II 

Calendar No. 696 

111TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 3490 

To clarify the rights and responsibilities of Federal entities in the spectrum 

relocation process, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JUNE 15, 2010 

Mr. WARNER (for himself and Mr. WICKER) introduced the following bill; 

which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, 

Science, and Transportation 

DECEMBER 14, 2010 

Reported by Mr. ROCKEFELLER, with an amendment 

[Strike all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic] 

A BILL 

To clarify the rights and responsibilities of Federal entities 

in the spectrum relocation process, and for other purposes. 

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

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Spectrum Relocation 

5 Improvement Act of 2010’’. 


tjames on DSKG8SOYB1PROD with BILLS
2 

•S 3490 RS

1 SEC. 2. RIGHTS AND RESPONSIBILITIES OF FEDERAL ENTI2 TIES IN THE SPECTRUM RELOCATION PROC3 ESS. 

4 (a) ELIGIBLE FEDERAL ENTITIES.—Section 

5 113(g)(1) of the National Telecommunications and Infor6 mation Administration Organization Act (47 U.S.C. 

7 923(g)(1)) is amended to read as follows: 

8 ‘‘(1) ELIGIBLE FEDERAL ENTITIES.—Any Fed9 eral entity, as defined in subsection (i), that operates 

10 a Federal Government station assigned to a band of 

11 eligible frequencies, as described in paragraph (2), 

12 and that incurs relocation costs because of the re13 allocation of frequencies from Federal use to non14 Federal use shall receive payment for such costs 

15 from the Spectrum Relocation Fund if the Federal 

16 entity is found by the Office of Management and 

17 Budget (in this section referred to as ‘OMB’) to 

18 comply with the requirements of this section and 

19 section 118. For purposes of this paragraph, Fed20 eral power agencies exempted under subsection 

21 (c)(4) that choose to relocate from the frequencies 

22 identified for reallocation pursuant to subsection (a) 

23 are eligible to receive payment under this para24 graph.’’. 

25 (b) PUBLIC INFORMATION ON RELOCATION PROC26 ESS.—Section 113(g) of the National Telecommunications 


tjames on DSKG8SOYB1PROD with BILLS
3 

•S 3490 RS

1 and Information Administration Organization Act (47 

2 U.S.C. 923(g)) is amended— 

3 (1) by redesignating paragraph (6) as para4 graph (7); and 

5 (2) by inserting after paragraph (5) the fol6 lowing new paragraph: 

7 ‘‘(6) PUBLIC NOTICE OF RELOCATION PLANS.— 

8 ‘‘(A) Not later than 90 days after the date 

9 on which the NTIA, on behalf of eligible Fed10 eral entities and after review by OMB, notifies 

11 the Commission of estimated relocation costs 

12 and timelines for such relocation as required by 

13 paragraph (4)(A), NTIA shall post on its Web 

14 site detailed transition plans from each of the 

15 eligible Federal entities. Each Federal entity’s 

16 transition plan shall provide the public with the 

17 following information about its spectrum reloca18 tion requirements: 

19 ‘‘(i) Current use of the spectrum. 

20 ‘‘(ii) Geographic location of the Fed21 eral entities’ facilities or systems. 

22 ‘‘(iii) Frequency bands used by such 

23 facilities or systems, described by geo24 graphic location. 


tjames on DSKG8SOYB1PROD with BILLS
4 

•S 3490 RS

1 ‘‘(iv) The steps to be taken by the 

2 Federal entity to relocate its current spec3 trum uses from the eligible frequencies, de4 tailed according to timelines for specific 

5 geographic locations in sufficient detail to 

6 indicate when use of such frequencies at 

7 specific locations will be shared between 

8 the Federal entity and the commercial li9 censee. 

10 ‘‘(v) The specific interactions between 

11 eligible Federal entities and NTIA needed 

12 to implement the transition plan. 

13 ‘‘(vi) The name of the director, offi14 cer, or employee responsible for the Fed15 eral entity’s relocation efforts and who is 

16 authorized to meet and negotiate with 

17 commercial licensees regarding the reloca18 tion process. 

