II 

113TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 2473 

To reallocate Federal Government-held spectrum for commercial use, to promote wireless innovation and enhance wireless communications, and for 

other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JUNE 12, 2014 

Mr. RUBIO introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred 

to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation 

A BILL 

To reallocate Federal Government-held spectrum for commercial use, to promote wireless innovation and enhance 

wireless communications, and for other purposes. 

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

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—This Act may be cited as the 

5 ‘‘Wireless Innovation Act of 2014’’. 

6 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 

7 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. Findings; statement of policy. 

Sec. 3. Definitions. 

Sec. 4. Reallocation of Federal Government spectrum. 


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Sec. 5. Spectrum pipeline. 

Sec. 6. Reallocation incentive. 

Sec. 7. Expediting routine secondary market transactions. 

Sec. 8. Analysis of spectrum requirements. 

Sec. 9. Federal spectrum transparency and value. 

1 SEC. 2. FINDINGS; STATEMENT OF POLICY. 

2 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 

3 (1) The United States is the global leader in 

4 wireless communications and broadband tech5 nologies, both of which are vital parts of daily life 

6 in the United States, key components of the national 

7 infrastructure of the United States, and a signifi8 cant driver of the United States economy. 

9 (2) Wireless communications and broadband 

10 services have become critical for individuals to im11 prove their economic well-being, businesses to com12 pete in the 21st century, first responders to protect 

13 individuals in emergencies, and Federal agencies to 

14 service their missions, such as national defense. 

15 (3) Because of the proliferation of broadband 

16 connected wireless devices and consumer applica17 tions, the volume of data traffic traveling over wire18 less networks has been growing substantially, and 

19 with the pace of innovation accelerating, the demand 

20 for wireless data services will continue to increase 

21 exponentially. 

22 (4) The Council of Economic Advisors has con23 cluded that the only feasible way to realize the full 


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1 potential of wireless broadband is to make new spec2 trum available for wireless services, and considerable 

3 spectrum is underused or used in less economically 

4 valuable ways, and could be repurposed and reallo5 cated for wireless broadband use. 

6 (5) If the United States does not make more 

7 spectrum available, scarcity of spectrum could lead 

8 to higher prices for wireless services, poor service 

9 quality, the inability of the United States to compete 

10 internationally, constrained mobile broadband 

11 growth, and ultimately, a drag on innovation and in12 dividual economic mobility. 

13 (6) The National Broadband Plan, created by 

14 the Federal Communications Commission, set a goal 

15 of making 500 megahertz of spectrum newly avail16 able for commercial mobile broadband use by 2020, 

17 including making 300 megahertz between 225 mega18 hertz and 3.7 gigahertz newly available for mobile 

19 use within 5 years, and stated that reallocating this 

20 spectrum where possible for mobile broadband use 

21 should be a priority. 

22 (7) Reallocating and auctioning spectrum pro23 duces multiple benefits. A Federal licensee can up24 grade to comparable or superior communications 

25 technology, an auction raises money for the United 


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1 States Treasury, and taxpayers benefit from in2 creased access to, and better use of, spectrum. 

3 (8) In addition to reallocating spectrum, the 

4 United States should pursue a comprehensive ap5 proach to spectrum policy that includes expanding 

6 the capacity of wireless networks, promoting sec7 ondary spectrum markets, expanding unlicensed net8 works and Wi-Fi systems, and increasing efficiency 

9 and transparency among Federal users. 

10 (9) The Federal Government, as the largest 

11 user of spectrum, must also promote the efficient 

12 use of spectrum resources, and the National Tele13 communications and Information Administration 

14 must ensure that Federal agencies use this valuable 

15 public resource in the most efficient and effective 

16 manner possible. 

17 (10) The National Broadband Plan states that 

18 Federal spectrum users can be more efficient with 

19 the airwaves allocated to them by the National Tele20 communications and Information Administration, es21 pecially as wireless needs and technology evolve over 

22 time. 

