Subject: [NEXTEL-1] Public Safety leaders back Consensus Plan with letter to Congress

From: Marcelrf <[email-masked]>
Date: Mon, 01 Mar 2004 14:38:16 -0500

Public safety
confirms its
support for Consensus Plan

by Heather Forsgren Weaver
March 01, 2004 

WASHINGTON

As Nextel Communications Inc. and Verizon Wireless
duked it out in the press last week on the best way to
solve public-safety interference in the 800 MHz band,
public-safety sent a letter to Congress confirming its
support for the Consensus Plan. 

“Unfortunately, some of Nextel’s competitors have been leading an effort
to defeat the Consensus Plan, suggesting that it is little more than a
plan developed by Nextel for its own benefit. Nothing could be further
from the truth. The Consensus Plan is public safety’s plan. The
Consensus Plan was jointly developed by public-safety organizations,
private-wireless organizations and Nextel
to comprehensively and permanently solve the problem and do what is best
for public safety. The plan has been subjected to extensive analysis by
police chiefs, sheriffs, fire chiefs and public-safety communications
experts from across the country,” reads the letter sent to Capitol Hill
on Feb. 24. “Those who oppose the Consensus Plan advocate an alternative
referred to as the Balanced Approach Plan. However, that approach does
little more than place band-aids on a problem that keeps hemorrhaging.” 

The letter was signed by Vincent Stile, president of the Association of
Public-safety Communications Officials; Sheriff Wayne Gay, president of
the National Sheriffs’ Association; Chief Joseph Polisar, president of
the International Association of Chiefs of Police; and Chief Ernest
Mitchell, president of the International Association of Fire Chiefs. 

The public-safety groups told Congress that the interference is
“significant and increasing.” 

Earlier this year, the same groups sent a letter to the White House. 

Last week , 23 members of the House Commerce Committee sent a letter to
the Federal Communications Commission urging it to reject the Consensus
Plan. The signatories represent a cross-section of the country and the
House Commerce Committee, but the letter was not signed by any of the
House Commerce Committee leadership and still represents less than half
of the opinion of the members of the committee from both parties. 

Meanwhile, Verizon Wireless, which has been very vocal in its
displeasure of giving Nextel any spectrum at 1.9 GHz, said the FCC
should reband at 800 MHz and make Nextel pay for the process without
giving Nextel any more spectrum. The argument for rebanding the 800 MHz
band without including the 1.9 GHz band is not new, said Verizon
Wireless, reminding the FCC that several parties had suggested "In-Band
Realignment" as a contrast to the Consensus Plan in 2002. 

Nextel was quick to respond to all of the shots from Verizon calling
Verizon’s actions, “bullying tactics.” 

The Consensus Plan would shuffle the 800 MHz band to eliminate the
current situation where public safety, private wireless, Nextel and
cellular carriers are intermingled. Nextel has said that it would pay
$850 million for the necessary retuning of public-safety and
private-wireless radios. Nextel said it would deposit $100 million in an
escrow account and secure irrevocable lines of credit for the remaining
$750 million. 

In exchange for giving up spectrum in the 700, 800 and 900 MHz bands and
for paying to retune public safety and private wireless, Nextel has
asked for 10 megahertz in the 1.9 GHz band. 

RCR Wireless News first reported Oct. 27 that FCC staff is contemplating
a proposal that would give Nextel no more than 6 megahertz of spectrum
in the 1.9 GHz band. 

The Cellular Telecommunications & Internet Association and the United
Telecom Council favor the Balanced Approach Plan, which calls for timely
resolution of current interference at the expense of the interferor,
coupled with technical rules, notification and coordination procedures
to prevent new interference. 

The FCC's Wireless Telecommunications Bureau is drafting a solution to
be presented to the commissioners in the coming weeks with a decision
expected in April, said WTB Chief John Muleta Feb. 23. 

http://rcrnews.com/cgi-bin/news.pl?newsId=17103

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