700 / 800 MHz Regional Planning
Status Update
and
Regulatory Update
Presented by Jeannie Benfaida and John Evanoff, Esq.
Policy and Licensing Division, PSHSB
NRPC Workshop and CAPRAD Training April 24-25, 2012
Tampa, Florida
Policy Division


Background – regional planning purpose,
authority, and Commission expectations
Status Updates
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4/13/2015
700 MHz
800 MHz – Rebanding Amendments
Overview of regional plan amendment process
Plan development and implementation issues
Regionally oriented licensing issues
Bureau support for regional planning committees
2
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4/13/2015
Commission’s role in relation to the RPCs is limited to:

(1) defining regional boundaries,

(2) requiring fair and open procedures, i.e., requiring notice,
opportunity for comment, and reasonable consideration,

(3) specifying the elements that all regional plans must
include, and

(4) reviewing and accepting proposed plans (or amendments
to approved plans) or rejecting them with an explanation.
3
NPSPAC 806-809/851-854 MHz
47 C.F.R. § 90.16 – The Public Safety National Plan
is contained in Report and Order, General Docket
No. 87-112

No assignments will be made until a regional plan has been
accepted by the Commission.

Policy statements in Report and Order direct regional planning

Memorandum Opinion and Order, 3 FCC Rcd 2113 (1988) establishing the 55 regions by modifying regional boundaries for
Texas (Regions 40, 49, 50, 51, 52 and 53; and Great Lakes Area
(now Region 54)
Rebanding Plan Amendments - Public Notice, DA 09212 (rel. 2/10/2009) established requirement for
regions in Waves 1, 2 and 3 to submit amendments.
Streamlined due April 13, 2009, Non-streamlined due
June 10, 2009.

Plans were amended to reflect the 15 megahertz shift
in the NPSPAC band from 821-824/866-869 MHz to
806-809/851-854 MHz
41 Approved Rebanding Plan Amendments Region 48 (US Virgin Islands) – no response.
US/Canada and US/Mexico border areas
WAVE 4 REGIONS
Region 2 Alaska
Region 3 Arizona
Region 5 Southern California
Region 19 New England (Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts,
New Hampshire, Rhode Island & Vermont)
Region 21 Michigan
Region 29 New Mexico
Region 30 New York-Albany
Wave 4 Regions – continued
Region 33 Ohio
Region 36 Western Pennsylvania
Region 43 Washington
Region 50 Texas-El Paso
Region 53 Texas-San Antonio
Region 55 New York-Buffalo

Wave 4 Plan Amendments filing requirements to be announced - Negotiations with
US/Canada and US/Mexico ongoing.
800 MHz NPSPAC
Rebanding Plan Amendments Status
700 MHz Regional Planning
Administration of regional planning is defined in the
Commission’s First Report and Order and Third Notice of Proposed
Rulemaking, WT Docket No. 96-86, 14 FCC Rcd 152 (1998) –
describes the planning process for General Use channels
Authorizes RPCs to prioritize “highest and best use” to make
such determinations - Second Memorandum Opinion and Order,
15 FCC Rcd 16844 (2000) – addressed digital modulation, technical
requirements, efficiency and receiver standards, and further outlined
RPC authority and responsibilities
Consolidation of NB frequencies Second Report and Order, PS
Docket No. 06-229, WT Docket No. 96-86 22 FCC Rcd 15289
(2007).
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9
Plan Requirements


47 C.F.R § 90.527 - Regional plan requirements - each plan must
contain certain “common elements”
Comprehensive Plans will also contain:
 Procedures for requesting spectrum allotments
 Initial “county” pool allotments, varies by region
 Application requirements and RPC evaluation/approval criteria
 Procedure for frequency coordination
 System Design/Efficiency Requirements
 System Implementation
 Adjacent region coordination procedures

47 C.F.R § 90.531 Band Plan



Sets forth the band plan for the 763-775 MHz and 793-805 MHz
bands.
Base and mobile use. The 763-775 MHz band may be used for
base, mobile or fixed (repeater) transmissions. The 793-805
MHz band may be used only for mobile or fixed (control)
transmissions.
Narrowband segments - divided by designated purpose: General
Use, Interoperability, Secondary Trunking, State License, Low
Power, and Reserve channels.

