limits. Conducted emissions limits 

measured at the antenna input shall not 

exceed: 

(1) ¥16 dBm/100 kHz within ±1 

megahertz of the band edges; 

(2) ¥13 dBm/MHz within ±1 

megahertz to ±5 megahertz of the band 

edges; 

(3) ¥16 dBm/MHz within ±5 

megahertz to ±30 megahertz of the band 

edges; and 

(4) ¥28 dBm/MHz beyond 30 

megahertz from the band edges. 

PART 97—AMATEUR RADIO SERVICE 

■ 34. The authority citation for part 97 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 47 U.S.C. 151–155, 301–609, 

unless otherwise noted. 

■ 35. Amend § 97.303 by revising the 

last sentence of paragraph (r)(2) to read 

as follows: 

§ 97.303 Frequency sharing requirements. 

* * * * * 

(r) * * * 

(2) * * * In the United States, the use 

of mobile service is restricted to 


khammond on DSK9W7S144PROD with RULES
100856 Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 240 / Friday, December 13, 2024 / Rules and Regulations 

1See 47 CFR 30.203(a). In the bands immediately 

outside and adjacent to the licensee’s frequency 

block, having a bandwidth equal to 10 percent of 

the channel bandwidth, the conductive power or 

the total radiated power of any emission shall be 

¥5 dBm/MHz or lower. Id. As the 23.6–24 GHz 

passive band is 250 megahertz away from the 

UMFUS bands, the ¥5 dBm/MHz does not apply 

within that passive band for UMFUS licensees. 

operations in the Intelligent 

Transportation System radio service. 

* * * * * 

[FR Doc. 2024–28980 Filed 12–12–24; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6712–01–P 

FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS 

COMMISSION 

47 CFR Parts 2 and 30 

[ET Docket No. 21–186; FCC 24–124; FR 

ID 267422] 

Modifying Emissions Limits for the 

24.25–24.45 GHz and 24.75–25.25 GHz 

Bands 

AGENCY: Federal Communications 

Commission. 

ACTION: Final rule. 

SUMMARY: In this document, the Federal 

Communications Commission 

(Commission) revises the Commission’s 

rules for the 24.25–24.45 GHz and 

24.75–25.25 GHz bands (collectively, 

the 24 GHz band) to implement certain 

decisions made in the World 

Radiocommunication Conference held 

by the International Telecommunication 

Union (ITU) in 2019 (WRC–19). 

Specifically, the Commission aligns part 

30 of the Commission’s rules for mobile 

operations in these frequencies with the 

Resolution 750 limits adopted at WRC– 

19 to protect the passive 23.6–24.0 GHz 

band from unwanted emissions on the 

timeframes adopted at WRC–19. 

DATES: Effective date: This rule is 

effective January 13, 2025. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Simon Banyai of the Wireless 

Telecommunications Bureau, 

Broadband Division, at 202–418–1443 

or by email to Simon.Banyai@fcc.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This is a 

summary of the Commission’s Report 

and Order in ET Docket No. 21–186; 

FCC 24–124; adopted on November 27, 

2024 and released on December 2, 2024, 

2024. The full text of this document is 

available at https://docs.fcc.gov/public/ 

attachments/FCC-24-124A1.pdf. 

Regulatory Flexibility Act. The 

Regulatory Flexibility Act of 1980, as 

amended (RFA), requires that an agency 

prepare a regulatory flexibility analysis 

for notice-and-comment rulemakings, 

unless the agency certifies that ‘‘the rule 

will not, if promulgated, have a 

significant economic impact on a 

substantial number of small entities.’’ 

Accordingly, the Commission has 

prepared a Final Regulatory Flexibility 

Analysis (FRFA) concerning the 

possible impact of the rule changes 

contained in this Report and Order on 

small businesses. The FRFA is set forth 

in the back of this document. 

Paperwork Reduction Act. This 

document does not contain new or 

modified information collection 

requirements subject to the Paperwork 

Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA), Public 

Law 104–13. In addition, therefore, it 

does not contain any new or modified 

information collection burden ‘‘for 

small business concerns with fewer than 

25 employees,’’ pursuant to the Small 

Business Paperwork Relief Act of 2002, 

Public Law 107–198, see 44 U.S.C. 

