Subject: [NEXTEL-1] NTIA- MYTH v. REALITY ~~~

From: [email-masked]
Date: Thu, 05 Aug 2004 15:18:25 -0400

From The Red Book~

CHAPTER 1

Authority and Organization1.

1AUTHORITY

The Communications Act of 1934, as amended, provides for the regulation of
interstate and foreign commerce in communication by wire or radio. This Act is
printed in Title 47 of the U.S. Code, beginning with Section 151.The functions
relating to assigning frequencies to radio stations belonging to and operated by
the United States, or to classes thereof, conferred upon the President by the
provisions of Section 305(a) of the Communications Act of 1934, were transferred
to the Secretary of Commerce by Reorganization Plan No. 1 of 1977 and Executive
Order 12046 of March 26, 1978. The National Telecommunications and Information
Administration (NTIA) Organization Act, as revised, directs the Secretary to
assign to the Assistant Secretary and the NTIA the responsibility for the
performance of the Secretary's communica-tions and information functions,
including those above.These functions were transferred to the Assistant
Secretary of Commerce for Communications and Information (Administrator, NTIA)
by Department of Commerce Organization Order 10-10 of October 5, 1992. The text
of this order is reproduced below.

http://www.ntia.doc.gov/osmhome/redbook/1.pdf
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MYTH:

NTIA and the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) do the same work -- there
is no need for this duplication.

REALITY:

NTIA is the principal Federal voice for Executive Branch positions on crucial
domestic and international telecommunications and information issues, including
representing the
Administration's positions before the FCC. In contrast to NTIA, the FCC is an
independent agency. It does not represent or report to the Executive Branch.
The FCC regulates the private sector's use of the spectrum, largely by
developing and enforcing rules mandated by legislation and licensing private
companies' use of the radio spectrum.
Regulations are on a case-by-case basis, in response to industry and private
needs and according to the votes of the FCC's five commissioners. NTIA manages
the Federal government's use of the spectrum.

Government spectrum needs -- many involving safety of life (air traffic control)
and national security -- are best served through the Executive Branch. Because
commercial needs may
dominate, spectrum allocation decisions for these critical functions should be
kept separate from the commercial allocation decisions made by the FCC.
NTIA initiates policies which encourage greater competition and development in
the U.S. telecommunications industry. NTIA's past efforts and forward thinking
have led directly to the
FCC's implementation efforts today for spectrum auctions and telephone company
provision of video dial tone service.

MYTH:
Executive Branch telecommunications policy is already formulated within the
Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) in the White House.

REALITY:
OSTP focuses on a very limited number of telecommunications issues. Staffed with
36 employees, OSTP is divided into four divisions: science, technology,
environment, and national
security and international affairs. Within the technology division, OSTP works
on the U.S. space and aeronautics program, defense technology, educational
applications of technology,
manufacturing technologies, and advanced computing and communications
technologies.

OSTP is clearly not able to assume the full range of NTIA's broad duties and
responsibilities. Moreover, NTIA is more accessible to the general public as
well as the business and public
interest communities. As a part of the Department of Commerce, NTIA's activities
fit well within the Department's overall framework and mission.

MYTH:
There is too much duplication within the U.S. Government's telecommunications
activities.

REALITY:
NTIA responsibilities encompass a broad and diverse range of telecommunications
issues, including domestic and international policy, spectrum management,
research, and grant
applications. Within the Federal Government, the State Department, the U.S.
Trade Representative, and other entities may address telecommunications as a
peripheral aspect of their
primary missions. Frequently, these entities rely upon NTIA for specific
telecommunications expertise. If NTIA were not available, many of these entities
would expand their own staffs to
compensate for the expertise no longer available from NTIA.

MYTH:
The private sector will perform essential telecommunications functions if NTIA
is eliminated.