Plan development and implementation issues

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4/13/2015
Flexibility in Allotment pools – ex: By county geographic
political boundary plus, 5+ 10+ miles, where possible. Region 5
(Southern California) is an exception.
Applicants failing to provide sufficient information to the
RPC in order to complete their due diligence evaluation and
frequency recommendation.
 Resolve within the Region or through the NRPC, if necessary
escalate to the Policy and Licensing Division and PSHS
Bureau for resolution.
12

RPC established Loading requirements. There is no
FCC requirement under 700 MHz rules. However, a RPC
700 MHz Plan may include suggested loading
requirements, which the RPC will use in evaluating
applications on a case by case basis.

RPC Interoperability responsibilities: State SIEC and
SWICs. Identify the body with responsibility (RPC, SIEC,
etc.)

Frequency Give-backs – generally. See also recent VHF
waiver re Missouri counties

RPC letters of support for STAs, and applications for
licensure

RPC approval letters must be filed with every application

Specific frequency recommendations, as approved by the
RPC, must be identified in the RPC letter of support to the
public safety applicant
700 MHz Regional Plan Status

44 Plans Submitted – See Docket history in WT Docket No. 02-378 in ECFS
(repository for plans, plan amendments and comments submitted)


Electronic Comment Filing System: http://apps.fcc.gov/ecfs/
42 Plans Approved, See FCC EDOCs for Comment and Approval Public
Notices (PNs)

Commission’s Electronic Documents: http://fjallfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public

1 Plan Pending: Region 44 (West Virginia) – Comment PN rel. 4/17/2012.
Comments due May 7, reply comments due May 17.

1 Plan ON HOLD: Region 47 Puerto Rico, awaiting request for waiver for
unformed region, no adjacent region coordination provided

11 Regions remaining
700 MHz Regional Planning Map – April 2012
4/13/2015
16
Comment Public Notice

Plan and Plan Amendments are reviewed, and if
accepted, placed on public notice for comment.

If found deficient, i.e., rejected -

4/13/2015
Division staff will notify RPC Chair of discrepancy,
resolve staff-to-staff where possible.
Deficiencies must be resolved before deemed
sufficiently compliant to be place on public notice
for comment.
17

FCC Daily Digest (DD) – Public notices are published in
the Commission’s DD with a comment cycle: 20 days for
comments, 10 for replies

Plan, or Plan Amendment approvals are announced by
Public Notice
 EDOCs – Commission’s Electronic Document database contains all
FCC issued documents, PNs, Orders, NPRMs, News Releases, etc.
Plan Administration:
Jeannie Benfaida, Policy Analyst at (202) 418-2313
John Evanoff, Attorney, John.Evanoff@fcc.gov (202) 418-0848
Zenji Nakazawa, Deputy Chief, Policy Division,
Zenji.Nakazawa@fcc.gov (202) 418-7949



Requests for Meeting Announcement PNs:


Staff assistants: Michele Woodfork,
Michele.Woodfork@fcc.gov (202) 418-7058 or
Jose Edwards, Jose.Edwards@fcc.gov (202) 418-2264

4/13/2015
Cc: John Evanoff, and/or Jeannie Benfaida
19
Rebanding:



Brian Marenco, Sr. Engineer Brian.Marenco@fcc.gov (202) 418-0838,
Roberto Mussenden, Attorney Advisor Roberto.Mussenden@fcc.gov
(202) 418-1428, or
John Evanoff, Attorney Advisor John.Evanoff@fcc.gov 202-418-0848
US Canada and US Mexico Border agreements:

Brian Marenco
Narrowbanding:

Roberto Mussenden
Licensing:

Tracy Simmons, Chief, Licensing Branch, Policy and Licensing Division,
Gettysburg (717) 338-2657, or Mike Regiec, Engineer, (717) 338-2603
REGULATORY UPDATE
REGULATORY UPDATE
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700 MHz Broadband and Narrowband
700 MHz D Block and FirstNet
700 MHz Pending Issues
T-Band
VHF-UHF Narrowbanding
800 MHz Rebanding
800 MHz Pending Issues
4/13/2015
21
700 MHz BROADBAND AND NARROWBAND
Currently, the lower half of the 700 MHz Public
Safety Band (763-768/793-798 MHz) is allocated
for broadband.

