https://urgentcomm.com/wp-content/themes/ucm_child/assets/images/logo/footer-new-logo.png
  • Home
  • News
  • Multimedia
    • Back
    • Multimedia
    • Video
    • Podcasts
    • Galleries
  • Commentary
    • Back
    • Commentary
    • Urgent Matters
    • View From The Top
    • All Things IWCE
    • Legal Matters
  • Resources
    • Back
    • Resources
    • Webinars
    • White Papers
    • Reprints & Reuse
  • IWCE
    • Back
    • IWCE
    • Conference
    • Special Events
    • Exhibitor Listings
    • Premier Partners
    • Floor Plan
    • Exhibiting Information
    • Register for IWCE
  • About Us
    • Back
    • About Us
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise
    • Terms of Service
    • Privacy Statement
    • Cookies Policy
  • Related Sites
    • Back
    • American City & County
    • IWCE
    • Light Reading
    • IOT World Today
    • Mission Critical Technologies
    • Microwave/RF
    • T&D World
    • TU-Auto
  • In the field
    • Back
    • In the field
    • Broadband Push-to-X
    • Internet of Things
    • Project 25
    • Public-Safety Broadband/FirstNet
    • Virtual/Augmented Reality
    • Land Mobile Radio
    • Long Term Evolution (LTE)
    • Applications
    • Drones/Robots
    • IoT/Smart X
    • Software
    • Subscriber Devices
    • Video
  • Call Center/Command
    • Back
    • Call Center/Command
    • Artificial Intelligence
    • NG911
    • Alerting Systems
    • Analytics
    • Dispatch/Call-taking
    • Incident Command/Situational Awareness
    • Tracking, Monitoring & Control
  • Network Tech
    • Back
    • Network Tech
    • Interoperability
    • LMR 100
    • LMR 200
    • Backhaul
    • Deployables
    • Power
    • Tower & Site
    • Wireless Networks
    • Coverage/Interference
    • Security
    • System Design
    • System Installation
    • System Operation
    • Test & Measurement
  • Operations
    • Back
    • Operations
    • Critical Infrastructure
    • Enterprise
    • Federal Government/Military
    • Public Safety
    • State & Local Government
    • Training
  • Regulations
    • Back
    • Regulations
    • Narrowbanding
    • T-Band
    • Rebanding
    • TV White Spaces
    • None
    • Funding
    • Policy
    • Regional Coordination
    • Standards
  • Organizations
    • Back
    • Organizations
    • AASHTO
    • APCO
    • DHS
    • DMR Association
    • ETA
    • EWA
    • FCC
    • IWCE
    • NASEMSO
    • NATE
    • NXDN Forum
    • NENA
    • NIST/PSCR
    • NPSTC
    • NTIA/FirstNet
    • P25 TIG
    • TETRA + CCA
    • UTC
Urgent Communications
  • NEWSLETTER
  • Home
  • News
  • Multimedia
    • Back
    • Video
    • Podcasts
    • Omdia Crit Comms Circle Podcast
    • Galleries
    • IWCE’s Video Showcase
  • Commentary
    • Back
    • All Things IWCE
    • Urgent Matters
    • View From The Top
    • Legal Matters
  • Resources
    • Back
    • Webinars
    • White Papers
    • Reprints & Reuse
    • UC eZines
    • Sponsored content
  • IWCE
    • Back
    • Conference
    • Why Attend
    • Exhibitor Listing
    • Floor Plan
    • Exhibiting Information
    • Join the Event Mailing List
  • About Us
    • Back
    • About Us
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise
    • Terms of Service
    • Privacy Statement
    • Cookies Policy
  • Related Sites
    • Back
    • American City & County
    • IWCE
    • Light Reading
    • IOT World Today
    • TU-Auto
  • newsletter
  • In the field
    • Back
    • Internet of Things
    • Broadband Push-to-X
    • Project 25
    • Public-Safety Broadband/FirstNet
    • Virtual/Augmented Reality
    • Land Mobile Radio
    • Long Term Evolution (LTE)
    • Applications
    • Drones/Robots
    • IoT/Smart X
    • Software
    • Subscriber Devices
    • Video
  • Call Center/Command
    • Back
    • Artificial Intelligence
    • NG911
    • Alerting Systems
    • Analytics
    • Dispatch/Call-taking
    • Incident Command/Situational Awareness
    • Tracking, Monitoring & Control
  • Network Tech
    • Back
    • Cybersecurity
    • Interoperability
    • LMR 100
    • LMR 200
    • Backhaul
    • Deployables
    • Power
    • Tower & Site
    • Wireless Networks
    • Coverage/Interference
    • Security
    • System Design
    • System Installation
    • System Operation
    • Test & Measurement
  • Operations
    • Back
    • Critical Infrastructure
    • Enterprise
    • Federal Government/Military
    • Public Safety
    • State & Local Government
    • Training
  • Regulations
    • Back
    • Narrowbanding
    • T-Band
    • Rebanding
    • TV White Spaces
    • None
    • Funding
    • Policy
    • Regional Coordination
    • Standards
  • Organizations
    • Back
    • AASHTO
    • APCO
    • DHS
    • DMR Association
    • ETA
    • EWA
    • FCC
    • IWCE
    • NASEMSO
    • NATE
    • NXDN Forum
    • NENA
    • NIST/PSCR
    • NPSTC
    • NTIA/FirstNet
    • P25 TIG
    • TETRA + CCA
    • UTC
acc.com

