First Responders Protection Act of 2010

Bill: 111-s-3625
Sponsor: Sen. Lieberman, Joseph I. [ID-CT]
Introduced: 2010-07-21 in the Senate
Policy area: Science, Technology, Communications
Subjects: Administrative law and regulatory procedures
Emergency communications systems
Federal Communications Commission (FCC)
Government studies and investigations
Government trust funds
Internet and video services
Internet, web applications, social media
Licensing and registrations
Telephone and wireless communication

Summary:
action_date: 2010-07-21
text: 
First Responders Protection Act of 2010 - Amends the Communications Act of 1934 to increase the electromagnetic spectrum allocation for public safety services by 10 megahertz and reduce such allocation for commercial use by the same amount.
 
Directs the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to: (1) allocate the paired electromagnetic spectrum bands of 758-763 megahertz and 788-793 megahertz (referred to as D Block) for public safety broadband communications and license such paired bands to public safety; (2) establish rules to permit a public safety broadband licensee to authorize public safety service providers to construct and operate a wireless public safety broadband network in the licensee's spectrum if such authorization would expedite public safety broadband communications; (3) require that any wireless public safety broadband network be fully interoperable, provide for user roaming, be disaster survivable, and have the appropriate level of cyber security; (4) establish regulations to authorize the shared use of the public safety broadband spectrum and network infrastructure by entities that are not defined as public safety services; (5) establish regulations to allow use of the public safety broadband spectrum by emergency response providers; and (6) develop a public safety agency statement of requirements that enables nationwide interoperability and roaming across any communications system using public safety broadband spectrum.
 
Specifies organizations that shall be included in the Board of Directors of the Public Safety Broadband Licensee.
 
Establishes in the Treasury: (1) the Public Safety Interoperable Broadband Network Construction Fund; and (2) the Public Safety Interoperable Broadband Network Maintenance and Operation Fund.
 
Directs the Secretary of Commerce to: (1) establish a grant program to assist public safety entities to establish a nationwide public safety interoperable broadband network in the 700 megahertz band; and (2) administer a program through which not more than 50% of maintenance and operational expenses associated with the public safety interoperable broadband network may be reimbursed from the Maintenance and Operation Fund. 
 
Directs: (1) the Assistant Secretary of Commerce to identify, at a minimum 50 megahertz of contiguous spectrum at frequencies located between 1675 megahertz and 1710 megahertz to be made available for immediate reallocation; and (2) the FCC, by January 31, 2013, to conduct the auction of the licenses for such spectrum, and for the spectrum between the frequencies of 2155 megahertz and 2180 megahertz.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2010-07-21
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
action_date: 2010-07-21
text: Sponsor introductory remarks on measure. (CR S6082-6083)
action_date: 2010-07-21
text: Introduced in Senate