 The upper half of the 700 MHz Public Safety
Band (769-775/799-805 MHz) is allocated
for narrowband.
 A one megahertz guard band (768-769/798-799 MHz)
separates the broadband and narrowband segments.
4/13/2015
22
700 MHz Band – 2012 Update
Lower 700 MHz Band
698
704
710
A
DTV
B
746
A
B
AT&T
AT&T
AT&T
AT&T
(most of US)
(most of US)
Multiple
Licensees
(most of US)
(most of US)
Ch 56
Ch 57
Ch 58
Ch 59
Ch 54
(acquired
from
Qualcomm)
Ch 55
758
C
B Block Guard
Band (Vacant)
A Block Guard Band
(Access Spectrum,
Pegasus, etc.)
768 769
775
787
776
788
C
PSNB
798 799
805
806
PSNB
PSBB
800
MHz
Verizon
D
Ch 61
752
746
E
PSBB
C
Ch 60
740
Multiple
Licensees
Verizon
A
734
D
Ch 53
C
728
AT&T
Ch 52
757
722
C
Multiple
Licensees
Upper 700 MHz Band
746
716
B
NB
Ch 62
758
WB
Ch 63
764
NB
A
Ch 64
770
D
C
Ch 65
776
Ch 66
782
NB
Ch 67
788
Pre-2007 PS Band
Plan
First Net License
B
WB
Ch 68
794
NB
Ch 69
800
806
D BLOCK AND FIRSTNET


In the Middle Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act of
2012 Congress reallocated the D-Block (758-763 MHz/
788-793 MHz) to deploy a nationwide LTE wireless
broadband network for emergency responders across
the D-Block and public safety broadband spectrum.
Congress established the First Responder Network
Authority (FirstNet) — a new entity within the National
Telecommunications and Information Administration
(NTIA). NTIA has until August 22, to name the FirstNet
Board.
4/13/2015
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INTEROPERABILITY BOARD

The Act required the establishment of the Technical
Advisory Board for First Responder Interoperability.

The Commission named the Board’s members including
representatives of public safety, state and local
governments, manufacturers, and wireless service
providers.
4/13/2015
25
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14 Voting Members Appointed by the FCC (DA 12-455).

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Steve Proctor, Executive Director, Utah Communications Agency Network
Colonel Kenneth C. Hughes, Jr., (Ret), Regional Communications Coordinator, New Orleans Urban Area
Security Initiative
Brian Shepherd, Deputy Director, Adams County (Colorado) Communication Center
Todd Bianchi, Firefighter Paramedic, Washington, District of Columbia Fire and EMS Department
Jim Kohler, Deputy Director, Enterprise Technology Services, Alaska Department of Administration, State of
Alaska
Brenda L. Decker, Chief Information Officer, State of Nebraska
Charles L. K. Robinson, Director, Business Support Services, City of Charlotte, North Carolina
Bob Azzi, Senior Vice President, Network, Sprint Nextel Corporation
Diane C. Wesche, Director, Government Network & Technology, Verizon Wireless
Ed Chao, Senior Vice President, Corporate Engineering and Network Operations, MetroPCS
Communications, Inc.
Ron Strecker, Chief Executive Officer, Panhandle Telephone Cooperative, Inc., and Panhandle
Telecommunications Systems, Inc.
Kenneth C. Budka, Senior Director, Advanced Mission-Critical Communications, Bell Labs Chief Technology
Office, Alcatel-Lucent
Dennis Martinez, Chief Technology Officer, RF Communications Division, Harris Corporation
Paul Steinberg, Senior Vice President and Chief Technology Officer, Motorola Solutions, Inc.
1 Non-Voting Member Appointed by the NTIA

Dereck Orr of the National Institute of Standards Technology (NIST)
INTEROPERABILITY BOARD

First public workshop held on April 23, 2012.

The Interoperability Board has until May 22, 2012 to
submit its recommendations to the Commission, who
must then transmit them with possible revisions to
FirstNet within thirty days of submission (e.g., June 21,
2012). The Board terminates on July 6, 2012.