19 ‘‘(vii) The Federal entity’s plans and 

20 timeline for using relocation funds received 

21 from the Spectrum Relocation Fund. 

22 ‘‘(viii) The Federal entity’s plans and 

23 timeline for procuring new equipment and 

24 additional personnel needed for the reloca25 tion. 


tjames on DSKG8SOYB1PROD with BILLS
5 

•S 3490 RS

1 ‘‘(ix) The Federal entity’s plans and 

2 timeline for field-testing and deploying new 

3 equipment needed in the relocation. 

4 ‘‘(x) The Federal entity’s plans and 

5 timeline for hiring and relying on contract 

6 personnel, if any. 

7 ‘‘(xi) Risk factors in the relocation 

8 process that could affect the Federal enti9 ty’s fulfillment of its transition plan. 

10 ‘‘(B) To be eligible to receive payment for 

11 relocation costs from the Spectrum Relocation 

12 Fund— 

13 ‘‘(i) Federal entities shall make the 

14 transition plans described in this sub15 section available to NTIA at least 90 days 

16 prior to the date that NTIA shall make 

17 such plans publicly available on its Web 

18 site pursuant to subparagraph (A), in a 

19 common format to be specified by NTIA 

20 after public input; and 

21 ‘‘(ii) each transition plan shall be 

22 evaluated by a standing 3-member tech23 nical panel (in this section referred to as 

24 the ‘Technical Panel’), which shall report 

25 to NTIA and to the Federal entity, within 


tjames on DSKG8SOYB1PROD with BILLS
6 

•S 3490 RS

1 30 days after the plan’s submission to 

2 NTIA, on the sufficiency of the plan under 

3 this paragraph, including whether the re4 quired public information is included and 

5 whether proposed timelines and estimated 

6 relocation costs, including costs proposed 

7 for expanding the capabilities of a Federal 

8 system in connection with relocation, are 

9 reasonable. 

10 ‘‘(C) The Director of OMB, the Adminis11 trator of NTIA, in consultation with the af12 fected Federal entities, and the Chairman of 

13 the Commission shall each appoint one member 

14 to the Technical Panel, and each such member 

15 shall be a radio engineer or technical expert. 

16 NTIA shall adopt regulations to govern the 

17 workings of the Technical Panel after public no18 tice and comment, subject to OMB approval, 

19 and the members of the Technical Panel shall 

20 be appointed, within 180 days of the date of en21 actment of the Spectrum Relocation Improve22 ment Act of 2010. No person shall serve as a 

23 member of the Technical Panel for more than 

24 18 months. 


tjames on DSKG8SOYB1PROD with BILLS
7 

•S 3490 RS

1 ‘‘(D) If any of the information otherwise 

2 required by this paragraph is ‘classified infor3 mation’, as that term is defined in section 

4 798(b) of title 18, United States Code, the Fed5 eral entity’s transition plan shall explain the ex6 clusion of any such information as specifically 

7 as possible, shall make all relevant non-classi8 fied information available in its transition plan, 

9 and shall discuss as a risk factor the extent of 

10 the classified information and the effect on the 

11 relocation process of the classified information. 

12 ‘‘(E) NTIA, in consultation with OMB and 

13 the Department of Defense, shall adopt regula14 tions within 180 days of the date of enactment 

15 the Spectrum Relocation Improvement Act of 

16 2010 to ensure information released publicly for 

17 the purpose of this paragraph contains no sen18 sitive or classified information.’’. 

