WASHINGTON-Energy, water and railroad industries-key sectors of the nation’s critical infrastructure-have urged the Bush administration to address pressing spectrum needs, which have been largely neglected since the passage of a 1993 budget law authorizing the federal government to sell the airwaves to commercial wireless carriers.
A coalition of utility organizations told the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, a Commerce Department unit that advises the White House on telecom policy, that energy deregulation, limitations on use of commercial wireless services and lack of exclusive frequencies will make access to spectrum critical in coming years.
Congress last year directed NTIA to study current and future uses of spectrum by providers of energy, water and railroad services to protect and maintain the nation’s critical infrastructure. Separately, the government is studying ways to protect the nation’s critical infrastructure from domestic and foreign cyber attacks by small-time hackers and terrorists alike.
“In addition to needing access to wireless communications, CI [critical infrastructure] entities have a separate requirement: control over the communications systems, to ensure safety and reliability. This control can be satisfied only through the use of private radio spectrum,” the utilities stated in a filing.
The group includes the United Telecom Council, Critical Infrastructure Communications Coalition, American Public Power Association, Edison Electric Institute, American Public Gas Association, National Association of Water Companies, American Petroleum Institute, American Gas Association, Association of Oil Pipelines, Interstate Natural Gas Association of America, American Electric Power Service Corp. and the Nuclear Energy Institute.
“Access to adequate spectrum is essential for the continued operation and growth of the nation’s railroad infrastructure,” stated the Association of American Railroads.
AAR, like utilities, insisted that commercial wireless carriers are not the answer.
“Because of their specialized communications requirements, high reliability criteria, and unique coverage needs, the railroads have had to build, maintain and operate their own radio communications networks, rather than rely exclusively on commercial communications such as the telephone companies,” said AAR.
In a separate filing, API cautioned NTIA about “dangerous deficiencies” facing utilities, railroads and others dependent on private wireless spectrum.
In 1997 budget legislation, Congress began to address the problem by allocating 24 megahertz for police, fire and ambulance use and by recognizing the public-safety nature of utility and railroad services. The latter had the practical effect of shielding utility and railroad spectrum from auction.
The Federal Communications Commission, under former Chairman William Kennard, set aside 6 megahertz of spectrum-which Congress designated for commercial wireless services-for private wireless services. To assuage Congress-which increasingly has come to depend on spectrum revenue for spending programs-and to help alleviate private wireless spectrum shortages, the FCC auctioned the spectrum to “band managers.” The band managers contract with private wireless licensees.
But other than that, the nation’s utilities and railroads have watched Congress and the Clinton and Bush administrations put blocks of spectrum up for auction to foster more competition to mobile phone, paging and other wireless sectors.
Indeed, some in Congress and the Bush administration are trying to find a way to give the mobile-phone operators spectrum occupied by Department of Defense to further U.S. development of third-generation wireless systems.