REALITY:
NTIA's global telecommunications activities are conducted in bilateral and
multilateral fora on primarily a government-to-government basis. These
activities, vital to achieving market
access for U.S. products and services, cannot be undertaken by the private
sector because no one company or group of companies can represent fairly the
diverse interests of the U.S.
government or the American business community as a whole. NTIA has been
successful through the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) and its
conferences, such as the World
Radiocommunications Conference (WRC), negotiating international
telecommunications standards that are favorable to the broad range of U.S.
businesses and consumers.
NTIA activities cover the entire range of telecommunications today: domestic and
international telecommunications policy, spectrum management, telecommunications
research, and
applications projects funded by telecommunications grants. NTIA's in-depth
expertise enables it to draw valuable linkages between seemingly separate and
distinct issues that might
otherwise have been treated in isolation.

MYTH:

Other countries do not have an NTIA, FCC, and numerous other entities involved
in their telecommunications activities.

REALITY:
Every other country has its own Ministry of Telecommunications that develops and
implements its national telecommunications policies. The authority of these
Telecommunications
Ministries includes the Executive Branch policy development functions of NTIA as
well as the regulatory functions of the FCC. For example, spectrum is owned
entirely by the
government in most countries. Governments, through their Telecommunications
Ministries, dictate spectrum use policies with priority given to government
needs, building national
industries (often through monopolistic government-owned corporations), and
limiting the potential impact of foreign competitors.
There is a growing international consensus that policy development and
regulatory functions should be separated. As a result, many countries are now
creating, in addition to their
Telecommunications Ministries, an independent regulatory body like the FCC.
These countries have looked to the U.S. as a model for effective
telecommunications deregulation. Without
NTIA, the U.S. would be placed at a severe negotiating disadvantage vis a vis
other governments.

MYTH:

There is no compelling reason for telecommunications activities to be under the
Department of Commerce.

REALITY:
NTIA's functions -- telecommunications policy, spectrum management, research,
grants -- belong together and belong at the Department of Commerce. The most
recent of NTIA's
major accomplishments include:

Spearheading the first G-7 Ministerial Conference where U.S. Global Information
Infrastructure principles were adopted and eleven joint projects were launched;
Releasing over 200 MHz of Federal spectrum to the private sector to allow
emerging technologies to actually reach the marketplace;
Developing legislation authorizing spectrum auctions;
Designing state-of-the-art electronic auctioning methods which formed the basis
for those implemented by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) after
Congress passed
legislation in 1993 (to date, the FCC has received total bids that will result
in payments of approximately $9 billion to the U.S. Treasury); and
Leveraging $24.4 million in Federal matching grant funds to achieve a total
investment in our nation's information infrastructure of nearly $70 million.
These achievements clearly demonstrate the intimate relationship of
telecommunications and the economic prosperity of the U.S. The economy,
business, jobs -- this is Commerce's
mission and, with the synergy of a dedicated staff skilled in all aspects of
telecommunications, NTIA is a major contributor to fulfilling the Departmental
mission.
Further, continuing the telecommunications functions at Commerce recognizes the
ties between business, government, and technology within an environment where:
1.Telecommunications and Information are vital to the public welfare, national
security, and competitiveness of the United States.
2.Rapid technological advances being made in the telecommunications and
information fields make it imperative that the United States maintain effective
national and international
policies and programs capable of taking advantage of continued advancements.
3.Telecommunications and information policies and recommendations advancing the
strategic interests and the international competitiveness of the United States
are essential aspects
of the Nation's involvement in international commerce.
4.There is a critical need for competent and effective telecommunications and
information research and analysis and national and international policy
development, advice, and
advocacy by the executive branch of the Federal Government.
5.As one of the largest users of the Nation's telecommunications facilities and
resources, the Federal Government must manage its radio spectrum use and other
internal
communications operations in the most efficient and effective manner possible.

MYTH:
Government spectrum management is the same as private sector spectrum management
-- all spectrum management activities can be driven by competitive principles
and
the result will be more efficient spectrum use.

