Sens. Cory Gardner, R-Colo., and Maggie Hassan, D-N.H., moved forward Tuesday with the long-delayed (see 1903270071) refiling of their Advancing Innovation and Reinvigorating Widespread Access to Viable Electromagnetic Spectrum (Airwaves) Act (S-2223), but the reappearance of a House version of the measure won't happen until at least after Labor Day. The Airwaves Act, first filed during the last Congress, aims to identify spectrum for unlicensed use and free up mid-band spectrum for wireless industry purchase via an FCC auction (see 1802070054). Four other senators are co-sponsors -- Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis.; Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va.; Catherine Cortez Masto, D-Nev.; and Marco Rubio, R-Fla. T-Mobile and several communications sector groups backed S-2223 -- the Competitive Carriers Association, CTA and NCTA. CTIA Senior Vice President-Government Affairs Kelly Cole stopped short of endorsing S-2223 but said Gardner and Hassan “are rightly focused on getting more spectrum into the commercial marketplace as possible, which is critical for 5G.” House Communications Subcommittee Chairman Mike Doyle, D-Pa., told reporters his office is “still negotiating” with other lawmakers on a revised House version of the Airwaves Act, which he said is being developed entirely independently of S-2223. “Those discussions are ongoing,” but the filing of a bill is “going to have to wait until the fall” since the House is expected to begin its five-week August recess after this week, Doyle said. He has been eyeing potential lead Republican co-sponsors for the measure, including Reps. Susan Brooks of Indiana and Tim Walberg of Michigan (see 1905080050).

Major Senate 5G security advocates say they're eyeing potential legislative vehicles to advance the Secure 5G and Beyond Act (S-893) and U.S. 5G Leadership Act (S-1625). The Senate Commerce Committee advanced both measures and the Broadband Deployment Accuracy and Technological Availability (Data) Act (S-1822) during a Wednesday markup, as expected (see 1907230048). The committee revised all three measures Wednesday. 5G and spectrum issues also came up during two Wednesday hearings on White House Office of Science and Technology Policy matters.

The FCC can't legally hold a private sale of C-band spectrum, said Michael Calabrese, director of the Wireless Future Program at New America, in a meeting with Aaron Goldberger, aide to Chairman Ajit Pai. “The Public Interest Spectrum Coalition and diverse industry parties have shown that a private auction or sale would violate Section 309(j) of the Communications Act and willfully ignore Congressional intent and precedent,” said a filing in docket 18-122. “The Commission has no legal authority to authorize, let alone oversee, a private auction. General provisions such as Sections 303(c), 303(r) and 4(i) cannot possibly provide the authority for a public or private auction that is not consistent with the explicit provisions of Section 309(j).” The best course is a traditional FCC auction, Calabrese said. The Free State Foundation called on the FCC to act swiftly on the C band in a filing Monday. “Time is of the essence in making additional spectrum resources available for commercial providers of next-generation mobile broadband services,” FSF said: “Hundreds of megahertz of new spectrum are needed to supply the future data-rich demands of American consumers and enterprises.”

The FCC Wireless Bureau approved Northern Michigan University’s (NMU) request for a waiver of the filing freeze on new educational broadband service licensees so it can add to its network. FCC commissioners approved revised rules for the 2.5 GHz band at their July meeting, with an emphasis on selling it at auction (see 1907100054). “We conclude that application of the filing freeze would be inequitable and contrary to the public interest under the unique circumstances presented by NMU,” the bureau said in a Monday order: “NMU is unique among EBS licensees -- while most EBS licensees have not built their own facilities and have leased their spectrum to commercial providers, NMU has built and operates its own LTE broadband network that covers a significant portion of the rugged, underserved territory in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. The network is used extensively by NMU’s students and faculty, students of partner institutions, and other members of the community.”

