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Motion of the Council of Allegheny County urging the United States Senate to pass H.R. 451, the "Don't Break Up the T-Band Act of 2020," with all deliberate speed.
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Whereas, T-Band communications are categorized as communications operating at frequencies of 470-512 megahertz, and are used extensively - but not exclusively - by public safety entities with appropriate broadcasting privileges in Boston, Chicago, Dallas/Ft. Worth, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, Philadelphia, San Francisco/Oakland, Washington, DC, and Pittsburgh/Allegheny County; and
Whereas, the FCC reports that 952 public safety agencies public safety entities in these 11 cities that do use T-Band communications use relatively narrow portions of the band, each comprising approximately 6 megahertz; these portions of the band are not contiguous nationwide, and are scattered throughout the 470-512 megahertz frequency range; and
Whereas, the United States House of Representatives and FCC currently indicate that these 952 public safety entities serve a combined population of 90 million Americans; and
Whereas, in 2012, the United States Congress opted to require that the Federal Communications Commission auction licenses in the T-Band spectrum currently used by public safety agencies to private entities via competitive bidding no later than February of 2021, pursuant to the terms of The Middle Class Job Creation and Tax Relief Act of 2012, P.L. 112-96; and
Whereas. while envisioned as a step in creating an integrated national high-speed emergency services communications network at the time it was enacted, practical considerations and events since the enactment the auction requirement have rendered a national network impracticable at the present time; and
Whereas, the mandated auction would force the 952 public safety agencies that utilize T-Band frequencies to cease doing so, and acquire equipment that would enable communications at other frequencies; and
Whereas, according to re...
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