Sen. McCain (R-Ariz.) lauded an FCC plan for a public safety netw...

public safety manage part of the auctioned spectrum, McCain said the FCC proposal holds the key to solving the nation’s interoperability problems. Public safety clearly needs more spectrum, McCain said, citing data pegging the need at 97.5 MHz of additional spectrum for full interoperability. The Commission proposal deserves “serious consideration,” McCain said, suggesting that auction participants agree to accommodate public safety’s specifications before the auction. A network that includes a public safety component would be an “excellent use of the public spectrum and an outstanding example of a public-private partnership,” McCain said. He also advised the Commission to consider a mix of license sizes when devising its rulemaking to “further development of wireless broadband.” Consumers would benefit from policies encouraging competition, McCain said: “Market-driven spectrum policies, and not encumbering rules, would ensure that spectrum does not lay fallow due to extensive litigation, or for other reasons.”