Parties in proposed reallocation of some C band for 5G said each of their plans is the only one that makes sense, in docket 18-122 comments posted Friday. The Wireless and International bureaus and offices of Engineering and Technology and of Economics and Analytics said in a public notice Friday they were seeking comment on the band-clearing plans put forward by AT&T; America's Communications Association, the CCA and Charter Communications; and the Wireless ISP Association, Google and Microsoft. Comments are due Aug. 7 and replies Aug. 14.

The Enterprise Wireless Alliance is questioning why the FCC quietly stopped processing applications for Part 90 license renewals for the T band. A provision in the 2012 spectrum law mandates public safety agencies move off the 470-512 band by 2021 (see 1808020051). EWA complained the FCC won’t contingently renew the licenses and never released a notice saying it won’t renew licenses. The agency didn’t comment.

The FCC won Tuesday in a court challenge by former 700 MHz C-block spectrum licensee GLH in a defaulted debt case in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. Still, GLH has options for reducing the payment demand by the regulator, said its lawyer. A judge appeared somewhat skeptical of FCC arguments at oral argument in January (see 1901090057).

House Communications Subcommittee members focused on the spectrum policy fracas between the Commerce Department and the FCC during a Tuesday hearing to a far greater extent than expected (see 1907150020). The quarrel involves NASA and NOAA concerns about potential effects of commercial use of spectrum on the 24 GHz band, sold in the recent FCC auction, on federal technology using adjacent frequencies (see 1905230037). Lawmakers also showed significant interest in the debate over the best plan for clearing spectrum on the 3.7-4.2 GHz C-band, though an industry-focused panel that appeared centered on the issue was truncated amid House votes.

There's “widespread agreement” mid-band spectrum is needed for 5G and the C-Band Alliance’s plan to make available only 180 MHz is “inadequate to meet those requirements and promote a competitive environment,” T-Mobile representatives, accompanied by auction economists, told the FCC. Most also want an FCC-run auction, it said. “Bidders know and understand the rules, policies, and practices the Commission has developed over more than twenty years of conducting spectrum auctions,” T-Mobile said: “These rules, policies, and practices are not easily replicated and offer full transparency, including for any payment terms.” The carrier sees growing support for clearing the band “by deployment of alternative transmission mechanisms, such as fiber.” The reps met staff from the Wireless and International bureaus and offices of Economics and Analytics; Engineering and Technology; and General Counsel. The CBA didn’t comment on the filing posted Monday in docket 18-122. “Our market-based process with the … auction design offers the quickest way to free up C-band spectrum for wireless 5G while protecting a content distribution system that serves nearly 120 million American households every day,” a CBA spokesperson emailed: The auction design “developed by the world's leading auction design experts is fast, efficient, fair, effective and transparent, and, combined with FCC oversight, serves the public interest.” America's Communications Association said it answered staff questions on a proposal made with the Competitive Carriers Association and Charter Communications. “The transition to fiber can be accomplished within eighteen months in urban areas (Stage 1), within three years in the majority of the remaining areas (Stage 2), and within five years for a few hard-to-reach areas (Stage 3),” ACA estimated. “The staggering of the transition among different types of areas means that, for a limited period of time, urban areas where the lower 370 MHz of the band has been cleared will neighbor areas where that spectrum is still used to provide satellite service to earth stations.” The Wireless ISP Association said it filed a recent study that “shows that current C-band earth stations are vastly overprotected, and right-sizing those protections can result in gigabit fixed broadband services for more than 80 million Americans, particularly in underserved communities.” The study was co-sponsored by WISPA, Google and Microsoft. An FCC decision is expected by the end of the year (see 1907090064).

The FCC made some major changes to its focus in the three weeks the 2.5 GHz educational broadband service order was before commissioners. They approved the order last week, with Democrats Jessica Rosenworcel and Geoffrey Starks dissenting to most parts (see 1907100054). A side-by-side comparison shows significant changes. While the FCC has often changed course on an item on the way to a vote, the decision of Chairman Ajit Pai to post drafts three-weeks before a meeting make the changes more apparent than they were in the past, former officials said.