Federal Register: FCC (Personal Radio & Amateur)

This document corrects portions of the Commission's rules that were published in the Federal Register of January 15, 1998 (63 FR 2315).

In this Third Report and Order, the Commission adopts uniform competitive bidding rules for all future auctions. The Commission believes that these rule changes will simplify and streamline its regulations in order to increase the overall efficiency of the competitive bidding process. These rule changes are necessary to further the Commission's goals of simplifying and streamlining its regulations, and to develop uniform auction rules and procedures for all future auctions. The intended effect of this action is to adopt uniform final rules and procedures applicable to the Commission's spectrum auction program.

In the Second Further Notice of Proposed Rule Making (``NPRM''), the Commission seeks comment on a variety of proposed rules relating to its general competitive bidding rules for all auctionable services. The Commission believes that these proposals will assist its efforts to simplify and streamline its regulations in order to increase the overall efficiency of the competitive bidding process. These proposed rules are necessary to further the Commission's goals of simplifying and streamlining its regulations, and developing uniform auction rules and procedures for all future auctions. The intended effect of this action is to seek comment on proposed rules and procedures applicable to the Commission's spectrum auction program.

On September 12, 1997 (62 FR 47960), the Commission published final rules in the Second Memorandum Opinion and Order, which deals with the transition period for implementing new guidelines for human exposure to radiofrequency (RF) electromagnetic fields; and the criteria for determining whether amateur radio stations must perform routine environmental evaluations for human exposure to RF fields. The Commission is correcting the amendatory language and table to ensure that the amendments are properly incorporated in the 1998 revision of the Code of Federal Regulations.

This Second Memorandum Opinion and Order amends the Commission's rules to refine and clarify the decisions adopted in the Report and Order, regarding the use of new guidelines and methods in the evaluation of the environmental effects of RF electromagnetic fields or emissions produced by FCC-regulated transmitters. The Commission believes its decisions provide a proper balance between the need to protect the public and workers from exposure to potentially harmful RF electromagnetic fields and the requirement that industry be allowed to provide telecommunications services to the public in the most efficient and practical manner possible.

The Commission adopts a Second Report and Order designating the frequency spectrum band between 47.2 and 48.2 GHz for commercial use on a licensed basis. The Commission decides to permit fixed, fixed- satellite, and mobile uses consistent with the Table of Frequency Allocations governing the band. The Commission also decides to define service rules in a future rulemaking, based on the dominant use of the spectrum, and finds that the most likely dominant use will be fixed, point-to-multipoint services delivered through the deployment of fixed platforms located in the stratosphere. The Commission adopts the proposal to license operations on an area-wide basis and determines to divide the spectrum into five pairs of license blocks of 200 megahertz each pair, with each pair separated by 500 megahertz of spectrum. These actions are taken to promote the commercial availability of millimeter wave technology in providing the potentially valuable uses of licensed spectrum above 40 GHz.

The Commission adopts a Second Report and Order, Order on Reconsideration, and Fifth Notice of Proposed Rulemaking in this proceeding. A summary of the Fifth Notice of Proposed Rulemaking portion of this decision was published in the April 7, 1997 issue of the Federal Register (62 FR 16514),and seeks comment on specific rules to be applied for the partitioning and disaggregation of LMDS licenses. The Second Report and Order designates an additional 300 megahertz of spectrum in the 31 GHz band to LMDS and adopts service rules for LMDS, as well as competitive bidding rules for LMDS spectrum. The Order on Reconsideration denies petitions for reconsideration of the Commission's dismissal of applications for waiver of the Commission's point-to-point rules governing the 28 GHz band. The Second Report and Order contains modified information collections subject to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 and has been submitted to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review under the PRA. OMB, the general public, and other Federal agencies are invited to comment on the modified information collections contained in this proceeding.

This action amends the amateur service rules to improve eligibility standards for a club station license, recognizes the role of volunteer examiner (VE) teams and session managers, establishes a special event call sign system, and authorizes a self-assigned indicator in the station identification announcement. The Commission declined to allow examination credit for licenses formerly held. The amendments are necessary in order to serve the amateur service licensees more effectively. The effect of this action is to improve license processing, increase operational flexibility, and minimize regulation.

The Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM), released March 3, 1997, seeks comment on proposed rules to allow amateur stations to transmit spread spectrum type emission technologies that employ additional spreading sequences. It also seeks comment on a proposal that each SS transmitter be required to automatically limit its power to that actually necessary to carry out the communications when the transmitter power exceeds 1 watt. This action is in response to a petition for rule making from the American Radio Relay League, Inc. The intent of the NPRM is to compile a record in sufficient detail for us to determine whether we should authorize amateur stations to use additional spread spectrum type emission technologies and whether such use would facilitate the ability of the amateur service to contribute to the development of SS communications.

On March 13, 1997, the Wireless Telecommunications Bureau of the Federal Communications Commission released a Public Notice establishing an expedited pleading cycle for oppositions and replies to oppositions to two petitions for reconsideration of the Commission's Report and Order establishing rules and policies for a new Wireless Communications Service (``WCS'') in the 2305-2320 and 2345-2360 MHz bands. The Public Notice summarizes the petitions for reconsideration and announces that oppositions to the petitions for reconsideration are due on or before March 21, 1997, and that replies to oppositions to the petitions for reconsideration are due on or before March 25, 1997.

