Comments Requested on the Construction Requirements for Commercial Wide-Area 800 MHz Licensees

This document, released May 21, 1999, is available for inspection and copying during normal business hours in the FCC Reference Center, 445 Twelfth Street, SW, Washington, DC. The complete text may be purchased from the Commission's copy contractor, International Transcription Service, Inc., 1231 20th Street, NW, Washington,

DC 20036 (202) 857-3800. The document is also available via the internet at www.fcc.gov/Bureaus/Wireless/Public Notices/1999/ index.html.

Synopsis of Document

1. In this document, the Wireless Telecommunications Bureau (``Bureau'') requests comment on the construction requirements that the Commission should impose on 800 MHz Specialized Mobile Radio commercial licensees that are part of a wide area system (``wide-area licensees''). The Bureau seeks comment on this matter following the decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia in Fresno Mobile Radio, Inc. v. F.C.C. (165 F.3d 965, DC Cir., Feb 5, 1999) to remand to the Commission for further analysis its decision to adopt construction requirements for incumbent wide-area licensees that differ from those adopted for Economic Area (``EA'') 800 MHz licensees. The court held that the Commission did not adequately explain whether wide-area licensees are sufficiently different from EA 800 MHz or other geographic based licensees to warrant different construction requirements. 2. In this document, the Bureau seeks comment on whether the Commission should adopt on remand the construction requirements that were in effect for wide-area licensees prior to the Fresno decision. Section 90.629 of the Commission's rules states the current construction requirements of wide-area licensees. Initially, 800 MHz licensees were able to apply for a period of up to five years to construct and place their system in operation if an extended implementation period was justified. In 1995, the Commission stopped accepting requests for extended implementation, accelerated the termination date of existing implementation periods, and required licensees seeking to retain extended implementation to demonstrate compliance with section 90.629 of the Commission's rules. Because the court held that the Commission failed to adequately explain its rationale for adopting different construction requirements in the 800 MHz band, parties who support the Commission's decision are encouraged to explain fully why the agency's approach is reasonable. 3. In this document, the Bureau also solicits comment on whether the Commission should adopt for wide-area licensees construction requirements similar to those imposed on EA 800 MHz licensees and other licensees that are licensed on a geographic area basis. Parties who believe that construction requirements should be similar to geographic area licensees are encouraged to take into account the differences in the way the Commission licensed wide-area 800 MHz systems (i.e., by site-specific licensing) and geographic area licenses when addressing what should be the appropriate requirements for wide-area licensees. In order to determine whether a wide-area licensee has met the coverage requirements, these parties are also encouraged to address whether the Commission should measure the relevant population based on the entire wide-area, individual EAs located within a wide-area system, or some other alternative. In addition, interested parties are asked to address how the Commission should determine the new timetable for construction of wide-area systems. The Bureau stated that one option would be to adopt the three and five year benchmarks that were adopted for 800 MHz EA licensees, and begin the construction period as of the effective date of the new construction requirements. The Bureau asked for comment on whether the three and five year benchmarks for wide-area licensees would be fair to EA 800 MHz licensees given that wide-area licensees have already had a number of years to construct their systems. The Bureau also requested comment on alternative construction timetables, and on whether the Commission should require a wide-area licensee to construct a minimum number of frequencies throughout its wide-area system. 4. Additionally in this document, the Bureau also permits interested parties to present alternative proposals for construction requirements for wide-area licensees. Parties that do present alternative proposals are asked to consider that their proposals should balance the need to provide wide-area licensees with construction requirements that are not unduly burdensome with the need to ensure that wide-area licensees do not warehouse spectrum or unreasonably delay service to the public. Moreover, parties are asked to address the specific technical differences and similarities associated with constructing commercial wide-area 800 MHz SMR systems, EA 800 MHz systems, and other wireless services that are licensed on a geographic basis, and how these differences and similarities should affect the construction requirements for wide-area licensees.

Federal Communications Commission. Jim Schlichting, Deputy Bureau Chief, Wireless Telecommunications Bureau. [FR Doc. 99-14835 Filed 6-10-99; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 6712-01-P