FirstNet will incorporate the recommended requirements,
without material change, into its Requests for Proposals
(RFPs) for construction and operation of the network.
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NARROWBAND FLEXIBLE USE

The legislation also permits “flexible use” of the
narrowband segments, including broadband usage.
4/13/2015
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700 MHz PENDING ISSUES

The Commission is considering a number of requests for
waiver of the 700 MHz narrowband deadline.

PSHSB sought comment on the State of Maryland
waiver request to operate air-to-ground operations on
the 700 MHz secondary trunking channels. Comments
due April 27, 2012 and Replies due May 2, 2012.
DA 12-602.
700 MHz PENDING ISSUES

On April 6, 2012, the Commission sought comment on
transition issues relating to broadband waiver recipients.
Comments filed on April 20, 2012. DA 12-555.
T-BAND

“T-Band” is the 470-512 MHz band (TV Channels 14-20)

In thirteen major metropolitan markets, channel blocks
within the T-Band are allocated for LMR use (including
Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami,
New York, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, San Francisco,
Washington DC).
T-BAND

The Commission must reallocate the spectrum “used by
public safety eligibles” in the 470-512 MHz band in no
more than nine years, and

begin a system of competitive bidding under section
309(j) of the Communications Act of 1934 to grant new
initial licenses for the use of this spectrum.
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T-BAND

NTIA shall administer grants from the auction proceeds
to cover costs for the relocation of public safety
licensees from the T-Band, and

T-Band relocation must “be completed not later than two
years after the date on which the system of competitive
bidding is completed.”
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VHF and UHF NARROWBANDING



PLMR licensees in the 150-174 MHz and 450-470 MHz
bands must operate using channel bandwidth of no more
than 12.5 kHz or equivalent efficiency by January 1,
2013.
PSHSB granted several Missouri counties a conditional
waiver until Dec. 31, 2013 of the VHF/UHF
narrowbanding deadline. DA 12-245.
Within 90 days of the release date of the Order, those
counties must submit a letter confirming that they will
transition to 800 MHz and, upon doing so, relinquish any
VHF/UHF spectrum.
4/13/2015
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VHF and UHF NARROWBANDING

The Missouri counties should ensure that their
submissions include:



4/13/2015
(1) a list of the frequencies for which they are seeking
a waiver,
(2) a list of frequencies that will be relinquished (if
applicable), and
(3) representations from all licensees covered by the
waiver request that they have committed to take any
actions that form the basis for the waiver justification.
35
VHF and UHF NARROWBANDING

WTB, PSHSB and OET issued a Public Notice listing
recommended factors that waiver requests should
address and emphasized that narrowbanding waiver
requests “will be subject to a high level of scrutiny.”
DA 11-1189.

Licensees should seek to demonstrate that “(i) they have
worked diligently and in good faith to narrowband their
systems expeditiously; (ii) their specific circumstances
warrant a temporary extension of the deadline; and (iii)
the amount of time for which a waiver is requested is no
more than is reasonably necessary to complete the
narrowbanding process.”
4/13/2015
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800 MHz REBANDING

Sprint Nextel Corp. (Sprint), vacated its non-border
spectrum holdings in the “Interleaved Band” (809815/854-860 MHz).

Public safety licensees will have exclusive access to
Sprint vacated channels for 3 years, public safety and
Critical Infrastructure Industries for the next 2 years.
Thereafter, the channels revert to their pre-rebanding
categories.
4/13/2015
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800 MHz REBANDING

The Commission maintains an application freeze
in the Mexico border regions and has an
agreement in principle with Mexico that has not
yet been formalized.

The Commission has reached agreement with
Canada and has established a waiver process
for licensees that require additional time to
complete rebanding.
4/13/2015
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800 MHz PENDING ISSUES

On April 26, 2011, the Commission sought comment on
whether use of TETRA technology should be permitted
in the UHF and 800 MHz bands.

The Commission also waived the rules to permit TETRA
technology in the ESMR and UHF bands.
4/13/2015
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800 MHz PENDING ISSUES

In March 2012 the Commission sought comment on
whether to permit CDMA technology in the ESMR band.

The WTB is also seeking comment on Sprint’s waiver to
deploy CDMA in 11 EA markets.

In 2009 EWA filed a Petition for Rulemaking asking the
Commission to establish full-power interstitial channels
in the 800 MHz Mid-Band between NPSPAC and ESMR
bands.
4/13/2015
40