FCC order aims to clear radio problems

Over several weeks, officials in Cobb County, Ga., an Atlanta suburb, were mystified by the radio communications at Fire Station 13. Intermittently, paged alerts telling the station to respond to incidents were not being received. At a congested intersection nearby, police noticed they were unable to communicate with dispatchers.

Over the last several years, public safety agencies whose communications operate in the 800 Megahertz (MHz) spectrum have increasingly bumped up against interference and dead spots. Commercial mobile radio services (CMRS), which include Nextel, Verizon and others whose frequencies are close to those of emergency channels, have created the problem.

In response to complaints about interference with public safety radio systems, the Washington, D.C.-based Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has issued a decision that will eventually cost Reston, Va.-based Nextel Communications $4.8 billion. The ruling is one that Nextel lobbied for. Competitor Verizon bitterly characterized the plan as a “huge windfall” for Nextel and threatened legal action in its filings with the FCC. Others in the industry are taking sides on the issue.

The FCC’s response, order 04-168, was two-fold: implement technical standards called “best practices,” and “re-band” the 800 MHz spectrum. Re-banding will involve moving all current users, except public safety organizations, to other frequencies. The plan spectrally segregates first responders by dividing them from other cellular systems with 2 MHz of “guard band.”

Nextel must bear the costs of moving the incumbents and give up certain of its licenses in the 800 MHz and all in the 700 MHz bands. In exchange, Nextel will buy two 5 MHz bands of 1.9 gigahertz (GHz) frequency, which will allow it to move quickly into wireless data — something its competitors are already doing.

Those competitors want the 1.9 GHz frequencies auctioned to the highest bidder rather than sold to Nextel, who will receive $1.6 billion credit for the licenses relinquished as well as credit for the costs of relocating incumbents. Those moving costs may hit the $3 billion mark. The difference is to be paid to the U.S. Treasury as an “anti-windfall” tax.

The FCC called for a Transitional Administrator to oversee the reconfiguration and for Nextel to establish a $2.5 billion letter of credit to ensure adequate funding for the process. The order also requested a review by the U.S. Comptroller General.

The Washington, D.C.-based Cellular Telecommunications & Internet Association (CTIA) had submitted an alternate plan to the FCC, giving Nextel licenses in the 2.5 GHz band rather than the 1.9 GHz band. While Nextel had originally included 2.5 GHz as a suggested solution to the FCC, it filed notice in May that 2.5 GHz would not be acceptable to shareholders. The development of technology for use in the 2.5 GHz range has been slow, but products and vendors already exist for the 1.9 GHz range. Verizon’s FCC filings indicated it would accept only the 2.5 range for Nextel as a solution. The First Response Coalition, a group consisting of several special interest organizations, has called upon Congress and the courts to stop the FCC’s action. Gary Kepplinger, deputy general counsel for the Government Accountability Office (GAO), confirmed that the GAO would be reviewing the order and looking at the legal issues.

The GAO and the Comptroller General are expected to complete their reviews by October and the re-banding is expected to take 36 months. If there are delays, first responders will be dealing with the interference and dead spots for much longer.

On the Nextel side of the controversy, the International Association of Fire Chiefs (IAFC), the International Association of Chiefs of Police, the Major Cities Chiefs Association, National Sheriffs’ Association and the Major County Sheriffs’ Association sent a joint letter to Congress urging that no further delays be added by changing the FCC order.

Even CTIA may have softened its stance by sending a letter to IAFC expressing a willingness to work with the other organizations. While the letter has not been made public, CTIA spokesman John Walls says, “Public safety needs should be first and foremost. We will do all we can to make sure those needs are addressed.”

The Association of Public-Safety Communications Officials (APCO), educated attendees about the order at its conference in August. APCO was active in lobbying for a solution, and its Web site includes a listing of interference problems that police departments have identified.

Cobb County’s recent troubles were on that list. Tracy Roberts, Cobb County’s radio system specialist, identified the cellular site that appeared to be causing the interference problem for fire and police departments. Verizon called to fix the problem within 24 hours, she reports. Nextel called soon after, and the communication difficulties evaporated — at that location. However, interference problems remain at another cell site in the county.

Linda Jones is an Atlanta-based freelance writer.