REALITY:
To efficiently allocate spectrum between the private and public sectors depends
on each sector's ability to determine the value of that spectrum. The public
sector may be handicapped in
this process because of the difficulty in measuring the societal value of
government services. NTIA's efforts help assure that government has the spectrum
available to fulfill its national
security and public safety responsibilities. These essential responsibilities
include air traffic control, defense communications, and law enforcement.
Through its efficient management of the Federal government spectrum, NTIA
recently made 235 Mhz of spectrum available to the private sector, which will
spur innovation and
development of new telecommunications services.

MYTH:
Government is building the information superhighway.

REALITY:
The private sector is building the information superhighway. Leadership actions
by the Secretary of Commerce and NTIA are stimulating private sector interest
and investment in the
Nation's information infrastructure. Through the Telecommunications and
Information Infrastructure Assistance Program (TIIAP), NTIA is providing
matching grant funds to ensure that
local communities and non-profit institutions can offer all Americans the
benefits of advanced telecommunications technologies. In 1994, the first year of
the program, $24.4 million of
Federal funds was matched with private sector funds of $43 million, resulting in
nearly $70 million worth of investment in our nation's infrastructure. These
funds enabled over 100
communities in 45 states to provide greater access to their citizens.

The information superhighway also holds tremendous potential for Federal
government applications. These applications range from information dissemination
and virtual conferences to
gain public input, to common databases available to Federal/state/local
government agencies. At the same time, there are information policy issues which
must be resolved before the
infrastructure can reach its potential. NTIA has taken the lead on many of these
issues, including universal service, privacy, and security.

MYTH:
The Federal government controls most of the useable spectrum (some say as much
as 80%) and therefore should give up some of its reserves to the private sector.

REALITY:
The Government is allocated exclusive use of a very small portion of the
spectrum. The remainder is controlled either by the FCC (representing private
sector use) or mutually between
the FCC and NTIA (Federal government). The Government has no spectrum reserves
per se ... it only uses what it needs to provide critical services to the
public, such as national
defense, law enforcement, and air traffic control.

There is a national plan for spectrum use called an allocation table. This table
specifies the radio services, service priority (e.g., primary or secondary), and
whether the service is for
non-government or government or both (shared). The table is divided into
approximately 800 frequency bands from 0 to 300,000 MHz. Of the 300,000 MHz
allocated, the Government
has exclusive use of 1.4% (4271 MHz), non-Government users have exclusive use of
5.5% (16561 MHz), and the remainder, 93.1% (279168 MHz), is shared between the
Government
and non-government users.

The vast majority of spectrum use for both the private sector and the Federal
government is below 30,000 MHz (or 30 GHz). From an allocation point of view in
the 0 to 30,000 MHz
range, the government exclusive allocation is 7% (2271 MHz), non-government
users have 30% (8961 MHz), and the remainder (63%) (18768 MHz) is shared.
http://www.ntia.doc.gov/ntiahome/myths.html

Fred Towers wrote:

> Ummmm...  Actually the NTIA does regulate all Federal agencies as far as
> administrative (non DoD tactical) frequencies go.  That includes DoD
> administrative frequencies.  And the TVA.
>
> NTIA rules generally parallel the FCC rules.  There are a few exceptions,
> but not really all that many.  And yep, narrowbanding is just around the
> corner.
>
>    Date: Wed, 4 Aug 2004 11:12:07 -0700 (PDT)
>    From: Mike McKenna <[email-masked]>
> Subject: Re: Tennessee Valley Authority Switches To  Nextel To Avoid FCC
> "narrowband"  mandate for Land Mobile Radio- (Poor  Misguided Soles)
>
> AGAIN -  I say HOGWASH and a Double BOUDERDASH !!!   NTIA does NOT regulate
> Federal US Government agencies.   THE NSC and NSA working with the OTP - EOP
> do.     It does not matter who's system or radio you use.  All future
> communications systems will use the same type of radios with the same
> channel spacing and operationg conditions.    Nextel had a good salesman --
> and the buyer liked how or what Nextel had to sell.   Is Nextel better - ???
> Maybe not.  It had nothing to do with anything else.