Congressional disagreements over the reallocation of spectrum used by federal agencies has delayed the reauthorisation of the FCC’s auction powers
Wireless Telecommunications Bureau consults on auction alternatives
On 7 March 2024, the US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) issued a public notice seeking input on alternative spectrum allocation methods. Specifically, the FCC’s Wireless Telecommunications Bureau invited comments on a series of non-auction spectrum assignment methods. Since March 2023, the FCC has had no powers to conduct spectrum auctions after Congress failed to reauthorise its authority (which tends to coincide with debates on the use of auction proceeds) for the first time in three decades. Given the lapse of authority, this public notice therefore reflects the FCC’s ongoing work to achieve its statutory duty to make spectrum resources available for use in the public interest even without the ability to conduct an auction. The regulator notes its currently unassigned inventory includes spectrum in the 600MHz, 700MHz and 800MHz bands.
Options include dynamic spectrum sharing and non-exclusive site-based licences
Though it invites commentators to make their own recommendations, the FCC’s public notice presents four specific alternatives to auctions, which it suggests could be used in combination:
Dynamic spectrum sharing, such as the framework in place for the Citizens Broadband Radio Service (CBRS);
Non-exclusive site-based licensing, coordinated directly between licensees or through a third-party frequency coordinator;
Leasing licences to inventory spectrum without permanent allocations; and
Grants of Special Temporary Authority, which are typically used in temporary circumstances such as emergencies.
The regulator has asked respondents to also consider any specific conditions it could set through these assignment methods to incentivise network investment, as well as ensure robust and efficient spectrum use, create a level playing field, prevent harmful interference and promote coexistence among spectrum users.
Uncertainty, animosity cloud the future of US spectrum policy
The reauthorisation of the FCC’s auction authority has largely stalled due to disagreements over the reallocation of spectrum currently employed for government use, including frequencies identified in the Biden Administration’s National Spectrum Strategy. US Senators from both political parties have voiced competing opinions over the past year on the reallocation of spectrum set aside for federal use, including spectrum used by the US Department of Defense (DoD). Critics of the approach set out in the National Spectrum Strategy have called on the Biden Administration to commit to actually reallocating the spectrum it plans to study and to incorporate additional bands into study plans. Meanwhile, a bipartisan group of Senators wrote to the Biden Administration discouraging it from reallocating the lower 3GHz band currently in use by the DoD. As these disagreements play out in Congress, FCC Chair Jessica Rosenworcel continues to push for the swift reauthorisation of auction authority, noting that the regulator has raised over $233bn (£182bn) in auction proceeds since its first auction in 1994. While the fate of auction authority sits in limbo, the FCC claims it faces a “unique and historic challenge” to support the deployment of advanced wireless services across the country without using its most effective spectrum allocation tool.
