Public Safety and Business Industrial Associations Propose 4.9 GHz Management Plan

Last week, the American Petroleum Institute, Enterprise Wireless Alliance, Forestry Conservation Communications Association, International Municipal Signal Association, National Sheriffs’ Association, and Utilities Technology Council jointly filed a proposal with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) recommending an organizational  framework for managing the 4.9 GHz band that would increase overall use of the band while preserving public safety primacy. The consortium suggested assigning a single entity, whose governing leadership would include representatives from stakeholder associations.  The entity would develop a band plan for the FCC’s review and approval that would accommodate multiple use cases such as fixed, mobile, UAVs, and robotics, with spectrum assignments managed through the FCC’s certified frequency advisory committees on a first-come, first-served, and non-discriminatory basis.  

This proposal is responsive to the FCC’s suggestion that “assigning spectrum management responsibility to a single nationwide entity might simplify the task of developing a national framework for the band.”