The FCC Wireless Bureau accepted for filing waivers from six tribal groups to use the 2.5 GHz band for broadband or next-generation wireless, the bureau said Tuesday. The bureau has already granted 262 licenses following an application window last year, the bureau said. Applications from the Sitka Tribe of Alaska and the Central Council of Tlingit and Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska were among the six.

Commissioners OK’d a Further NPRM proposing revised rules for short-range radars in the 60 GHz band 4-0 Tuesday, as expected (see 2107090047). But Commissioner Brendan Carr questioned whether the FCC is moving aggressively enough on opening spectrum for 5G and unlicensed use. The FNPRM explores new rules for the 57-64 GHz portion and asks questions about using the broader 57-71 GHz band.

The Utilities Technology Council, Edison Electric Institute and Southern Co. urged the FCC to pause further certification for unlicensed equipment in the 6 GHz band, pending further interference testing, in a call with aides to acting Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel. “The probability of interference to licensed microwave systems and the risk to the safety, security, and reliability of critical infrastructure energy and water utilities, as well as public safety and commercial communications systems which rely on 6 GHz microwave systems is simply too great,” said a filing posted Wednesday in docket 18-295.

The FCC should focus on coordination and outreach to federal agencies when identifying future commercial spectrum, said Commissioner Nathan Simington in a virtual talk for WifiForward Monday. “Communication with other federal agencies is key,” Simington said. He compared finding new spectrum to a real estate developer building in “greenfield” versus one putting up buildings in Paris or New York. “No matter where you want to build, you are going to have to deal with prior efforts.” He said he would like to see the FCC’s November 5.9 GHz order remain in effect, but it isn’t clear whether the dedicated short-range communications industry and the Department of Transportation will succeed in having aspects of that order changed. “I haven’t heard any rumblings at the commission, but you never know.” Simington said “light-touch regulation” drove innovation in unlicensed spectrum bands, and the agency should hold to that philosophy going forward: “We have to be a little bit humble about what we can see in our foggy crystal balls.” The world “is in a pivotal place” for the future of the 6 GHz band, Simington said. He said it's likely China will raise the matter of Wi-Fi on the band at the 2023 World Radiocommunication Conference, and it's up to the U.S. to persuade European Union countries to “stay the course.” The more countries that adopt 6 GHz for Wi-Fi, the better the environment for advances in the technology, he said. Asked about concerns that the U.S. could be falling behind other countries in internet technology, the Canadian native said the U.S. spawned most of the fundamentals of modern telecom, and it should “buck up.” Americans have a “tendency to have low self-esteem in some of these areas,” Simington said: American innovation was “fantastic in the past and will be fantastic in the future.”

A Southern Co.-backed report on South, Lockard & White-Electric Power Research Institute testing of the impact on unlicensed low power indoor devices’ use of the 6 GHz band proves “the FCC’s decision to permit that unlicensed access into the 6 GHz band will cause harmful interference to existing users” (see 2008310049), said Utilities Technology Council CEO Sheryl Osiene-Riggs in a statement. The Southern report, filed Wednesday in docket 18-295, said LPI devices “will cause harmful interference to licensed fixed microwave systems, including those used to monitor and protect the electrical grid and for public safety operations.” Unlike “prior testing that utilized simulated equipment and configurations, these measurements used commercial off-the-shelf, FCC-approved 6 GHz LPI access points and mobile devices,” Southern said. “Several of the testing locations were co-located with existing Wi-Fi access points, thus making these measurements representative of actual locations used by consumers with real-world devices.”

Oral argument for AT&T's and others' challenge to the FCC 6 GHz order is Sept. 17 at 9:30 a.m. EDT, said a U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit order posted Wednesday (in Pacer; see June 23 oral argument entry). AT&T asked the court to overturn the order because it would result in “harmful interference” (see 2104050033).

The FCC released rules for the 3.45 GHz auction, to start Oct. 5, in a Wednesday Wireless Bureau and Office of Economics and Analytics public notice. The FCC will auction 4,060 10 MHz flexible-use licenses in the contiguous 48 states and Washington, D.C., the PN said. All will be for 15 years and renewable. Licensees may hold up to four 10 MHz blocks in the band in any market. Short-form applications are due July 21, upfront payments Sept. 2. Staff rejected complaints by the Rural Wireless Association and Blooston carriers that the timing is too aggressive. The timing “is not only consistent with the Commission’s historical timing between spectrum auctions, it is actually considerably longer than the period between most recent spectrum auctions,” the FCC said: “Neither RWA nor Blooston have made any attempt to explain how this auction differs from previous spectrum auctions such that potential applicants need an entire year to prepare.” The agency adopted a $25 million cap on bidding credit discounts for an eligible small business and $10 million on discounts for an eligible rural service provider, same as proposed. “We are unpersuaded by comments suggesting that the adoption of a $25 million cap has inhibited participation by small businesses in recent auctions,” the PN said. It relented on minimum bids. “Given the totality of the comments regarding the proposed minimum opening bid amounts and how they might affect potential new entrants and small carriers, we adopt revised, lower minimum opening bid amounts … as proposed by Verizon and supported by US Cellular and T-Mobile,” the FCC said. The notice adopts 3 cents per MHz/POP for partial economic areas 1-50, .006 cent for PEAs 51-100 and .003 cent for all other markets, with a minimum bid of $1,000. The agency had proposed 6 cents/MHz/POP for PEAs 1-50 and 2 cents elsewhere. The PN rejected AT&T’s request to address the “no excess supply” rule in cases where a bidder wishes to reduce demand from two blocks to none and only one block of that reduction can be applied due to insufficient excess demand. “We disagree with AT&T’s premise that a license for a single block of spectrum in the 3.45 band cannot be used efficiently,” the FCC said. “This auction will bring us closer to 5G service that is fast, secure, resilient, and most importantly, available across the country,” said acting Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel. It had sought comment in a notice commissioners OK’d 4-0 in March (see 2103170061).

Regulatory fees for non-geostationary orbit satellites and a fight between cable and direct broadcast satellite operators dominated comments posted at the FCC Friday in docket 21-190 on proposed changes to regulatory fees. SpaceX slammed the FCC for trying to “allocate increased NGSO regulatory fees based on the 12 GHz rulemaking proceeding, which the NGSO operators strongly urged the Commission not to initiate.” Allocating fees “to the victims of such an effort” would be “inequitable” and “set a precedent that encourages speculation and gamesmanship,” SpaceX said.

Top officials from the Edison Electric Institute and Alliant Energy told FCC Commissioner Nathan Simington it's important to protect the 6 GHz band for electric utilities. “EEI is very concerned about the impact of interference on electric company microwave links from unlicensed devices operating in the 6 GHz band, particularly as such devices proliferate,” said a filing posted Wednesday in docket 18-295. EEI also said it convened a CEO-level task force “to explore how investor-owned electric companies can best play a role as solution partner in closing the digital divide.”

Thirteen months after the FCC approved opening 1.2 GHz in the 6 GHz band for Wi-Fi, disagreements remain, FCBA heard during a webinar Monday. It got an update on 5.9 GHz, reallocated partly for Wi-Fi in November (see 2011180043).