19 (c) SHARING AND COORDINATION OF SPECTRUM BE20 TWEEN COMMERCIAL LICENSEES AND FEDERAL ENTI21 TIES DURING RELOCATION TRANSITION.—Section 118 of 

22 the National Telecommunications and Information Ad23 ministration Organization Act (47 U.S.C. 928) is amend24 ed by adding at the end the following new subsections: 


tjames on DSKG8SOYB1PROD with BILLS
8 

•S 3490 RS

1 ‘‘(f) ELIGIBILITY FOR PAYMENT OF RELOCATION

2 COSTS.— 

3 ‘‘(1) SPECTRUM SHARING.—To be eligible to re4 ceive payment for relocation costs from the Spec5 trum Relocation Fund, a Federal entity shall— 

6 ‘‘(A) in its transition plan for relocating its 

7 current spectrum uses, provide— 

8 ‘‘(i) to the fullest extent possible, for 

9 sharing and coordination of eligible fre10 quencies with commercial licensees, includ11 ing reasonable accommodation by the Fed12 eral entity for the use of eligible fre13 quencies by the commercial licensee during 

14 the period that the Federal entity is relo15 cating its spectrum uses (in this subsection 

16 referred to as the ‘transition period’); and 

17 ‘‘(ii) a presumption that commercial 

18 licensees shall be able to use eligible fre19 quencies during the transition period in ge20 ographic areas where the Federal entity 

21 does not utilize those frequencies; 

22 ‘‘(B) during the transition period, make 

23 itself available, within 30 days after a written 

24 request, for negotiation and discussion with 

25 commercial licensees; and 


tjames on DSKG8SOYB1PROD with BILLS
9 

•S 3490 RS

1 ‘‘(C) during the transition period, make 

2 available to a commercial licensee with appro3 priate security clearances any ‘classified infor4 mation’ as that term is defined in section 

5 798(b) of title 18, United States Code, regard6 ing the relocation process, on a need-to-know 

7 basis, to assist the commercial licensee in the 

8 relocation process with that Federal entity or 

9 other Federal entities. 

10 ‘‘(2) TIMELY AND SUCCESSFUL COMPLETION

11 OF RELOCATION.—In addition to the conditions of 

12 paragraph (1), to be eligible to receive payment for 

13 relocation costs from the Spectrum Relocation Fund, 

14 a Federal entity— 

15 ‘‘(A) shall complete the relocation of its 

16 current spectrum uses not later than 1 year 

17 after the date upon which funds are transferred 

18 to the entity to fund the relocation; 

19 ‘‘(B) may complete the relocation of its 

20 current spectrum use at a time period different 

21 that required under subparagraph (A), if prior 

22 to the date the Technical Panel (as described in 

23 section 113(g)(6)(C)) is required to post pub24 licly the Federal entity’s transition plan, the 

25 Federal entity receives written approval from 


tjames on DSKG8SOYB1PROD with BILLS
10 

•S 3490 RS

1 the Office of Management and Budget (in this 

2 section referred to as ‘OMB’), with the advice 

3 of the Technical Panel; and 

4 ‘‘(C) shall make available to NTIA, not 

5 later than 15 days prior to the date that is the 

6 halfway point of the time period described in 

7 subparagraph (A), a complete update of its 

8 transition plan, provided that NTIA shall post 

9 such update publicly on its Web site not later 

10 than the date that is the halfway point of the 

11 time period described in subparagraph (A). 

12 ‘‘(3) Nothing in paragraphs (1) or (2) shall be 

13 construed to adversely affect critical communications 

14 related to the mission of any Federal entity. 

15 ‘‘(4) Subject to subsection (d), payments for re16 location costs from the Spectrum Relocation Fund 

17 shall be made to an eligible Federal entity not later 

18 than 30 days after the grant of the first license fol19 lowing the close of the auction. 

20 ‘‘(g) DISPUTE RESOLUTION PROCESS.— 

21 ‘‘(1) If, during the spectrum relocation process, 

22 a dispute arises over the execution, timing, or cost 

23 of the Federal entity’s transition plan, either the 

24 Federal entity or the affected commercial licensee 

25 may seek resolution of the dispute from a 3-member 


tjames on DSKG8SOYB1PROD with BILLS
11 

•S 3490 RS

1 dispute resolution board, consisting of a representa2 tive of OMB, NTIA, and the Commission, and 

3 chaired by the representative of OMB. 

