FCC, Ligado Draw Major Fire in Armed Services Committee

The Federal Communications Commission's decision to allow a new terrestrial broadband service alongside spectrum for critical GPS uses drew fire from both sides of the aisle, as well as top military brass, in a hearing in the Senate Armed Services Committee. The military brass in attendance had not changed their marching orders or their target, and the committee's chairman and ranking member were clearly in bipartisan agreement with the Department of Defence. Ligado took some issue with the fact that there were no witnesses scheduled from Ligado or from the FCC at the hearing.

The FCC also pushed back on the criticisms from lawmakers and DoD witnesses. "Given all of the untrue statements being made at the hearing, it is difficult to know where to begin," said a spokesman for FCC Chairman Ajit Pai. "For example, the repeated claim that federal agencies unanimously oppose our order is blatantly false, as our decision has been endorsed by the Secretary of State and Attorney General." "The bottom line here is that the FCC made a unanimous, bipartisan decision based on sound engineering principles. We stand by that decision 100% and will not be dissuaded by baseless fearmongering."