23 (b) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this Act is— 

24 (1) to pursue comprehensive solutions to ex25 pand mobile broadband and utilize wireless services 


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1 and technologies to create jobs, grow the economy, 

2 and improve individual economic mobility; and 

3 (2) to ensure that the Federal Government— 

4 (A) utilizes its spectrum in the most effi5 cient and effective way; and 

6 (B) repurposes spectrum for commercial 

7 use wherever possible. 

8 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 

9 In this Act: 

10 (1) COMMISSION.—The term ‘‘Commission’’ 

11 means the Federal Communications Commission. 

12 (2) NIST.—The term ‘‘NIST’’ means the Na13 tional Institute of Standards and Technology. 

14 (3) NTIA.—The term ‘‘NTIA’’ means the Na15 tional Telecommunications and Information Admin16 istration. 

17 SEC. 4. REALLOCATION OF FEDERAL GOVERNMENT SPEC18 TRUM. 

19 Section 113 of the National Telecommunications and 

20 Information Administration Organization Act (47 U.S.C. 

21 923) is amended by adding at the end the following: 

22 ‘‘(m) FURTHER REALLOCATION REPORT.— 

23 ‘‘(1) REPORT REQUIRED.— 

24 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year 

25 after the date of enactment of this subsection, 


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1 the Secretary shall prepare and submit to the 

2 President and Congress a report (referred to in 

3 this subsection as the ‘reallocation report’) that 

4 identifies and recommends for reallocation 

5 bands of frequencies— 

6 ‘‘(i) that, in the aggregate, span not 

7 less than 200 megahertz; 

8 ‘‘(ii) that are located below 5 

9 gigahertz; 

10 ‘‘(iii) that are not covered by the pro11 ceeding of the Commission in GN Docket 

12 No. 12–354; 

13 ‘‘(iv) that, as of the date of submis14 sion of the reallocation report, are allo15 cated on an exclusive or primary basis for 

16 Federal Government use; 

17 ‘‘(v) from which Federal Government 

18 stations may be relocated pursuant to sub19 section (g) or for which Federal Govern20 ment stations may be replaced by commer21 cially available substitutes; 

22 ‘‘(vi) that, as of the date of submis23 sion of the reallocation report or at any 

24 time during the 10-year period beginning 

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1 able for the uses described in subpara2 graph (B); 

3 ‘‘(vii) the transfer of which from, or 

4 the sharing of which with, Federal Govern5 ment use will not result in costs to the 

6 Federal Government, or losses of services 

7 or benefits to the public, that are excessive 

8 in relation to the benefits to the public 

9 that may be provided by non-Federal li10 censees; and 

11 ‘‘(viii) that are most likely to have the 

12 greatest potential economic benefit to the 

13 United States if reallocated and licensed 

14 for non-Federal use. 

15 ‘‘(B) ALLOCATION OF SPECTRUM.—Of the 

16 spectrum described in subparagraph (A)— 

17 ‘‘(i) 140 megahertz shall— 

18 ‘‘(I) be allocated for commercial 

19 mobile use on an exclusive, licensed 

20 basis; and 

21 ‘‘(II) be located below 3.7 

22 gigahertz; 

23 ‘‘(ii) not more than 20 megahertz may 

24 be allocated for unlicensed use if— 


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1 ‘‘(I) such use protects licensed 

2 services from harmful interference; 

3 and 

4 ‘‘(II) the spectrum allocated for 

5 such use is located— 

6 ‘‘(aa) in guard bands below 

7 3.7 gigahertz— 

8 ‘‘(AA) that are no larg9 er than technically necessary 

10 to prevent harmful inter11 ference between licensed 

12 services outside the guard 

13 bands; and 

14 ‘‘(BB) the unlicensed 

15 use of which does not cause 

16 harmful interference to li17 censed services; or 

18 ‘‘(bb) between 3.7 gigahertz 

19 and 5 gigahertz; and 

20 ‘‘(iii) not more than 40 megahertz 

21 may be shared with Federal Government 

22 stations if— 

23 ‘‘(I) the President limits the as24 signment of the Federal Government 

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1 trum by those stations is restricted by 

