HOUSE COMMERCE COMMITTEE APPROVES SPECTRUM TRUST FUND BILL
The House Commerce Committee approved legislation Wed. to streamline the transfer of spectrum from govt. to commercial use. HR-1320, the proposed Commercial Spectrum Enhancement Act, was passed on voice vote with one amendment that House leaders said had the support of both parties and the Administration. The bill would establish a trust fund to compensate govt. users who vacated spectrum and relocated for commercial uses.
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The amendment would require NTIA to conduct a study on how to make govt. spectrum available for unlicensed and other nonauctioned uses. The amendment by Telecom Subcommittee Chmn. Upton (R-Mich.), HR-1320 sponsor, was the result of a compromise with Telecom Subcommittee ranking Democrat Markey (Mass.), who had urged that more unlicensed spectrum be made available.
Committee Chmn. Tauzin (R-La.) said he hoped the bill would be on the House floor in May. He said he had addressed the spectrum issue in a meeting with House committee chairmen and would have more discussions with Appropriations Chmn. Young (R-Fla.). Tauzin said Young still was learning about the bill and the consequences it would have for the appropriations process. He also said he wanted to avoid a markup in the Appropriations Committee. Tauzin emphasized the importance of the measure: “This legislation will give the private sector a clear timeline regarding when new spectrum will be available for advanced mobile services. That should jump-start that portion of the telecommunications sector as companies prepare to roll out new services, and new applications for those services.”
NTIA Dir. Nancy Victory said she was “thrilled” with the committee’s action. She said that should the bill become law, it probably would be used first next year when the 1710- 1755 MHz band comes to auction for advanced 3G services as part of 90 MHz being made available for advanced wireless services, including 45 MHz at 2.1 GHz. However, there still are concerns with House opposition, especially with appropriators. Committee ranking Democrat Dingell (Mich.) urged its members to be vigilant and make sure that the Commerce Committee retained oversight of spectrum issues.