Senate Commerce leaders reach deal on spectrum bill

Apparently, the leaders of the Senate Commerce Committee have reached an agreement on legislation aimed at building a national broadband network for public-safety officials. The committee plans to mark up the compromise version of the bill on June 8.

Committee Chairman Jay Rockefeller (D-WV) has been pushing to pass his legislation before the 10th anniversary of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, and had been negotiating to gain the support of ranking member Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-TX). The attacks helped expose the deep problems with the nation's emergency communications system when firefighters and police officers were unable to communicate with each other. Rockefeller's original bill would reallocate a chunk of spectrum known as the D-block to public safety officials for a national interoperable network. It would also authorize the Federal Communications Commission to hold voluntary incentive auctions that would free up spectrum for wireless broadband technologies and generate funding to help pay for the public-safety network. The incentive auctions would entice broadcasters and others to give up some of their spectrum in exchange for a share in the proceeds. Sens Rockefeller and Hutchison introduced a placeholder bill in early May and will offer a substitute version at next week's markup. The latest version of the substitute, a copy of which was obtained by National Journal, maintains the main elements of Rockefeller's original bill and adds several new sections.