2 geographic area, by time, or by other 

3 means so as to guarantee that the 

4 continued use by those stations is sub5 stantially less than the use made by 

6 non-Federal stations; and 

7 ‘‘(II) the operational sharing au8 thorized under this clause is subject 

9 to— 

10 ‘‘(aa) interference regula11 tions prescribed by the Commis12 sion under section 305(a) of the 

13 1934 Act; 

14 ‘‘(bb) coordination proce15 dures that the Commission and 

16 the Secretary shall jointly estab17 lish and implement to ensure 

18 against harmful interference; and 

19 ‘‘(cc) the sharing arrange20 ments in a transition plan appli21 cable to the spectrum that the 

22 Technical Panel finds sufficient 

23 under subsection (h)(4). 


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1 ‘‘(C) RELOCATION OF FEDERAL GOVERN2 MENT STATIONS; COSTS.—The Secretary shall 

3 include in the reallocation report— 

4 ‘‘(i) recommendations for spectrum 

5 bands to which Federal Government sta6 tions may be relocated; and 

7 ‘‘(ii) the costs, as determined by the 

8 Secretary in consultation with the Office of 

9 Management and Budget, of the relocation 

10 described in clause (i). 

11 ‘‘(2) DIRECT DISCUSSIONS.— 

12 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall 

13 consult with the Federal Government users of 

14 the spectrum and work through established 

15 processes of the NTIA to encourage and pro16 vide opportunity for direct discussions among 

17 commercial representatives and Federal Govern18 ment users of the spectrum to aid the Secretary 

19 in determining which frequencies to recommend 

20 for reallocation under this subsection. 

21 ‘‘(B) NOTICE.—The Secretary shall pro22 vide notice to the public and the Commission of 

23 any discussion held under subparagraph (A), 

24 including the name of each business or other 

25 person represented in the discussion. 


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1 ‘‘(C) REPRESENTATIVE OF COMMISSION.— 

2 A representative of the Commission (and of the 

3 Secretary, at the election of the Secretary) may 

4 attend any discussion held under subparagraph 

5 (A). 

6 ‘‘(D) OPPORTUNITY FOR COMMENT.—Be7 fore the Secretary submits the reallocation re8 port, the Secretary shall provide the public and 

9 the Commission with an opportunity to com10 ment on the results of any discussion held 

11 under subparagraph (A). 

12 ‘‘(3) TIMETABLE FOR WITHDRAWAL OR LIMITA13 TION OF ASSIGNMENTS.— 

14 ‘‘(A) RECOMMENDED DEADLINES.—The 

15 Secretary shall include in the reallocation report 

16 a timetable that recommends effective dates by 

17 which the President shall— 

18 ‘‘(i) withdraw the assignment to Fed19 eral Government stations of the fre20 quencies specified in the reallocation report 

21 (other than the frequencies identified 

22 under paragraph (1)(B)(iii)); and 

23 ‘‘(ii) in the case of the spectrum iden24 tified under paragraph (1)(B)(iii), limit the 

25 assignment of that spectrum to Federal 


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1 Government stations as required under 

2 subclause (I) of that paragraph. 

3 ‘‘(B) ABSOLUTE DEADLINES.— 

4 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding 

5 the effective dates recommended by the 

6 Secretary under subparagraph (A), not 

7 later than the date described in clause (ii) 

8 of this subparagraph, the President shall— 

9 ‘‘(I) withdraw the assignment to 

10 Federal Government stations of the 

11 frequencies specified in the realloca12 tion report (other than the frequencies 

13 identified under paragraph 

14 (1)(B)(iii)); and 

15 ‘‘(II) in the case of the spectrum 

16 identified under paragraph (1)(B)(iii), 

17 limit the assignment to Federal Gov18 ernment stations as required under 

19 subclause (I) of that paragraph. 