content


Thank you for playing our game

Thank you for playing our game

FCC-watching is a more fascinating hobby than ever. A "made-over" commission is in place, new faces are in the bureaus and divisions, and the budget is
  • Written by Urgent Communications Administrator
  • 1st March 1998

FCC-watching is a more fascinating hobby than ever. A “made-over” commission is in place, new faces are in the bureaus and divisions, and the budget is on the front burner. It’s been said that a new broom sweeps clean, but when things get this hectic, there can be an impulse to sweep the dirt under the rug.

We noticed with interest a January news item on an order from the Wireless Telecommunication Bureau (WTB) dismissing a June 1996 petition from the Washington-based law firm of Brown and Schwaninger. The Petition for Special Relief requested that the FCC cancel certain enhanced specialized mobile radio (ESMR) licenses held by Nextel Communications, McLean, VA, on the basis that the applications on which the licenses were granted were defective. Editorial Director Don Bishop expressed our concerns in this space, in August 1996, on the alleged application defects, fee omissions and lack of frequency coordination. We all rested on our heels and waited.

As reported in the trade press, the January FCC Order found the petition itself to be “untimely,” “replete with factual errors” and found no reason to act on the “meager anecdotal information” it contained. End of story? Not quite. We’re not coy; as the masthead of this magazine indicates, we rely on that particular law firm for regulatory consultation. We don’t necessarily agree with or support every action it takes in private practice, but if the attorneys are screw-ups, as the above quotes imply, we’d like to know about it.

Faced with deadlines, more-frequently circulated publications simply don’t have the time to examine such issues with as much depth or exactitude as they’d like. We examined the full text of the order from the WTB, and the quotes appear accurate. The context is a little more disturbing. Regarding the timeliness of the petition, the discussion section of the Order said “Although styled as a Petition for Special Relief, the Petition is in substance a petition for reconsideration of license grants made to Nextel in the October 31 [1995] Public Notice.” Under the rules, the long-awaited Order said, “petitions challenging the results … were due no later than Nov. 30, 1995. Because the instant petition was filed on June 25, 1996, approximately seven months after this deadline, it is untimely on its face.”

In layman’s terms, the FCC’s response was equivalent to saying, ‘Thank you very much for your complaint about apples; however, on review we have determined that your complaint is really about oranges, and since oranges are no longer in season, we’re not taking any complaints_Thank you for playing our game!” The question of course, is not about apples or oranges, but about who knocked over the fruit stand.