4 ‘‘(2) The dispute resolution board shall meet 

5 with representatives of the Federal entity involved in 

6 the dispute and the commercial licensee together to 

7 discuss the dispute. The dispute resolution board 

8 may require the parties to make written submissions 

9 to it. The dispute resolution board shall rule on any 

10 dispute within 30 days after the date that the dis11 pute was brought before it. 

12 ‘‘(3) The dispute resolution board shall be as13 sisted by the Technical Panel described in section 

14 113(g)(6)(C). 

15 ‘‘(4) Subject to OMB approval, NTIA shall 

16 adopt regulations to govern the working of the dis17 pute resolution board and the role of the Technical 

18 Panel after public notice and comment within 180 

19 days after the date of enactment of the Spectrum 

20 Relocation Improvement Act of 2010. 

21 ‘‘(5) Appeals may be taken from decisions of 

22 the dispute resolution board to the United States 

23 Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Cir24 cuit by filing a notice of appeal with that court with25 in 30 days after the date of such decision. Each 


tjames on DSKG8SOYB1PROD with BILLS
12 

•S 3490 RS

1 party shall bear its own costs and expenses, includ2 ing attorneys’ fees, for any litigation to enforce this 

3 subsection or any decision rendered under it.’’. 

4 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

5 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Spectrum Relocation 

6 Improvement Act of 2010’’. 

7 SEC. 2. RIGHTS AND RESPONSIBILITIES OF FEDERAL ENTI8 TIES IN THE SPECTRUM RELOCATION PROC9 ESS. 

10 (a) ELIGIBLE FEDERAL ENTITIES.—Section 113(g)(1) 

11 of the National Telecommunications and Information Ad12 ministration Organization Act (47 U.S.C. 923(g)(1)) is 

13 amended to read as follows: 

14 ‘‘(1) ELIGIBLE FEDERAL ENTITIES.—Any Fed15 eral entity, as defined in subsection (i), that operates 

16 a Federal Government station assigned to a band of 

17 eligible frequencies, as described in paragraph (2), 

18 and that incurs relocation costs because of the re19 allocation of frequencies from Federal use to non-Fed20 eral use shall receive payment for such costs from the 

21 Spectrum Relocation Fund if the Federal entity is 

22 found by the Office of Management and Budget (in 

23 this section referred to as ‘OMB’) to comply with the 

24 requirements of this section and section 118. For pur25 poses of this paragraph, Federal power agencies exVerDate Mar 15 2010 02:43 Dec 15, 2010 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S3490.RS S3490

tjames on DSKG8SOYB1PROD with BILLS
13 

•S 3490 RS

1 empted under subsection (c)(4) that choose to relocate 

2 from the frequencies identified for reallocation pursu3 ant to subsection (a) are eligible to receive payment 

4 under this paragraph.’’. 

5 (b) PUBLIC INFORMATION ON RELOCATION PROC6 ESS.—Section 113(g) of the National Telecommunications 

7 and Information Administration Organization Act (47 

8 U.S.C. 923(g)) is amended— 

9 (1) by redesignating paragraph (6) as para10 graph (7); and 

11 (2) by inserting after paragraph (5) the fol12 lowing new paragraph: 

13 ‘‘(6) PUBLIC NOTICE OF RELOCATION PLANS.— 

14 ‘‘(A) Not later than 90 days after the date 

15 on which the NTIA, on behalf of eligible Federal 

16 entities and after review by OMB, notifies the 

17 Commission of estimated relocation costs and 

18 timelines for such relocation as required by 

19 paragraph (4)(A), NTIA shall post on its website 

20 detailed transition plans from each of the eligible 

21 Federal entities. Each Federal entity’s transition 

22 plan shall provide the public with the following 

23 information about its spectrum relocation re24 quirements: 

25 ‘‘(i) Current use of the spectrum. 


tjames on DSKG8SOYB1PROD with BILLS
14 

•S 3490 RS

1 ‘‘(ii) Geographic location of the Fed2 eral entities’ facilities or systems. 

3 ‘‘(iii) Frequency bands used by such 

4 facilities or systems, described by geographic 

5 location. 

