Public safety organizations wrote to Rep. Fossella (R- N.Y.) on T...

of lawmakers urged FCC Chmn. Powell not to give Nextel spectrum outside the 800 MHz band without conducting an auction under Sec. 309(j) of the Communications Act. After that letter, a staff proposal began circulating on the 8th floor that would have Nextel pay for incumbent retuning at 800 MHz and the difference between that and the value of 10 MHz at 1.9 GHz. The Assn. of Public Safety Communications Officials, National Sheriffs’ Assn., International Assn. of Chiefs of Police, and International Assn. of Fire Chiefs told Fossella they disagreed with some of the “basic elements” of the lawmakers’ letter. For the past 2 years, “the commercial wireless industry, led by Verizon and Cingular, have approached the resolution of the interference experienced by the public safety community as a competitive matter without regard to the need to cure the interference being experienced by public safety,” the groups said: “Until now, they have continuously and vigorously opposed any form of rebanding -- which would not impact their operations -- in favor of after-the-fact remediation, akin to the arcade game of shooting the weasel as it moves from hole to hole.” The “consensus plan” is backed by these public safety groups, Nextel, PCIA and others. In the letter to Fossella, APCO and the 3 other groups said that 2 years ago they explored the possibility of an 800 MHz “in-band” realignment scheme. They said that among the reasons this plan wasn’t pursued was that a “green field” is needed to accommodate operations while relocation is happening. Meanwhile, Nextel told the FCC in an ex parte filing this week that it would make $4 billion in contributions, including realignment costs for public safety and private wireless carriers, under the consensus plan. Nextel recently argued at the FCC that it would make all-inclusive contributions under the consensus plan of $5.4 billion, while the spectrum it would receive at 1.9 GHz is worth $3.5 billion (CD March 8 p8). Verizon Wireless has argued at the FCC that this spectrum should be valued at $5.3 billion. In its latest filing, Nextel told the FCC that its internal rebanding costs under the consensus plan would be $400 million. It estimated the 4 MHz it would contribute under the plan at 900 MHz at $800 million, while it said another 4 MHz at 700 MHz is worth $346 million.