On February 19, 1997, the Federal Communications Commission (``Commission'') adopted a Report and Order establishing rules and policies for a new Wireless Communications Service (``WCS'') in the 2305-2320 and 2345-2360 MHz bands. This action is being taken pursuant to the Omnibus Consolidated Appropriations Act, 1997. The effect of this action is to make thirty megahertz of spectrum available for the provision of fixed, mobile, and radiolocation services, and satellite Digital Audio Radio Services.

This action seeks additional comment on waiver of the three year construction benchmark that IVDS lottery license winners must meet by March 29, 1997. It is necessary for the Commission to receive comment on the waiver request in order to determine if the waiver should be granted. The effect of the action will be to seek comment on the requested rule waiver.

This document contains corrections to the final rules adopted in the Report and Order regulations, which were published on August 7, 1996 (61 FR 41006). The rules relate to the permissible exposure limits from FCC-regulated transmitters as contained in Sec. 1.1307.

This Tenth Report and Order modifies the competitive bidding rules for the upcoming auction of Interactive Video and Data Service (IVDS) licenses as proposed by the Sixth Memorandum Opinion and Order and Further Notice of Proposed Rule Making, In the Matter of Implementation of Section 309(j) of the Communications Act--Competitive Bidding. Specifically, the rule amendments include eliminating the bidding credits available to women- and minority-owned IVDS applicants and extending bidding credits to small businesses based upon a revised two-tiered small business definition, i.e., providing varying bidding credit amounts to small businesses of different sizes. The Tenth Report and Order also clarifies the attribution rules for affiliates of IVDS applicants, and amends the competitive bidding rules to increase the amount of the upfront payments required to participate in the IVDS auction. The intended effect of this action is to establish the competitive bidding rules for the upcoming auction of IVDS licenses.

By this Notice of Proposed Rule Making (``NPRM''), the Federal Communications Commission (``Commission'') proposes to establish a new Wireless Communications Service (``WCS'') in the 2305-2320 and 2345- 2360 MHz bands. This action is being taken pursuant to the Omnibus Consolidated Appropriations Act, 1997 (``Appropriations Act''). The intended effect of this action is to make thirty megahertz of spectrum available for the provision of fixed, mobile, radiolocation services, or satellite Digital Audio Radio Services (``satellite DARS'').

The Commission declines to adopt additional service rules or coordination procedures for the amateur service and Data-PCS devices or for the amateur service. The Commission also prohibits airborne use of all unlicensed devices in the 2390-2400 MHz band in order to protect space research conducted at the National Astronomy and Ionospheric Center Observatory (NAIC) at Arecibo, Puerto Rico. In addition, the Commission declines to combine the 2390-2400 MHz and 2400-2483.5 MHz bands for use by both Data-PCS and other unlicensed devices. It reaffirms that as long as the unlicensed device satisfies the technical standards of the band in which it is operating, the device would be permitted to transmit in either band. This action permits immediate use of the 2390-2400 MHz and 2402-2417 MHz bands by the amateur service, Data-PCS devices, and other unlicensed devices under existing rules. Finally the new and enhanced services and uses permitted by this action will create new jobs, foster economic growth, and improve access to communications by industry and the American public.

This action proposes to amend the amateur service rules to authorize citizens of certain countries in Europe and the Americas to operate stations while on short visits in the United States by facilitating implementation of two pending international reciprocal operating arrangements--European Conference of Postal and Telecommunications Administrations (CEPT) radio-amateur license and the Inter-American Convention on an International Amateur Radio Permit (CITEL/Amateur Convention). It is necessary so that U.S. amateur operators can operate in twenty-two European countries, eight South American countries, Mexico, and Honduras, and so that operators from those countries can operate their amateur stations in places where the amateur service is regulated by the Commission. The effect of the action will be to provide a convenient procedure for tourists, conference attendees, students, and professors whereby they can operate their amateur stations while visiting in the United States.

The Further Notice of Proposed Rule Making (FNPRM) tentatively concludes that the 25 percent bidding credit available to women- and minority-owned applicants in IVDS is not supported by the record, and seeks additional evidence to support the provision of the bidding credit to women- and minority-owned applicants in light of the Supreme Court's decision in Adarand. The FNPRM also seeks comment on whether and how the Commission should extend bidding credits to small businesses. The FNPRM also requests comment on whether the Commission should implement a tiered bidding credit scheme to provide varying bidding credit amounts to small businesses of different sizes and modify its small business definition. The FNPRM also tentatively concludes that the Commission should increase the upfront payments from $2,500 for every five licenses won to $9,000 per Metropolitan Statistical Area license won, and $2,500 per Rural Statistical Area license won.

The Sixth Memorandum Opinion and Order affirms the competitive bidding procedures adopted in the Fourth Report and Order, with several exceptions. Specifically, the Sixth Memorandum Opinion and Order proposes to: clarify the Commission's anti-collusion rules; permits use of simultaneous multiple round bidding for interactive video and data service (IVDS) auctions; and eliminates the tax certificate program available to investors in women- and minority-owned businesses in accordance with Congressional action. The Sixth Memorandum Opinion and Order also grants a petitioner's request that bidding credits be made available for both licenses in each IVDS service area. The intended effect of this action is to resolve petitions for reconsideration and to clarify or modify the competitive bidding rules governing the methodology and procedure for auctions for IVDS licenses.