6 ‘‘(iv) The steps to be taken by the Fed7 eral entity to relocate its current spectrum 

8 uses from the eligible frequencies, detailed 

9 according to timelines for specific geo10 graphic locations in sufficient detail to in11 dicate when use of such frequencies at spe12 cific locations will be shared between the 

13 Federal entity and the commercial licensee. 

14 ‘‘(v) The specific interactions between 

15 eligible Federal entities and NTIA needed to 

16 implement the transition plan. 

17 ‘‘(vi) The name of the director, officer, 

18 or employee responsible for the Federal enti19 ty’s relocation efforts and who is authorized 

20 to meet and negotiate with commercial li21 censees regarding the relocation process. 

22 ‘‘(vii) The Federal entity’s plans and 

23 timeline for using relocation funds received 

24 from the Spectrum Relocation Fund. 


tjames on DSKG8SOYB1PROD with BILLS
15 

•S 3490 RS

1 ‘‘(viii) The Federal entity’s plans and 

2 timeline for procuring new equipment and 

3 additional personnel needed for the reloca4 tion. 

5 ‘‘(ix) The Federal entity’s plans and 

6 timeline for field-testing and deploying new 

7 equipment needed in the relocation. 

8 ‘‘(x) The Federal entity’s plans and 

9 timeline for hiring and relying on contract 

10 personnel, if any. 

11 ‘‘(xi) Risk factors in the relocation 

12 process that could affect the Federal entity’s 

13 fulfillment of its transition plan. 

14 ‘‘(B) To be eligible to receive payment for 

15 relocation costs from the Spectrum Relocation 

16 Fund— 

17 ‘‘(i) Federal entities shall make the 

18 transition plans described in this subsection 

19 available to NTIA at least 90 days prior to 

20 the date that NTIA shall make such plans 

21 publicly available on its website pursuant 

22 to subparagraph (A), in a common format 

23 to be specified by NTIA after public input; 

24 and 


tjames on DSKG8SOYB1PROD with BILLS
16 

•S 3490 RS

1 ‘‘(ii) each transition plan shall be eval2 uated by a standing 3-member technical 

3 panel (in this section referred to as the 

4 ‘Technical Panel’), which shall report to 

5 NTIA and to the Federal entity, within 30 

6 days after the plan’s submission to NTIA, 

7 on the sufficiency of the plan under this 

8 paragraph, including whether the required 

9 public information is included and whether 

10 proposed timelines and estimated relocation 

11 costs, including costs proposed for expand12 ing the capabilities of a Federal system in 

13 connection with relocation, are reasonable. 

14 ‘‘(C) The Director of OMB, the Adminis15 trator of NTIA, in consultation with the affected 

16 Federal entities, and the Chairman of the Com17 mission shall each appoint one member to the 

18 Technical Panel, and each such member shall be 

19 a radio engineer or technical expert. NTIA shall 

20 adopt regulations to govern the workings of the 

21 Technical Panel after public notice and com22 ment, subject to OMB approval, and the mem23 bers of the Technical Panel shall be appointed, 

24 within 180 days of the date of enactment of the 

25 Spectrum Relocation Improvement Act of 2010. 


tjames on DSKG8SOYB1PROD with BILLS
17 

•S 3490 RS

1 No person shall serve as a member of the Tech2 nical Panel for more than 18 months. 

3 ‘‘(D) If any of the information otherwise re4 quired by this paragraph is ‘classified informa5 tion,’ as that term is defined in section 798(b) 

6 of title 18, United States Code, the Federal enti7 ty’s transition plan shall explain the exclusion of 

8 any such information as specifically as possible, 

9 shall make all relevant non-classified informa10 tion available in its transition plan, and shall 

11 discuss as a risk factor the extent of the classified 

12 information and the effect on the relocation proc13 ess of the classified information. 

14 ‘‘(E) NTIA, in consultation with OMB and 

15 the Department of Defense, shall adopt regula16 tions within 180 days of the date of enactment 

17 the Spectrum Relocation Improvement Act of 

18 2010 to ensure information released publicly for 

19 the purpose of this paragraph contains no sen20 sitive or classified information.’’. 

