Federal Communications Commission Provides Guidance for Submission of Requests for Waiver of June 26, 2008 Deadline for Completion of 800 MHz Rebanding

PUBLIC NOTICE
Federal Communications Commission
445 12th St., S.W.
Washington, D.C. 20554

News Media Information 202 / 418-0500
Internet: http://www.fcc.gov
TTY: 1-888-835-5322

FCC 08-23
Released: January 17, 2008

FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION PROVIDES GUIDANCE FOR
SUBMISSION OF REQUESTS FOR WAIVER OF JUNE 26, 2008 DEADLINE
FOR COMPLETION OF 800 MHZ REBANDING
WT Docket No. 02-55
By this Public Notice, the Federal Communications Commission (Commission) establishes
procedures and provides guidance for submission by 800 MHz licensees of requests for waiver of the 800
MHz rebanding deadline. As part of the rebanding process, certain licensees are being relocated to new
frequencies in the 800 MHz band, with all rebanding costs to be paid by Sprint Nextel Corporation
(Sprint).1 The Commission’s orders provide for the 800 MHz licensees in non-border areas to complete
rebanding by June 26, 2008.2
Any 800 MHz non-border licensee that will require additional time past June 26, 2008 to
complete rebanding3 must request a waiver of the deadline from the Public Safety and Homeland Security
Bureau (Bureau).4 The guidance contained in this Public Notice is intended to expedite both the
preparation and submission of waiver requests by licensees as well as the review of such requests by the
Bureau, consistent with the Commission’s overarching goal of ensuring that rebanding is accomplished in
a reasonable, prudent, and timely manner.
As the Commission has noted before: “Requests for extension will be subject to a high level of
scrutiny. Licensees will be expected to demonstrate that they have worked diligently and in good faith to
complete rebanding expeditiously, and that the amount of additional time requested is no more than is
reasonably necessary to complete the rebanding process.” See FCC Announces Supplemental Procedures
1

See Improving Public Safety Communications in the 800 MHz Band, Report and Order, Fifth Report and Order,
Fourth Memorandum Opinion and Order, and Order, 19 FCC Rcd 14969 (2004).
2

Non-border licensees are Wave 1-3 licensees and those Wave 4 licensees that have received rebanding frequency
assignments from the 800 MHz Transition Administrator (TA). Licensees that have not received frequency
assignments from the TA due to their proximity to the U.S.- Canada or U.S.- Mexico border are not subject to this
Public Notice. We will establish timelines for rebanding completion by border area licensees at a later date.
3

Licensees that have completed physical reconfiguration of their systems by June 26, 2008 will be deemed to have
met the deadline. Such licensees remain responsible after the deadline for promptly submitting final rebanding cost
documentation to Sprint and/or the TA and modifying their licenses to delete pre-rebanding channels.
4

See Improving Public Safety Communications in the 800 MHz Band, Third Memorandum Opinion and Order, 22
FCC Rcd 17209, 172224 ¶ 48 (2007) (800 MHz 3rd MO&O). Failure to seek a waiver may result in a licensee being
required to pay its own rebanding costs based on a determination that the licensee has caused unjustified delay or
has otherwise failed to meet its obligation to implement rebanding in good faith.

And Provides Guidance For Completion Of 800 MHz Rebanding, Public Notice, 22 FCC Rcd 17227,
17232 (2007).
Deadline for Filing Waiver Requests
Licenses in Waves 1 and 2 must file requests for waiver no later than March 17, 2008, while
Wave 3 licensees and non-border Wave 4 licensees must file their requests no later than April 15, 2008.
Licensees may file waiver requests after these deadlines if they are based on subsequent developments.
Filing Procedures
Licensees may file requests with the Bureau via e-mail through the PSHSB800@fcc.gov mailbox
or pursuant to 47 CFR § 1.925.5 Licensees should provide copies of requests to both Sprint and the 800
MHz Transition Administrator (TA).6 Requests will be posted on the Bureau website and in the
licensee’s Universal Licensing System (ULS) file.7 For ULS posting purposes, we recommend that
licensees with multiple call-signs designate a lead call-sign in the request.
Coordinated Requests
We encourage licensees that are part of a regional coordination plan or that are otherwise
coordinating their rebanding efforts to file coordinated requests.8
Recommended Content of Waiver Requests
We recommend that licensees address the following factors in their request:
§

System size and complexity.

