WASHINGTON-The Personal Communications Industry Association petitioned the Federal Communications Commission to grant an extension of the now-expired 120-day special temporary authority given to current Part 90 licensees to continue operation of their facilities until the commission grants their pending applications. The STA expired Dec. 9, and the association asked for a 180-day extension.
In a Dec. 6 letter to Wireless Telecommunications Bureau Chief Michele Farquhar, PCIA noted the commission believed it would have all applications resolved within the STA period, which began Aug. 10. However, many PCIA constituents with applications submitted prior to Aug. 10 still are operating under conditional authority and are in fear of being shut down until the FCC resolves their filings.
“Grant of this request by PCIA on behalf of all affected Part 90 licensees further serves the public interest by permitting the commission to issue a blanket STA governing the subject operation,” the group wrote. “This should help to conserve commission resources that otherwise might be diverted to a case-by-case review of multiple STA requests.” PCIA President Jay Kitchen noted in a written statement that he was confident the commission will grant the request.
