Senate Communications Subcommittee members focused on 5G, need for rural broadband and potential for freed-up federal spectrum during a Thursday hearing on implementing the Making Opportunities for Broadband Investment and Limiting Excessive and Needless Obstacles to Wireless Act. The Mobile Now Act was enacted as part of the FY 2018 omnibus spending bill (see 1803230038). The law requires DOD and other federal agencies identify at least 255 MHz for broadband use by 2022. It requires the FCC and NTIA identify at least 100 MHz for unlicensed use below the 8 GHz band.

The FCC will host a workshop Jan. 14 at its headquarters on the 2.5 GHz band rural tribal priority window opening Feb. 3, it said Monday. It said more information, including specifics about the application filing process and the workshop, will be posted at its rural tribal window website by Jan. 6.

NARUC's board OK'd two resolutions asking the FCC delay telecom-related changes, meeting attendees told us. One resolution asked the agency to delay sharing 6 GHz frequencies with unlicensed devices including for Wi-Fi until automatic frequency coordination (AFC) can be proven to ward off interference. Critical Infrastructure Committee Chair Gladys Brown Dutrieuille and Telecom Committee Chair Karen Charles Peterson worked out an agreement about making a further change to the last sentence of the item before the board met, as some had expected (see 1911180050), said NARUC General Counsel Brad Ramsay in an interview Thursday. The sentence now says the association, referring to critical-infrastructure industries, recognizes "the criticality of utility and other CII communications in the 6 GHz spectrum band," and asks the FCC to "modify its proposal to not allow unlicensed operations in the 6 GHz band unless and until such time that it has tested and proven that its AFC system works as intended to protect license holders, including utility and other CII systems, and it is demonstrated that unlicensed operations will not cause harmful interference to license holders as determined by the FCC." Utilities Technology Council CEO Joy Ditto said the item "sends a strong signal to the" FCC "it must first ensure it can protect the mission-critical communications networks located in the 6 GHz band before it allows unlicensed users access to the band. Ensuring that the numerous critical-infrastructure communications networks, including utilities, public safety, oil and gas, telecommunications companies, and many others, are protected from interference is absolutely essential if the FCC is to proceed with this plan.” NARUC's board also okayed asking the FCC to set automatic speech recognition standards for IP captioned telephone service before allowing ASR reimbursement, as expected (see 1911150011). The FCC declined to comment.

The FCC’s draft NPRM on the 5.9 GHz band says segmenting the band, with 45 MHz allocated for Wi-Fi and other unlicensed and 30 MHz for intelligent transportation systems, is the best approach to the long underutilized band. ITS “remains a critical priority” but times have changed since the FCC allocated spectrum for dedicated short-range communications (DSRC) 20 years ago, the draft says. The agency released items set for a vote at commissioners' Dec. 12 meeting. They include media and suicide prevention hotline actions and an NPRM on clearing the 3.3-3.55 GHz band.

FCC Chairman Ajit Pai will seek a vote at the Dec. 12 FCC commissioners' meeting proposing to take most of the 5.9 GHz band away from dedicated short-range communications (DSRC), reallocating it for Wi-Fi and other unlicensed use. The Wednesday announcement was expected (see 1911190066). The NPRM follows months of discussions with the Department of Transportation and was changed in reaction to DOT questions, a senior official said on a background call with reporters. DOT remains concerned.

FCC Chairman Ajit Pai is expected to announce Wednesday the FCC will tackle sharing in the 5.9 GHz band between safety systems and Wi-Fi at the Dec. 12 FCC meeting. Pai is to speak Wednesday at a WifiForward event in Washington on a smart spectrum future. It's unclear whether the FCC has worked out a deal with the Department of Transportation, industry officials said Tuesday. Pai is expected to propose reallocating 45 MHz of the 75 MHz band to unlicensed use, officials told us.

RigNet has concerns about unlicensed use of the 6 GHz band, its executives told officials from FCC Office of Engineering and Technology, including Chief Julius Knapp. RigNet is worried about the “critical communications” the company offers on its network, which covers “approximately 60,000 square miles of seawater in the Gulf of Mexico and, especially, with the beach crossings where the 6 GHz backbone for the network comes ashore.” RigNet seeks “a 35-mile radius exclusion zone around each of the sites where the 6 GHz point-to-point network crosses the shore,” said a filing Monday in docket 18-295.

SAN ANTONIO -- The FCC seems poised to allow unlicensed devices including Wi-Fi to use at least part of the 6 GHz band that utilities and some others occupy to monitor infrastructure like power grids. Even though utilities and state telecom regulators have concerns about that approach, the federal regulator seems ready to act in coming months, said stakeholders on all sides that we spoke with on the sidelines of NARUC.

Utilities Technology Council President Joy Ditto warned FCC Commissioner Mike O’Rielly of risks to critical communications systems from Wi-Fi in 6 GHz. O’Rielly has said some utilities were looking for protections beyond which they're entitled by their licenses (see 1908210052). “Utilities and other critical infrastructure industries operate extensive microwave communications systems in the 6 GHz band,” UTC said in docket 18-295, posted Friday. “Refrain from allowing unlicensed operations in the 6 GHz band, and require further field testing of the automated frequency control technology proposed to mitigate harmful interference before any such unlicensed operations should be permitted in the band.”

The FCC and Energy Department have nothing to fear from low-power Wi-Fi in the 6 GHz band, said the Wi-Fi Alliance, responding to DOE concerns. The alliance supports “rigorous protection of those and other critical incumbent licensed uses of the 6 GHz band,” said a filing posted Wednesday in docket 18-295. “The FCC’s proposal does just that by contemplating that the immediate unlicensed use of the 6 GHz band will be limited to low-power devices operating indoors only, ensuring that there will be no impact on incumbent operations like those of the water and energy industries,” the group said: Higher-power use of the band “will be subject to fully developed and tested automatic frequency coordination systems.”