When interviewed, the attorneys referred to this recharacterization of the petition as “legal and administrative conversion,” and pointed out that there is no time period for special relief.

The discussion in the Order also refers to the “alleged random samples” of applications discussed in the petition, says that the alleged engineering and frequency coordination missing from Nextel’s petitions “was in fact provided,” and that fee waivers “were either not necessary or were properly requested.”

We have examined the original petition. The sample applications for review were not gleaned from the ether_they were provided by the commission under a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request that the FCC finally responded to after nearly three months, and not all requested materials were provided. No documentation of fee waivers was released.

A quick civics lesson on FOIA: The 1966 law, amended in 1996, requires federal agencies to cough up public documents, unless they meet one of nine exemptions such as national security. An agency must respond to the request within 20 working days, and act on it shortly thereafter. (At the time in question, the response window was even shorter.) Despite the letter of the law, and the contempt and litigation penalties it contains, the process can still take months, which is why journalists, who have a thing called deadlines, don’t wait around for the feds to uncork themselves. A House report issued in March 1997 as much as admitted that the only reason that agencies get away with delays is because most people don’t have the time or money to drag them into court. Therefore, only about 5% of the 600,000 FOIA requests filed annually with federal agencies are filed by journalists. Most are from private businesses, lawyers seeking documents and the prison population.

But things change.

The questions we raised here a year and a half ago about the application process are still valid. What happens to Nextel’s licenses specifically may not be moot. (Brown and Schwaninger, however, have filed an appeal to the WTB Order, contradicting its findings. For those who enjoy light reading, it can be found in file number CWD-27-24.) The question is, will the new commission play by the rules of law or not? Section 1.958 of the commission’s rules_you know, the Code of Federal Regulations_says “An application which is defective on its face will not be accepted for filling as will be dismissed … An application which is excepted for filing, but which is later determined to be defective, will be dismissed.” There is no “statute of limitations” on these rules. They’re rules.

The FCC used to believe in rules. An experienced radio operator recently remarked to me that in the “old days,” “The FCC was like the voice of God,” as far as enforcement was concerned. Unfortunately, in recent years, it’s been less like a voice from the burning bush and more like sounding brass or a tinkling cymbal.

This is not to say that things are dark on M Street. The new FCC chairman has already broken with past policy on several issues. The new WTB bureau chief evidences much more willingness to listen to and communicate with the industry than some of his predecessors. A new managing director, who actually has small business regulatory experience, has been announced for the Telecommunications Development Fund. Spring is coming.

Part of the problem for any bureaucracy is churn. Because of staff turnover and lack of continuity, regulators are making decisions on issues that took place before they were part of their current division, bureau or even the FCC itself. Because regulators have their own agenda, some decisions on outstanding matters can be hasty.

This new commission, still on its “honeymoon,” has an opportunity to take advantage of the largesse afforded to a fresh administration. It is allowed to “discover” a mess, announce intentions to clean it up, and blame it on its predecessor.

Tags: content

Most Recent


  • Thank you for playing our game
    Newscan: Securing the Internet of Things is quite a challenge
    Also: EWA requests dismissal of 900 MHz applications; TIA names tech and policy priorities for 2014; IJIS Institute names Shumate Award winner; App makes bus waits more tolerable; a Blackberry comeback may be in the offing.
  • Thank you for playing our game
    Newscan: FCC certifies Carlson Wireless's white-space radio
    Also: Congress looks to revamp telecom law; Obama to place some restraints on surveillance; IEEE to study spectrum-occupancy sensing for white-spaces broadband; Major Swedish transport operator opts for Sepura TETRA radios; RFMD to partner on $70 million next-generation power grid project; NENA opens registratiuon for "911 Goes to Washington."
  • Thank you for playing our game
    Newscan: A look at the critical job of 911 dispatchers
    Also: NYC launches website for tracking 911 response times; Oregon implements 911 on pre-paid cell phones; LightSquared wants to keep spectrum assets; Harris receives multiple government orders; FCC extends rebanding financial reconciliation deadline; Zetron gear at core of communications system upgrade; Ritron debuts wireless access control system; EWA seeks policy review of VHF vehicular repeater system deployments.
  • Thank you for playing our game
    Newscan: Average peak data rates of 144 MB/s average realized in tests with CAT 4 LTE device
    Also: Verizon, T-Mobile to swap unused spectrum to improve coverage; Internet giants oppose surveillance--but only when the government does it; FCC Chairman says incentive auction will be delayed until middle of 2015; FCC chair announces staff appointments; Alcatel-Lucent names Tim Krause as chief marketing officer; New Jersey county deploys TriTech CAD system; Toronto airport deploys 26-position Zetron console system;

