NTIA: Public safety broadband network must not be a 'network of networks'

Local first responders should not, in fact, undertake individual public safety broadband projects in the 700 Megahertz range spectrum, says the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, despite previous NTIA encouragement to do so.

In May 17 comments filed before the Federal Communications Commission, NTIA officials say that once Congress and President Obama approved in February reallocation to public safety of a 10 MHz swath of 700 MHz spectrum known as the D block, the NTIA must dismiss any waiver applications to operate in the public safety broadband allocation and terminate existing local licenses in that spectrum block. The license is set to transfer to a newly established First Responder Network Authority, known as FirstNet, which NTIA describes as an "independent authority" within it.