20 ‘‘(ii) DATE.—The date described in 

21 this clause is the earlier of— 

22 ‘‘(I) the date that is 3 years after 

23 the beginning of the auction of the 

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1 tion report pursuant to section 

2 309(j)(15)(C)(vii) of the 1934 Act; or 

3 ‘‘(II) the date as of which— 

4 ‘‘(aa) each Federal Govern5 ment station has been relocated 

6 from the frequencies specified in 

7 the reallocation report (other 

8 than the frequencies identified 

9 under paragraph (1)(B)(iii)); and 

10 ‘‘(bb) the assignment of the 

11 frequencies identified under para12 graph (1)(B)(iii) to each Federal 

13 Government station has been lim14 ited as required under subclause 

15 (I) of that paragraph. 

16 ‘‘(4) DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE STATIONS.— 

17 Section 1062(b) of the National Defense Authoriza18 tion Act for Fiscal Year 2000 (Public Law 106–65; 

19 113 Stat. 768) shall apply to the relocation of sta20 tions operated by the Department of Defense in the 

21 spectrum described in paragraph (1)(A) of this sub22 section.’’. 


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1 SEC. 5. SPECTRUM PIPELINE. 

2 (a) DEADLINE.—Section 309(j)(15)(C) of the Com3 munications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 309(j)(15)(C)) is 

4 amended by adding at the end the following: 

5 ‘‘(vii) DEADLINES FOR THE AUCTION

6 OF FREQUENCY BANDS UNDER THE WIRE7 LESS INNOVATION ACT OF 2014.—The 

8 Commission shall conduct an auction of— 

9 ‘‘(I) 80 megahertz of the spec10 trum recommended for reallocation in 

11 the reallocation report under section 

12 113(m) of the National Telecommuni13 cations and Information Administra14 tion Organization Act not later than 

15 December 31, 2018; 

16 ‘‘(II) an additional 60 megahertz 

17 of the spectrum recommended for re18 allocation in the reallocation report 

19 described in subclause (I) not later 

20 than 18 months after the completion 

21 of the auction required under sub22 clause (I); and 

23 ‘‘(III) an additional 40 mega24 hertz of the spectrum recommended 

25 for reallocation in the reallocation re26 port described in subclause (I) not 


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1 later than 18 months after the com2 pletion of the auction required under 

3 subclause (II).’’. 

4 (b) REGULATIONS.—Not later than 6 months before 

5 the Commission commences each auction required under 

6 section 309(j)(15)(C)(vii) of the Communications Act of 

7 1934, as added by subsection (a), the Commission shall 

8 promulgate regulations necessary to conduct the auction. 

9 (c) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENT.— 

10 Section 6401(b)(2) of the Middle Class Tax Relief and Job 

11 Creation Act of 2012 (47 U.S.C. 1451(b)(2)) is amend12 ed— 

13 (1) by striking subparagraph (C); and 

14 (2) by redesignating subparagraphs (D) and 

15 (E) as subparagraphs (C) and (D), respectively. 

16 SEC. 6. REALLOCATION INCENTIVE. 

17 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section— 

18 (1) the term ‘‘Director’’ means the Director of 

19 the Office of Management and Budget; and 

20 (2) the term ‘‘Federal entity’’ has the meaning 

21 given the term in section 113(l) of the National 

22 Telecommunications and Information Administration 

23 Organization Act (47 U.S.C. 923(l)). 

24 (b) DEPOSIT OF PROCEEDS.—Notwithstanding sec25 tion 309(j)(8)(D) of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 


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1 U.S.C. 309(j)(8)(D)), if the first auction of any eligible 

2 frequencies described in section 113(g)(2) of the National 

3 Telecommunications and Information Administration Or4 ganization Act (47 U.S.C. 923(g)(2)) that takes place 

5 after the date of enactment of this Act meets the require6 ments established under section 309(j)(16) of the Commu7 nications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 309(j)(16)), an amount 

8 equal to 1 percent of the proceeds attributable to the auc9 tion shall be deposited in the Spectrum Relocation Fund 

10 established under section 118 of the National Tele11 communications and Information Administration Organi12 zation Act (47 U.S.C. 928) for use in accordance with sub13 section (c) of this section. 

