FCC Fri. required ‘mandatory coordination zones’ near public safe...

zones mean commercial base station operators will have to coordinate their operations with public safety licensees. Order, adopted July 2 but not released until Fri., responded to petitions for reconsideration by National Public Safety Telecommunications Council (NPSTC) and Public Safety Wireless Network. NPSTC asked that FCC restore original upper 700 MHz band plan provision that limited commercial base stations to lower part of band and sought more stringent out-of-band emission limits. Responding to previous petition for reconsideration of upper 700 MHz order, FCC earlier had removed restriction, allowing base stations to operate there. Latest order kept intact that upper band provision for base stations but said new coordination zones would “establish an anticipatory, rather than reactive, process for controlling interference to public safety operators in the upper 700 MHz band.” Commission added: “We also note our interest in exploring measures that would approach the other side of the interference issue -- providing for more robust public safety signals rather than simply constraining CMRS signals.” Order turned down NPSTC proposal for more categorical restrictions and TIA proposed limitation on signal strength of commercial transmissions. FCC said it recognized that when commercial base station transmitting in 777-792 MHz and public safety base station receiver were in “very close physical proximity,” certain mitigation measures could be needed on case-by-case basis. “An approach more focused on the circumstances likely to occasion interference thus is preferable to dealing with potential interference by adopting more stringent categorical limits,” agency said. FCC acknowledged concerns of public safety community based on its 800 MHz band experience with interference. Mandatory coordination zones are “preferable approach” to anticipating interference concerns, instead of “burdening the public safety community with ‘after the fact’ resolution of interference problems,” it said. Commission noted that in recent proposed rulemaking exploring ways to mitigate interference problems for public safety at 800 MHz, options outlined include reducing strength of interference signal, raising strength of desired signal or both. “Similarly, in the upper 700 MHz band, if the strength of public safety signals were increased at the edge of a public safety system’s coverage area, this increase would provide additional assurance against interference from both intermodulation effects and out-of-band emissions,” it said. FCC said that if public safety community wanted to consider increase in signal levels their systems’ use in upper 700 MHz band, “we would be receptive to considering such a proposal.”