Channels for Vehicular Repeaters – Close But Not Close
The Commission issued an Order and Notice of Proposed Rulemaking seeking comments as to whether its rules allowing the licensing and operations of Vehicle Repeater Systems (VRS) by public safety licensees on certain frequencies within the VHF band should be changed in response to a Petition for Rulemaking filed by Pyramid Communications. The Commission acknowledged the importance of mobile repeaters to public safety, and requested input on frequency coordination methods that could protect users from interference and associated bandwidth and power level limitations. This item needs to move forward quickly as both I/B and PS licensees have struggled to accommodate the spectrum requirements of these devices.
Category: In the newsWheeler Closer to FCC Chairmanship
President Obama nominees Tom Wheeler (D) as Chairman of the FCC and Michael O’Rielly as the second Republican FCC Commissioner have concluded their mandatory Senate confirmation hearings. A Senate vote is expected soon after which they will be seated at the agency.
Category: In the newsPending Advocacy Efforts
EWA will be filing comments in support of the Mobile Relay Associates waiver request to operate UHF offset frequency pairs situated on the band edge between the I/B Pool and GMRS spectrum in four metropolitan areas.
EWA will also be submitting a letter in response to the FCC’s denial of a waiver request from Ascend Performance Materials in which it requested exemption from narrowband requirements. EWA will suggest that the purpose of narrowband would not be compromised if licensees operating low-power systems in confined facilities such as manufacturing plants did not meet the rules, particularly if such licensees agreed to accept secondary status.
Category: EWA On Your SideEWA Drafts Expansion/Guard Band Pre-Coordination Procedures
EWA has drafted procedures for the pre-coordination of applications for 800 MHz Expansion Band and Guard Band spectrum for consideration by the FCC’s certified frequency advisory committees. While there are accepted procedures for Sprint Vacated Spectrum in the 800 MHz Interleaved Band, there are no procedures in place among the coordinating committees for these additional bands that are implemented to avoid instances of mutual exclusivity. The FCC has a tendency to dismiss all mutually exclusive 800 MHz applications. Once agreement has been reached, the agreement will be provided to the FCC and posted on the LMCC’s web site.
Category: EWA On Your SideEWA Discusses Signal Boosters with FCC
EWA met with FCC staff to discuss the registration requirements for consumer signal boosters that may have been installed by enterprises to meet business requirements rather than for personal use. EWA had earlier filed comments in this matter in 2013. (Petition for Clarification)
Category: EWA On Your SideWhy Does Public Safety Want to Share I/B Spectrum
In response to a Public Safety Communications Council (PSCC) explanation that was intended to justify public safety use of Industrial/Business spectrum, EWA noted in a response to the FCC that the public safety coordination policies that treat all PS frequency assignments as exclusive, “is not consistent with the FCC rules and cannot, on its own, justify waiver relief to access I/B pool frequencies.” EWA added that if public safety shared channels are determined to be potentially unacceptable due to the opportunity for harmful interference as suggested by PSCC, then “those applications should seek spectrum in the various bands that have been allocated since 1997 for PS use only where channel exclusivity is the norm.”
Category: EWA On Your Side