14 (c) PAYMENTS FOR ADVANCE PLANNING AND EN15 HANCED SPECTRUM EFFICIENCY.— 

16 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Director, in consulta17 tion with the NTIA, may use the amount made 

18 available under subsection (b) to make payments to 

19 any Federal entity— 

20 (A) to conduct research and development, 

21 and operational, technical, cost, and schedule22 feasibility analyses, regarding the potential fu23 ture reallocation of additional spectrum from 

24 Federal use to exclusive non-Federal use or to 

25 shared use; and 


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1 (B) to develop and incorporate spectrum 

2 efficiency guidelines and spectrally efficient ad3 vanced or unique technology or techniques into 

4 the budget and procurement processes of the 

5 Federal entity to facilitate the design and pro6 curement of Federal spectrum-dependent sys7 tems that increase flexibility through means 

8 such as multiple-band tuning capabilities and 

9 the use of commercial systems as appropriate, 

10 including through public-private partnerships. 

11 (2) CONDITIONS.— 

12 (A) USE OF PAYMENT TO ESTIMATE

13 COSTS.—A Federal entity that receives a pay14 ment under subparagraph (A) of paragraph (1) 

15 to conduct the analyses described in that para16 graph shall use the payment to estimate the 

17 costs specified in clauses (i) through (v) of sec18 tion 113(g)(3)(A) of the National Tele19 communications and Information Administra20 tion Organization Act (47 U.S.C. 923(g)(3)(A)) 

21 with respect to frequencies identified by the 

22 Federal entity for potential reallocation. 

23 (B) RELOCATION OR SHARING COSTS.— 

24 The Director may not make a payment under 

25 paragraph (1) if the amount made available 


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1 under subsection (b) is otherwise necessary to 

2 cover relocation or sharing costs (as defined in 

3 section 113(g)(3)) of the National Tele4 communications and Information Administra5 tion Organization Act (47 U.S.C. 923(g)(3))). 

6 (C) NOTIFICATION REQUIRED.—The Di7 rector may not make a payment under para8 graph (1) until 30 days after the date as of 

9 which the Director has notified the Committee 

10 on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of 

11 the Senate and the Committee on Energy and 

12 Commerce of the House of Representatives of 

13 the intent of the Director to make the payment. 

14 (D) EMISSION LEVELS.—A Federal entity 

15 that receives a payment under paragraph (1) 

16 shall, to the extent possible, procure systems 

17 described in subparagraph (B) of that para18 graph such that emission levels resulting from 

19 reasonable use of adjacent spectrum will not 

20 impair the functioning of the systems, con21 sistent with any applicable radio receiver per22 formance criteria and international obligations. 

23 (3) ANNUAL REPORT.—Each year, the Director 

24 shall submit to the Committee on Commerce, 

25 Science, and Transportation of the Senate and the 


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1 Committee on Energy and Commerce of the House 

2 of Representatives a report that— 

3 (A) describes each payment that the Direc4 tor made to a Federal entity under this sub5 section during the preceding year; and 

6 (B) details how each Federal entity used 

7 each payment described in subparagraph (A). 

8 SEC. 7. EXPEDITING ROUTINE SECONDARY MARKET 

9 TRANSACTIONS. 

10 Section 310 of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 

11 U.S.C. 310) is amended by striking subsection (d) and in12 serting the following: 

13 ‘‘(d) ASSIGNMENT AND TRANSFER OF CONSTRUC14 TION PERMIT OR STATION LICENSE.— 

15 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.— 

16 ‘‘(A) APPLICATION REQUIRED.—No con17 struction permit or station license, or any rights 

18 thereunder, shall be transferred, assigned, or 

19 disposed of in any manner, voluntarily or invol20 untarily, directly or indirectly, or by transfer of 

