FCC and NTIA Establish Spectrum Coordination Initiative

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) announced a new initiative to improve US government coordination on spectrum management. The Spectrum Coordination Initiative will involve actions by both agencies to strengthen the processes for decision making and information sharing and to work cooperatively to resolve spectrum policy issues. Specifically, the FCC Chairwoman and the NTIA Assistant Secretary have committed to the following initial actions:

• Reinstate High-Level Meetings.  For the first time, the Chair of the FCC and the Assistant Secretary will hold formal, regular meetings, beginning monthly, to conduct joint spectrum planning.
• Reaffirm Roles and Responsibilities.  The FCC and NTIA will update the nearly twenty-year-old Memorandum of Understanding between the agencies to address gaps in government coordination and to better reflect today’s spectrum opportunities and challenges.
• Renew Efforts to Develop a National Spectrum Strategy.  The FCC and NTIA will collaborate to help inform the development of a national spectrum strategy, increase transparency around spectrum use and needs, and establish long-term spectrum planning and coordination. 
• Recommit to Scientific Integrity and Evidence-Based Policymaking.  The FCC and NTIA will work cooperatively to develop processes for spectrum engineering compatibility analysis.
• Revamp Technical Collaboration.  The FCC and NTIA will foster proactive technical exchange and engagement with industry and other federal agencies by participating in cross-agency advisory groups.