House bill would mandate public auction of 5G airwaves

A bipartisan group of House lawmakers dropped a bill directing the Federal Communications Commission to hold a public auction of coveted midband airwaves. The Clearing Broad Airwaves for New Deployment (C-BAND) Act is led by House Communications Subcommittee Chairman Mike Doyle (D-PA), Rep. Doris Matsui (D-CA), Rep. Bill Johnson (R-OH), and Rep Greg Gianforte (R-MT). The bill would require the FCC to conduct a public auction and protect current users of the spectrum throughout the process, with auction proceeds going to the government. The auction would have to make available between 200 and 300 megahertz of spectrum by 2022. The Subcommittee will hold a hearing on the bill Tuesday, October 29.

Currently, the FCC is contemplating allowing a group of satellite companies to privately sell the airwaves to wireless companies for 5G service, amid opposition from cable companies and a now-bipartisan set of lawmakers.