How to fix an emerging 5G spectrum crisis

An unexpected perfect storm of public policy variables is gathering and it could cause America’s 5G spectrum pipeline to run dry by year’s end. Under the leadership of newly-confirmed Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel, our former agency, the Federal Communications Commission, is currently winding down a spectrum auction that will supply lifeblood to America’s emerging 5G ecosystem while generating nearly $22 billion in federal revenue. Unfortunately, this is the last scheduled auction of its kind. At the same time, infighting between the FCC and Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has frozen 5G operations in a recently auctioned parcel of airwaves, the “C-band,” due to concerns over alleged harmful interference to aircraft electronics. Furthermore, the recently signed infrastructure law set aside other precious spectrum for two years of study. Wireless carriers had been counting on these frequencies to help the U.S. win the global race to 5G and close the digital divide. But with two tranches of critical spectrum suddenly sidelined, America has created for itself a perilous spectrum gap. The FCC must quickly refill the spectrum pipeline at this crucial moment in the global competition for technological leadership. Let’s promote essential infrastructure, fix a supply chain gap, close the digital divide and generate revenue for taxpayers in the process. Any hesitation will stunt America’s growth and hand our opponents a strategic advantage.

[Mignon Clyburn, a Democrat, served as a commissioner of the FCC from 2009 to 2018, as Acting FCC Chair in 2013 and as co-chair of the Biden-Harris Innovation Transition Team. Robert McDowell, a Republican, served as a commissioner of the FCC from 2006 to 2013, and is a partner at Cooley LLP and a senior fellow at Hudson Institute.]