§

Interoperability with other systems, and how such interoperability will affect the ultimate
rebanding schedule.

§

Steps already taken to complete physical reconfiguration, including participation in the
Subscriber Equipment Deployment (SED) program and participation in a TA-sponsored regional
planning session in its Public Safety Region (or commitment to participate in such a session).9

Licensees should provide a proposed timetable that includes the following elements:

5

§

What steps in the rebanding process have been or will be taken prior to the June 26, 2008
deadline.

§

Anticipated dates of commencement and completion of:
§

Replacement or retuning of mobiles/portables.

§

Infrastructure retuning.

Requests filed via e-mail should be attached to the e-mail as a separate document.

6

Copies should be submitted to the TA via e-mail to Waivers@800ta.org or by facsimile to (877) 434-2974. Copies
should be submitted to Sprint via e-mail to 800MHz@sprint.com or by facsimile to (866) 525-1087.
7

Information for which confidentiality is sought under Part 0.459 of the Commission’s Rules will not be posted.

8

Coordinating licensees may designate a “lead” licensee to file a waiver request on their behalf. For tracking
purposes, however, each licensee that is part of the requesting group should separately provide the information
regarding its system described in this Public Notice and set forth in the template developed by the TA.
9

For a list of previously held and upcoming regional planning sessions sponsored by the TA, see www.800ta.org.
Licensees that have failed to participate in a planning session for their region should contact the TA to determine
whether their proposed schedule is consistent with implementation goals identified in the planning session.

2

§

The anticipated date(s) that the licensee will commence operations on its post-rebanding channels
and stop operations on its pre-rebanding channels.

§

Additional rebanding steps that the licensee must take after commencement of operations on
rebanded channels (e.g., removing old channels from radios) and the anticipated date for
completion of these steps.

The TA has developed a template form for licensee use to provide the above information in their waiver
requests. The template is available at the TA’s website at www.800ta.org. To expedite licensee
preparation of requests and Bureau review, we recommend that licensees use this template in preparing
their requests.
Waiver Requests by Licensees Without Frequency Reconfiguration Agreements (FRAs)
Licensees that are unable to propose a specific timetable because they have not executed a
Frequency Reconfiguration Agreement (FRA) with Sprint by the applicable deadline for filing a waiver
request should file an interim extension request. The interim extension request should state when the
licensee anticipates having an FRA and filing a final waiver request that will include a proposed timetable
as described above.
Sprint Waiver Requests to Remain on Channel 1-120 Channels Past June 26, 2008
In the 800 MHz 3d MO&O, the Commission stated that “in the event that we grant any NPSPAC
licensee a waiver allowing it to relocate to the new NPSPAC band after June 26, 2008, we will allow
Sprint to petition to remain temporarily on the Channel 1-120 channels that it would otherwise have to
vacate to accommodate the NPSPAC system.”10 Sprint may file such waiver petitions at any time after
the corresponding NPSPAC petitions are filed, i.e., it does not need to wait to file until the Bureau has
acted on the corresponding NPSPAC petitions.
Contact Information
For further information, contact: Roberto Mussenden, Policy Division, Public Safety and
Homeland Security Bureau, at (202) 418-1428 or Roberto.Mussenden@fcc.gov; John Evanoff, Policy
Division, Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau, at (202) 418-0848 or John.Evanoff@fcc.gov.
Action by the Commission on January 17, 2008.
– FCC –

10

See 800 MHz 3rd MO&O, 22 FCC Rcd 17209, 17217 ¶ 27. To obtain a waiver, Sprint must demonstrate that
public safety will not be adversely affected by the extension, that Sprint has no reasonable alternative, and that the
extension is otherwise in the public interest. Sprint must also agree to relinquish the channels 1) on 60 days notice
by the NPSPAC licensee that received the extension, or 2) once the corresponding channels in the old NPSPAC
band (821-824/866-869 MHz) become available to it. Id.

3