By Donny Jackson

Multiple public-safety organizations recently have submitted filings to the FCC about the 4.9 GHz, including two key law-enforcement organizations that expressed support for a proposal that would grant the FirstNet Authority with a nationwide license to the mid-band spectrum.

In a letter dated Feb. 13, the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP) said that public-safety agencies have been “provided priority, preemption and local control” during incidents by the FirstNet nationwide public-safety broadband network (NPSBN) and that a similar approach would be effective with 4.9 GHz spectrum.

“As you know, the 4.9 GHz band has never been licensed in a traditional manner and, therefore, the commission and others have expressed concerns that the band has been underutilized,” according to the IACP filing. “However, successfully adapting to the 5G environment will require the public-safety community to greatly expand its utilization of the 4.9 GHz band.

“To that end, the IACP urges the commission to protect and preserve the 4.9 GHz spectrum for public-safety use, protect incumbent public-safety users, assign the spectrum to a single nationwide licensee on behalf of public safety, and leverage the very successful FirstNet experience and assign a nationwide 4.9 GHz license to the FirstNet Authority.”

This position echoes the stance taken by the Public Safety Spectrum Alliance (PSSA), which has long advocated for the FirstNet Authority to be awarded with a license for the 4.9 GHz spectrum, much as the FirstNet Authority was granted 700 MHz Band 14 spectrum when Congress established the organization in 2012.

The Fraternal Order of Police (FOP) also expressed support for a nationwide framework in its 4.9 GHz filing, which cautioned against the FCC adopting new rules that would result in a “fractured, patchwork approach that results in different uses of the band depending upon the geographic area, or even upon the licensee within the same geographic area. This decentralized framework has been in place for 20 years, and the band has remained chronically underutilized.”

Such rules could result in commercial entities “cherry-picking” desirable geographic locations to deploy disparate solutions, while much of the U.S. could be left unserved, according the IACP. Instead, the IACP indicates support for integrating 4.9 GHz spectrum with the FirstNet system, although the law-enforcement organization does not expressly call for the FirstNet Authority to receive a nationwide license to the 4.9 GHz band.

“The FOP agrees with the First Responder Network Authority’s (FirstNet Authority) filing that integrating the 4.9 GHz spectrum into the Nationwide Public Safety Broadband Network (NPSBN) would ‘undoubtedly further the public interest,’” the IACP filing states. “FirstNet has proven it can successfully deploy and operate a nationwide wireless broadband network dedicated to America’s public safety.

“Through the FirstNet Authority Board and the FirstNet Public Safety Advisory Committee, those of us in law enforcement or other public safety disciplines play a direct role in the oversight, governance, and evolution of the FirstNet network. In our view, making the 4.9 GHz spectrum available for nationwide FirstNet 5G deployment is the most expedient and impactful way we can operationalize the 4.9 GHz spectrum.”

Additional support for a “centralized framework” to govern the 4.9 GHz band comes from the Metropolitan Fire Chiefs Association (Metro)—a group representing the leaders of fire departments that protect more than 150 million U.S. residents. However, the Feb. 13 filing from Metro does not mention FirstNet or the FirstNet Authority.

“We support the Commission’s decision to dedicate the 4.9 GHz band exclusively to public safety, mandating priority, and preemption for these uses over any others and establishing a nationwide framework to fulfill public safety’s increasing demand for dedicated 5G spectrum,” according to the Metro filing.

“A fragmented, inconsistent approach, allowing varied uses based on location or licensee, has proven ineffective. For two decades, this has led to the band’s chronic underutilization due to the absence of a unified strategy and economies of scale, stifling both usage and innovation. The new, centralized framework is essential for maximizing the band’s potential and spurring innovation.”

Of course, this idea of centralizing administration of 4.9 GHz band has not received unanimous support, with the Coalition for Emergency Response and Critical Infrastructure (CERCI)—a new group with members that include public-safety and non-public-safety entities—recently reiterating its opposition to the PSSA proposal.

CERCI’s recent filing with the FCC states that the PSSA proposal represents a loss of local control for public-safety entities, because it would require “local jurisdictions to subscribe to a nationwide network, operated exclusively by a commercial carrier, to access and use the 4.9 GHz band.”

In January 2023, FCC commissioners approved new rules for the 4.9 GHz spectrum. This marked the first action taken by the FCC regarding 4.9 GHz since commissioners halted some short-lived rules—passed near the end of the Donald Trump presidential administration—soon after President Joe Biden took office in January 2021.

In its new rules, the FCC committed to a framework that would have a single nationwide band manager to coordinate usage of the spectrum, although the agency is seeking comment about how the band manager should be chosen. In addition, the rules call for expanded use of the airwaves beyond the public-safety sector.

While PSSA has proposed that the FirstNet Authority be granted a nationwide license to the 4.9 GHz spectrum, PSSA officials have stated publicly that a different entity—not the FirstNet Authority—would serve as the band manager under its plan.