21 control of any corporation holding such permit 

22 or license, to any person except upon applica23 tion to the Commission and upon finding by the 

24 Commission that the public interest, conven25 ience, and necessity will be served thereby. 


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1 ‘‘(B) ACTION UPON APPLICATION.—Any 

2 application under subparagraph (A) shall be 

3 disposed of as if the proposed transferee or as4 signee were making application under section 

5 308 for the permit or license in question; but 

6 in acting thereon the Commission may not con7 sider whether the public interest, convenience, 

8 and necessity might be served by the transfer, 

9 assignment, or disposal of the permit or license 

10 to a person other than the proposed transferee 

11 or assignee. 

12 ‘‘(2) PRESUMPTION.—An application to the 

13 Commission under paragraph (1) shall be deemed to 

14 be in the public interest, convenient, and necessary, 

15 and shall be granted not later than 90 days after the 

16 date on which the Commission issues a public notice 

17 of the application, unless the Commission acts to 

18 deny the application, if the application— 

19 ‘‘(A) does not involve an entity described 

20 in subsection (b); 

21 ‘‘(B) does not require premerger notifica22 tion and waiting period under section 7a of the 

23 Clayton Act (15 U.S.C. 18a); and 


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1 ‘‘(C) is not a covered transaction under 

2 section 721 of the Defense Production Act of 

3 1950 (50 U.S.C. App. 2170).’’. 

4 SEC. 8. ANALYSIS OF SPECTRUM REQUIREMENTS. 

5 Section 104(d) of the National Telecommunications 

6 and Information Administration Organization Act (47 

7 U.S.C. 903(d)) is amended— 

8 (1) in paragraph (1)— 

9 (A) by striking ‘‘In assigning’’ and insert10 ing the following: 

11 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—In assigning’’; and 

12 (B) by adding at the end the following: 

13 ‘‘(B) REQUIRED ANALYSIS.—Before the 

14 Secretary may assign frequencies for mobile 

15 radio services and other radio services, and sub16 ject to subparagraph (C), each Federal agency 

17 seeking a new or modified frequency assignment 

18 for a mobile service or other radio service shall 

19 submit to the Secretary and the Director of the 

20 Office of Management and Budget (referred to 

21 in this paragraph as the ‘Director’) a report 

22 analyzing— 

23 ‘‘(i) whether the Federal agency may 

24 use commercial services for the operation 

25 of the service rather than obtain a new or 


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1 modified frequency assignment consistent 

2 with national security, public safety and 

3 overall ability to reliably perform the Fed4 eral mission, including an explicit consider5 ation of the cost of contracting for the 

6 commercial service against the cost of the 

7 agency operating on the new or modified 

8 frequency assignment; 

9 ‘‘(ii) whether the proposed spectrum 

10 requirements of the Federal agency 

11 could— 

12 ‘‘(I) use an existing or planned 

13 service operated by the Federal agen14 cy or another Federal agency; or 

15 ‘‘(II) share a frequency allocation 

16 with an existing Federal agency, in17 cluding the use of dynamic and oppor18 tunistic spectrum sharing; 

19 ‘‘(iii) whether the Federal agency 

20 could— 

21 ‘‘(I) use unlicensed spectrum; or 

22 ‘‘(II) lease capacity from com23 mercial providers; 

24 ‘‘(iv) if the Federal agency cannot use 

25 a commercial or other Federal service, how 


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1 much spectrum the Federal agency needs 

2 to operate the service; 

3 ‘‘(v) whether the service requires a 

4 frequency assignment below 3 gigahertz; 

5 and 

6 ‘‘(vi) whether, once the allocation is 

7 made, the Federal agency may share the 

8 spectrum with non-Federal users. 

9 ‘‘(C) REVIEW OF ANALYSIS.— 

10 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, in 

11 consultation with the Director and any 

12 Federal agency that the Secretary may de13 termine appropriate, shall determine 

14 whether to grant a request of a Federal 

15 agency for a new or modified frequency as16 signment for a mobile service or other 

17 radio service. 

