Subject: [NEXTEL-1] Who Should Regulate the Airwaves?

From: NEXTEL-1
Date: Wed, 23 Jun 2004 03:44:47 -0400

Who Should Regulate the Airwaves?

By Ralph Haller
Former Chief, Private Radio Bureau
Federal Communications Commission

June 2004

The Communications Act of 1934, as amended, currently divides
regulation of spectrum for federal and non-federal uses between
the president and the FCC, respectively.

 The National Telecommunications and Information Administration
(NTIA), which is part of the Department of Commerce, actually
administers the federal spectrum, but things may be changing.

The NTIA, at the direction of the president, recently held a series of
public meetings to analyze how well the current system is working
and to recommend changes to the president. The meetings were
aimed at gathering information regarding the following four objectives:

- Determining spectrum requirements.

- Reviewing the spectrum management process.

- Looking at spectrum efficiency mechanisms.

- Examining the deployment of new technologies.

Early in the meetings, it became clear that one possibility would
be to combine the regulatory functions of the FCC and NTIA, at
least for public safety spectrum. Those who argued for the single
regulatory agency suggested that having both federal and non-
federal spectrum available in a single pool could increase the
amount of spectrum available to local and state public safety entities.

Public safety representatives voiced quite the opposite view.
Many in the public safety community saw such a move as a means
for the federal government to grab non-federal spectrum. They
feared that under a single agency, federal needs would always
supersede non-federal needs, resulting in a spectrum loss. Many
also argued that the FCC functions as a strong advocate for securing
and maintaining adequate spectrum for local and state use. That
advocacy would be lost under a single agency

Even if the president decides that a single agency is a good idea,
Congress may not agree. To make such a change in regulatory
structure, the Communications Act would have to be rewritten through
the introduction of a bill in Congress. The bill would be debated
vigorously until it either died or passed.

Part of that debate would undoubtedly center on whether Congress
would lose influence over the airwaves. Because Congress created
the FCC as an independent agency, and because Congress controls
the funding of the FCC, it has great influence over how the FCC acts.
By creating a single agency, Congress would essentially be handing
that power over to the president and giving up its power to influence
spectrum decisions. Rarely has Congress considered the president
to be a better decision maker than it is, so it will be difficult to get
Congress to walk away from spectrum management.

Over the next few months, all of the NTIA recommendations will be
debated
by Beltway insiders. The results of the upcoming presidential election
could also influence the outcome of the controversy This initiative has
the potential
to make the most dramatic changes to the Communications Act since it was
initially adopted in 1934.

Stay tuned.

Ralph Haller served as chief of the FCC's Private Radio Bureau
for more than 8 years. He currently is president of Fox Ridge
Communications in Gettysburg, PA. Contact him at [email-masked]
or (717) 334-7991

MissionCritical Magazine - June 2004 - Page 14

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