21 (c) SHARING AND COORDINATION OF SPECTRUM BE22 TWEEN COMMERCIAL LICENSEES AND FEDERAL ENTITIES

23 DURING RELOCATION TRANSITION.— 

24 (1) EVALUATION OF SHARED ACCESS.—Section 

25 111 of the National Telecommunications and InforVerDate Mar 15 2010 02:43 Dec 15, 2010 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00017 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S3490.RS S3490

tjames on DSKG8SOYB1PROD with BILLS
18 

•S 3490 RS

1 mation Administration Organization Act (47 U.S.C. 

2 921) is amended— 

3 (A) by striking ‘‘As used’’ and inserting the 

4 following: 

5 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—As used’’; and 

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

7 ‘‘(b) EVALUATION OF SHARED ACCESS.—The Commis8 sion and the NTIA shall jointly establish any applicable 

9 conditions as are determined necessary to define the term 

10 shared access to include such considerations as methods of 

11 sharing spectrum resources, coordination between Federal 

12 and non-Federal entities, such as commercial licensees, and/ 

13 or sharing network infrastructure or other resources.’’. 

14 (2) ELIGIBILITY FOR PAYMENT OF RELOCATION

15 COSTS.—Section 118 of the National Telecommuni16 cations and Information Administration Organiza17 tion Act (47 U.S.C. 928) is amended by adding at the 

18 end the following new subsections: 

19 ‘‘(f) ELIGIBILITY FOR PAYMENT OF RELOCATION

20 COSTS.— 

21 ‘‘(1) SPECTRUM SHARING.—To be eligible to re22 ceive payment for relocation costs from the Spectrum 

23 Relocation Fund, a Federal entity shall— 

24 ‘‘(A) in its transition plan for relocating its 

25 current spectrum uses, provide— 


tjames on DSKG8SOYB1PROD with BILLS
19 

•S 3490 RS

1 ‘‘(i) to the fullest extent possible, for 

2 sharing and coordination of eligible fre3 quencies with commercial licensees, includ4 ing reasonable accommodation by the Fed5 eral entity for the use of eligible frequencies 

6 by the commercial licensee during the pe7 riod that the Federal entity is relocating its 

8 spectrum uses (in this subsection referred to 

9 as the ‘transition period’); and 

10 ‘‘(ii) a presumption that commercial 

11 licensees shall be able to use eligible fre12 quencies during the transition period in ge13 ographic areas where the Federal entity 

14 does not utilize those frequencies; 

15 ‘‘(B) during the transition period, make 

16 itself available, within 30 days after a written 

17 request, for negotiation and discussion with com18 mercial licensees; and 

19 ‘‘(C) during the transition period, make 

20 available to a commercial licensee with appro21 priate security clearances any ‘classified infor22 mation’ as that term is defined in section 798(b) 

23 of title 18, United States Code, regarding the re24 location process, on a need-to-know basis, to as25 sist the commercial licensee in the relocation 


tjames on DSKG8SOYB1PROD with BILLS
20 

•S 3490 RS

1 process with that Federal entity or other Federal 

2 entities. 

3 ‘‘(2) TIMELY AND SUCCESSFUL COMPLETION OF

4 RELOCATION.—In addition to the conditions of para5 graph (1), to be eligible to receive payment for reloca6 tion costs from the Spectrum Relocation Fund, a Fed7 eral entity— 

8 ‘‘(A) shall complete the relocation of its cur9 rent spectrum uses not later than 1 year after 

10 the date upon which funds are transferred to the 

11 entity to fund the relocation; 

12 ‘‘(B) may complete the relocation of its cur13 rent spectrum use at a time period different that 

14 required under subparagraph (A), if prior to the 

15 date the Technical Panel (as described in section 

16 113(g)(6)(C)) is required to post publicly the 

17 Federal entity’s transition plan, the Federal en18 tity receives written approval from the Office of 

19 Management and Budget (in this section referred 

20 to as ‘OMB’), with the advice of the Technical 

21 Panel; and 

22 ‘‘(C) shall make available to NTIA, not 

23 later than 15 days prior to the date that is the 

24 halfway point of the time period described in 

25 subparagraph (A), a complete update of its tranVerDate Mar 15 2010 02:43 Dec 15, 2010 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00020 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S3490.RS S3490

tjames on DSKG8SOYB1PROD with BILLS
21 

•S 3490 RS

1 sition plan, provided that NTIA shall post such 

2 update publicly on its website not later than the 

3 date that is the halfway point of the time period 

4 described in subparagraph (A). 