18 ‘‘(ii) ALTERATION OF ALLOCATION.— 

19 If the Secretary determines that a request 

20 described in clause (i) is better met 

21 through sharing frequencies or systems 

22 with another Federal agency, the Sec23 retary, in consultation with the Director, 

24 the requesting Federal agency, the Federal 

25 agency with whom the requesting Federal 


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1 agency will share systems or allocation, 

2 and any other Federal agency that the 

3 Secretary may determine appropriate, shall 

4 alter the previously granted allocation ac5 cordingly. 

6 ‘‘(D) BUDGET AND PROCUREMENT PROC7 ESSES.— 

8 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—A Federal agency 

9 shall include spectrum efficiency when con10 sidering procurement of spectrum-depend11 ent systems and hardware, as a technical 

12 requirement, an evaluation criterion for 

13 award, or both. 

14 ‘‘(ii) SPECTRUM EFFICIENCY GUIDE15 LINES.—The NTIA and the Director shall 

16 develop and incorporate spectrum effi17 ciency guidelines into budget and procure18 ment processes. 

19 ‘‘(iii) PURPOSE AND CONTENT OF

20 GUIDELINES.—The guidelines developed 

21 under clause (ii) shall— 

22 ‘‘(I) facilitate, as appropriate, the 

23 design and procurement of systems 

24 that increase flexibility through means 

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1 ties and the use of commercial sys2 tems; and 

3 ‘‘(II) require, to the extent pos4 sible, procurement of Federal systems 

5 such that emission levels resulting 

6 from reasonable use of adjacent spec7 trum will not impair the functioning 

8 of such systems, consistent with any 

9 applicable radio receiver performance 

10 criteria and international obligations. 

11 ‘‘(E) TRANSPARENCY OF FEDERAL SPEC12 TRUM ALLOCATIONS.— 

13 ‘‘(i) PUBLIC AVAILABILITY.—All re14 quests for allocation made under this Act 

15 shall be published in the Federal Register. 

16 ‘‘(ii) DATABASE.—The NTIA shall 

17 maintain a database of all requests for al18 location made under this Act that is 

19 searchable electronically and available to 

20 the public. 

21 ‘‘(iii) PUBLIC COMMENT PERMIS22 SIBLE.—At the discretion of the Secretary, 

23 the Secretary may seek public comment on 

24 any requested allocation. 


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1 ‘‘(iv) NATIONAL SECURITY PRO2 TECTED.—Where necessary to protect the 

3 interests of national security, the Assistant 

4 Secretary shall redact a request for alloca5 tion made under this Act from the pub6 lic.’’; and 

7 (2) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘The Sec8 retary’’ and inserting ‘‘In addition to the cir9 cumstances described in paragraph (1)(C), the Sec10 retary’’. 

11 SEC. 9. FEDERAL SPECTRUM TRANSPARENCY AND VALUE. 

12 (a) ANALYSIS OF ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY COST.— 

13 (1) DEVELOPMENT OF FRAMEWORK.—Not later 

14 than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, 

15 the NTIA, in consultation with the Commission and 

16 the Director of the Office of Management and Budg17 et, shall develop a framework for determining the 

18 annual economic opportunity cost of each specific 

19 Federal spectrum band assigned or otherwise allo20 cated for use by Federal entities. 

21 (2) SCOPE.—The framework developed under 

22 paragraph (1) shall cover all federally allocated spec23 trum bands between 150 megahertz and 6000 mega24 hertz, inclusive. 


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1 (3) GOALS.—The goals of the framework devel2 oped under paragraph (1) are— 

3 (A) to provide Federal entities with a sus4 tained long-term signal of spectrum value to in5 form the spectrum management decisions of 

6 such entities; and 

7 (B) to provide the public with increased 

8 transparency about how Federal entities use a 

9 scarce physical resource. 

