The Wireless Bureau announced changes to the FCC Tower Construction Notification System (TCNS) and Electronic Section-106 System (E-106), approved as part of wireless infrastructure changes. TCNS stopped accepting new submissions, and E-106 will stop at 6 a.m. EDT, Friday. Both systems will start accepting new submissions at 10 a.m. Friday, the bureau said Monday.

American Tower executives made the case for revised wireless infrastructure rules, in meetings with aides to Commissioners Mike O’Rielly and Brendan Carr. The FCC should “strike a reasonable balance” between the interests of local governments and industry, the company said. Collocation is “an economically and environmentally efficient method to deploy new wireless facilities” and macro towers remain “a vital component of the 5G wireless ecosystem,” American Tower said in docket 17-79.

The FCC said 80 entities had access to Universal Service Administrator Co.'s Mobility Fund Phase II challenge process portal as of June 30, up from 64 on May 31 (see 1806010041). The Rural Broadband Auctions Task Force and Wireless and Wireline bureaus gave their second update Monday. The number of carriers remained 37, joined by 13 state and 14 local government entities, 12 tribal agencies and four classified as “other.” State and local entities drove growth in players with access. Challengers have submitted data including 399,390 speed tests, the FCC said in docket 10-90.

The FCC Public Safety Bureau refused to give Miami-Dade County, Florida, more time to complete the 800 MHz rebanding of its public safety radios. The county asked the FCC to the extend the June 26, 2008, deadline to return equipment to Sprint and remove pre-banding channels from about half its 15,000 subscriber units, the bureau said. The retuning there has been otherwise complete since 2014, the bureau said. Sprint “speculates” Miami-Dade wants an extension because it doesn’t want to compensate the carrier for the value of 1,799 radios the company paid Harris to provide to the county, the bureau said. “According to Sprint, Miami-Dade neglected to return the surplus radios to Harris on schedule, and Harris consequently declined to accept the radios for return or to refund their cost to Sprint.” The bureau said in docket 02-55 it need not address such claims. “Miami-Dade has fallen short of justifying its waiver request as required,” the bureau ruled. “It has neither exhibited the diligence that the Commission requires before a waiver request can be granted nor justified the extent of the delay it requests.” The order requires "Miami-Dade and Sprint to fulfil all of their remaining rebanding obligations" within 90 days. The county didn't comment.

Chattanooga uses the 4.9 GHz band for point-to-point microwave connectivity for a regional public safety communications system, it told the FCC. Comments are due Friday on a Further NPRM on the public safety band, approved by commissioners in March (see 1803220037). Chattanooga said in docket 07-100 it relies on what the FCC says is an underutilized band. “The loss of this band in our operations would present a financial hardship to us and the other counties that currently use the band,” the Tennessee city said. “This band has been instrumental in allowing us to provide connectivity to public safety answering point and RF sites.” In comments last week, the Public Safety Communications Council said the FCC should preserve use of the band for public safety agencies. “Major population centers including New York, Boston, Chicago, Seattle, and other cities are making extensive use of the 4.9 GHz band,” the council said. “Oregon has developed a statewide system of traffic control using 4.9 GHz as the backbone of the system. California uses 4.9 GHz statewide for support of the Intelligent Transportation System to monitor and control traffic flow.”

Commissioners dismissed a petition for reconsideration by the Competitive Carriers Association and upheld a Wireless Bureau decision approving transfer of 514 39 GHz licenses from a subsidiary of FiberTower to AT&T. The commission said CCA didn’t have standing to make the challenge. “CCA has not made any allegations of specific competitive harm that was the direct result of the Commission’s consent to the subject Transaction and has not established that it is aggrieved or injured by the Consent Order,” the FCC said. “It makes generalized statements about ‘expense to taxpayers, consumers and 5G competition’ and ‘unjust enrichment’ to FiberTower, neither of which demonstrates how it, or its members, are aggrieved or injured by the consent to the Transaction.” The bureau authorized AT&T to take control of high-band licenses as part of its buy of FiberTower in February (see 1802080055). In April, CCA asked the FCC to overturn the decision (see 1804030032). “Today’s decision is disappointing, and makes it even more important that the FCC continues work to make millimeter wave spectrum available to all carriers at auction as soon as possible,” CCA President Steve Berry told us. “High-frequency millimeter-wave spectrum provides a real opportunity for competitive carriers to utilize valuable, limited spectrum to deploy the advanced telecommunications services that consumers want and demand, especially those living in rural and remote areas.”

Ebsco Sign Group agreed to pay a $55,000 penalty and Cirrus Systems $21,000 to end investigations of RF violations, the FCC Enforcement Bureau said. Both agreed to put in place compliance plans. The bureau has pursued fines against several other billboard companies alleging similar violations (see 1805180068). “Cirrus admits that it marketed LED signs without the required equipment authorization, labeling, and user manual disclosures,” the bureau said. The EBSCO order contained similar language. The companies didn’t comment.

A near-field charging transmitter based on Energous' WattUp RF power-at-a-distance wireless charging technology is available through IDT International, said Energous, which has been getting FCC OK for such products (see 1804110034). It's designed to charge low-power devices including fitness trackers, smartwatches and wireless earbuds.

FCC Chairman Ajit Pai is “pleased to hear” Samsung “stepped up to unlock” FM chips in its Galaxy S9 smartphones, he tweeted Friday, citing an AndroidCommunity.com report. “When disaster strikes, FM-enabled handsets can help save lives,” said Pai. “Hope others take notice and follow Samsung’s lead.” Samsung didn’t comment, nor did representatives of NextRadio, the Emmis Communications FM-reception smartphone app.

The Dynamic Spectrum Alliance wants the FCC to thoroughly investigate satellite use of the C-band, President Kalpak Gude told aides to Chairman Ajit Pa. “For a more complete record of actual utilization of the band, it would be valuable to ask for additional information to what is currently included in the draft data request,” DSA said Friday in docket 12-354. “The draft asks for earth station licensees to provide the transponders that their earth stations are receiving. DSA suggests that given that many earth stations may be receiving signals for less than the full transponder, understanding the actual utilization is useful and without significant additional burden to the earth station operator.” Commissioners are expected to vote on a C-band item July 12, including a draft order that would collect data on earth stations and space stations operating there (see 1806260027).