Leave a comment Cancel reply

To leave a comment login with your Urgent Comms account:

Log in with your Urgent Comms account

Or alternatively provide your name, email address below:

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Related Content

  • RugGear: Contributing to the future of mission-critical broadband communication review and market vision
  • Photo gallery: 2014 Communications Marketing Conference (CMC) in Tucson
  • Thank you for playing our game
    Top 5 Stories - Week of Sept. 22
  • Thank you for playing our game
    RCA plans to expand this year's Technical Symposium

Commentary


LTE and liability: Why the fire service must move forward with digital incident command

  • 2
6th May 2022

Partnership and collaboration must be the foundation for emergency communications

18th April 2022

FirstNet success means no hypothetical ‘shots’ need to be fired, Swenson says

22nd February 2022
view all

Events


UC Ezines


IWCE 2019 Wrap Up

13th May 2019
view all

Twitter


UrgentComm

Sesame Solar leverages mobile solar, hydrogen to power efforts beyond the grid dlvr.it/ST8m3K

1st July 2022
UrgentComm

Newscan: On front lines, communications breakdowns prove costly for Ukraine dlvr.it/ST7fnC

30th June 2022
UrgentComm

China-backed APT pwns building-automation systems with ProxyLogon dlvr.it/ST6q7m

30th June 2022
UrgentComm

Samsung fills its 2G hole in new challenge to Ericsson and Nokia dlvr.it/ST6hBK

30th June 2022
UrgentComm

Militarized drone swarms coming dlvr.it/ST6dNz

30th June 2022
UrgentComm

Take American City & County’s budgeting survey dlvr.it/ST6Yxb

30th June 2022
UrgentComm

Final cases made about Airwave, ESN, before CMA issues provisional decision on Motorola Solutions dlvr.it/ST4Q6X

29th June 2022
UrgentComm

Polaris Wireless: Manlio Allegra talks 911 Z-axis tech, future IoT opportunities dlvr.it/ST1384

28th June 2022

Newsletter

Sign up for UrgentComm’s newsletters to receive regular news and information updates about Communications and Technology.

Expert Commentary

Learn from experts about the latest technology in automation, machine-learning, big data and cybersecurity.

Business Media

Find the latest videos and media from the market leaders.

Media Kit and Advertising

Want to reach our digital and print audiences? Learn more here.

DISCOVER MORE FROM INFORMA TECH

  • American City & County
  • IWCE
  • Light Reading
  • IOT World Today
  • Mission Critical Technologies
  • Microwave/RF
  • T&D World
  • TU-Auto

WORKING WITH US

  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Events
  • Careers

FOLLOW Urgent Comms ON SOCIAL

  • Privacy
  • CCPA: “Do Not Sell My Data”
  • Cookies Policy
  • Terms
Copyright © 2022 Informa PLC. Informa PLC is registered in England and Wales with company number 8860726 whose registered and Head office is 5 Howick Place, London, SW1P 1WG.
This website uses cookies, including third party ones, to allow for analysis of how people use our website in order to improve your experience and our services. By continuing to use our website, you agree to the use of such cookies. Click here for more information on our Cookie Policy and Privacy Policy.
X