3506(c)(4). 

Congressional Review Act. The 

Commission has determined, and the 

Administrator of the Office of 

Information and Regulatory Affairs, 

Office of Management and Budget, 

concurs, that this rule is non-major 

under the Congressional Review Act, 5 

U.S.C. 804(2). The Commission will 

send a copy of this Report & Order to 

Congress and the Government 

Accountability Office pursuant to 5 

U.S.C. 801(a)(1)(A). 

People With Disabilities. To request 

materials in accessible formats for 

people with disabilities (braille, large 

print, electronic files, audio format), 

send an email to fcc504@fcc.gov or call 

the Consumer and Governmental Affairs 

Bureau at (202) 418–0530 (voice). 

Synopsis 

I. Background 

1. The 23.6–24.0 GHz band is 

allocated to several passive scientific 

and research services, including the 

Earth Exploration Satellite Service 

(EESS) (passive), on a primary basis. 

EESS utilizes passive sensors located on 

satellites to measure the power level of 

naturally occurring radio emissions 

from water vapor and cloud liquid water 

molecules in the atmosphere, which are 

critical measurements for climatology 

and weather forecasting. Because 

naturally occurring radio emissions in 

the 23.6–24.0 GHz band are very weak, 

the passive sensors that measure them 

are sensitive and vulnerable to 

interference. 

2. Observations made by EESS sensors 

operating in the 23.6–24.0 GHz band are 

essential for meteorological 

applications. The National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) 

uses EESS to take measurements 

considered vital to the accuracy and 

timeliness of weather forecasting, 

including hurricane and tornado 

warnings, and the National Aeronautics 

and Space Administration (NASA) also 

operates passive EESS systems in the 

band to conduct climatological science. 

Additionally, EESS passive sensors aid 

EESS active instruments that use radar 

on satellites to measure ocean 

topography, sea ice, and precipitation 

by measuring total atmospheric water 

vapor and correcting the ‘‘refractioninduced path delay in the radar signal.’’ 

The 23.6–24.0 GHz band has been used 

for passive sensor observations for a 

considerable length of time and has 

generated valuable long-term climate 

data records. 

3. The Commission first authorized 

service in the 24.25–24.45 GHz and 

25.05–25.25 GHz bands in 1997, when 

it transitioned the Digital Electronic 

Messaging Service (DEMS) to these 

bands from the 18 GHz band. In 2000, 

the Commission adopted competitive 

bidding and service rules for 24.25– 

24.45 GHz and 25.05–25.25 GHz bands 

and created a 24 GHz Service. This 24 

GHz Service had a total of 176 

Economic Areas (EAs) or EA-like service 

areas. In 2004, the Commission held 

Auction 56, in which it made 880 24 

GHz Service licenses available. Only 

seven of the 880 24 GHz Service 

licenses were sold. As of 2017, there 

were 33 active DEMS licenses in these 

bands. While the former DEMS licenses 

were converted to Upper Microwave 

Flexible Use Services (UMFUS) 

licenses, they were subsequently 

cancelled. 

4. In 2016, the Commission adopted 

licensing and technical rules for 

UMFUS services in the 27.5–28.35 GHz 

band, the 37.6–38.6 GHz band, and the 

38.6–40 GHz band. Expanding on the 

2016 efforts to open high-frequency 

spectrum, in 2017, the Commission 

authorized the 24 GHz band for 

UMFUS, and generally applied the same 

licensing and technical rules to UMFUS 

in the 24 GHz band that it applied to 

UMFUS in other upper microwave 

bands. The UMFUS rules allow 

licensees flexibility to the services they 

will deploy and the architecture of their 

networks. Under these rules, licensees 

are able to deploy mobile services, but 

they also may deploy fixed point-topoint and point-to-multipoint systems. 

Among other things, the UMFUS rules 

specify that emissions outside of a 

licensee’s assigned frequency block 

must be limited to ¥13 dBm/MHz.1 In 

its decision authorizing UMFUS in the 

24 GHz band, the Commission noted 

ongoing ITU studies to establish 


khammond on DSK9W7S144PROD with RULES