5 ‘‘(3) Nothing in paragraphs (1) or (2) shall be 

6 construed to adversely affect critical communications 

7 related to the mission of any Federal entity. 

8 ‘‘(4) Subject to subsection (d), payments for relo9 cation costs from the Spectrum Relocation Fund shall 

10 be made to an eligible Federal entity not later than 

11 30 days after the grant of the first license following 

12 the close of the auction. 

13 ‘‘(g) DISPUTE RESOLUTION PROCESS.— 

14 ‘‘(1) If, during the spectrum relocation process, 

15 a dispute arises over the execution, timing, or cost of 

16 the Federal entity’s transition plan, either the Federal 

17 entity or the affected commercial licensee may seek 

18 resolution of the dispute from a 3-member dispute res19 olution board, consisting of a representative of OMB, 

20 NTIA, and the Commission, and chaired by the rep21 resentative of OMB. 

22 ‘‘(2) The dispute resolution board shall meet 

23 with representatives of the Federal entity involved in 

24 the dispute and the commercial licensee together to 

25 discuss the dispute. The dispute resolution board may 


tjames on DSKG8SOYB1PROD with BILLS
22 

•S 3490 RS

1 require the parties to make written submissions to it. 

2 The dispute resolution board shall rule on any dis3 pute within 30 days after the date that the dispute 

4 was brought before it. 

5 ‘‘(3) The dispute resolution board shall be as6 sisted by the Technical Panel described in section 

7 113(g)(6)(C). 

8 ‘‘(4) Subject to OMB approval, NTIA shall adopt 

9 regulations to govern the working of the dispute reso10 lution board and the role of the Technical Panel after 

11 public notice and comment within 180 days after the 

12 date of enactment of the Spectrum Relocation Im13 provement Act of 2010. 

14 ‘‘(5) Appeals may be taken from decisions of the 

15 dispute resolution board to the United States Court of 

16 Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit by filing 

17 a notice of appeal with that court within 30 days 

18 after the date of such decision. Each party shall bear 

19 its own costs and expenses, including attorneys’ fees, 

20 for any litigation to enforce this subsection or any de21 cision rendered under it.’’. 

22 SEC. 3. GAO STUDY. 

23 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Comptroller General of the 

24 United States shall conduct a study regarding the National 

25 Telecommunications and Information Administration and 


tjames on DSKG8SOYB1PROD with BILLS
23 

•S 3490 RS

1 other Federal agencies’ spectrum management capabilities, 

2 including related staff, mission, and current budget for the 

3 annual spectrum-related efforts of the NTIA and such other 

4 Federal agencies. The study required under this subsection 

5 shall include an analysis of expected funding needs and co6 ordination of existing resources of the Federal Government, 

7 by agency, to prepare for any future relocation or sharing 

8 of currently utilized spectrum. 

9 (b) SUBMISSION OF REPORT.—Not later than March 

10 31, 2011, the Comptroller General of the United States shall 

11 submit report on the study required under subsection (a) 

12 to the Committee on Energy and Commerce of the House 

13 of Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, 

14 Science, and Transportation of the Senate. 


tjames on DSKG8SOYB1PROD with BILLS
Calendar No. 696 

111TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 3490 

A BILL 

To clarify the rights and responsibilities of Federal 

for other purposes. entities in the spectrum relocation process, and 

DECEMBER 14, 2010 

Reported with an amendment 


tjames on DSKG8SOYB1PROD with BILLS