10 (4) REQUIREMENTS.—The framework devel11 oped under paragraph (1) shall— 

12 (A) define the term ‘‘opportunity cost’’ as 

13 the value of the spectrum, in dollar terms, as 

14 if such spectrum were to be reallocated on a li15 censed basis to the highest commercial alter16 native use that currently does not have access 

17 to that spectrum; 

18 (B) be updated, on an annual basis, to 

19 take into account observed market valuations 

20 from spectrum auctions, secondary spectrum 

21 trading, and other market indicators of spec22 trum value; 

23 (C) determine the opportunity costs borne 

24 by each Federal entity for each spectrum band 


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1 that is entirely under the control of a single 

2 agency; and 

3 (D) determine the opportunity costs for 

4 spectrum assigned or otherwise allocated to 

5 Federal entities for both primary use and sec6 ondary use. 

7 (b) REPORT ON OPPORTUNITY COSTS.—Each Fed8 eral entity that has been assigned or otherwise allocated 

9 use of a Federal spectrum band shall report, as an off10 budget item, the opportunity cost borne by the entity for 

11 each spectrum band the entity uses— 

12 (1) in the budget of the entity to be included 

13 in the budget of the United States Government sub14 mitted by the President under section 1105 of title 

15 31, United States Code; and 

16 (2) in the annual financial statement of the 

17 Federal entity required to be filed under section 

18 3515 of title 31, United States Code. 

19 (c) SPECTRUM VALUE ANALYSIS.—Not later than 5 

20 years after the date of enactment of this Act, and every 

21 5 years thereafter, each Federal entity that has been as22 signed or otherwise allocated use of a Federal spectrum 

23 band, or otherwise utilizes such spectrum, shall engage in 

24 an analysis comparing the opportunity cost of that spec25 trum, as such cost is determined by the framework develVerDate Mar 15 2010 00:02 Jun 17, 2014 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00028 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2473.IS S2473

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1 oped by the NTIA under subsection (a), to the projected 

2 costs of the entity relocating to other government spec3 trum holdings, co-locating with other government agen4 cies, leasing other non-Federal spectrum, or contracting 

5 out for its spectrum activities. 

6 (d) SPECTRUM TECHNOLOGY STUDY.— 

7 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 18 months 

8 after the date of enactment of this Act, and every 

9 5 years thereafter, the Chief Technology Officer, in 

10 consultation with the Assistant Secretary of Com11 merce for Communications and Information and the 

12 Comptroller General of the United States, shall ex13 amine the technologies and equipment used by Fed14 eral entities operating on Federal spectrum alloca15 tions and determine if such technologies and equip16 ment are the most spectrum-efficient available. 

17 (2) CERTAIN DETERMINATIONS MADE.—If the 

18 results of any study required under paragraph (1) 

19 determine that the technologies and equipment of 

20 Federal entities operating on Federal spectrum allo21 cations are not the most spectrum-efficient available, 

22 the Comptroller General shall determine— 

23 (A) what the costs would be to upgrade 

24 such systems to more up-to-date and readily 

25 available systems; 


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1 (B) what benefits would be gained from 

2 upgrading, particularly any cost savings or in3 creases in spectrum utilization efficiency; and 

4 (C) if there are any possible problems with 

5 upgrading to more up-to-date systems. 

6 (e) SPECTRUM OPPORTUNITY COST AND FRAME7 WORK STUDY.— 

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Comptroller General of 

9 the United States, in consultation with the NTIA, 

10 shall— 

11 (A) conduct a review of the framework de12 veloped under subsection (a); 

13 (B) conduct a review of the reports re14 quired under subsection (b) and the processes 

15 that Federal entities use to evaluate the oppor16 tunity cost borne for each spectrum band the 

17 Federal entities use; and 

18 (C) make recommendations on how to im19 prove such framework and reporting. 

20 (2) REPORT.—Not later than 2 years after the 

21 date of enactment of this Act, and every 2 years 

22 thereafter, the Comptroller General of the United 

23 States shall submit to the appropriate committees in 


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1 Congress a report on the review and recommenda2 tions required under paragraph (1). 

Æ 


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