[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 133 (Wednesday, July 12, 2006)]
[Notices]
[Pages 39319-39322]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E6-10795]


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FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION

[DA 06-1272]


Licensees of Broadband Radio Service Channels 1 and/or 2/2A Must 
File Supplemental Data by July 14, 2006

AGENCY: Federal Communications Commission.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: Licensees of Broadband Radio Service (BRS) Channels 1 and/or 
2/2A (Licensees) that filed site and technical data for their stations 
in December 2005 must file supplemental site and technical data for 
their stations on or before July 14, 2006. If applicable, these 
Licensees must also update the data they filed in December 2005 to 
report any changes since that time. The data will assist in determining 
future AWS licensees' relocation obligations.

DATES: Filing deadline is July 14, 2006 (to report stations constructed 
and in use as of June 23, 2006).

ADDRESSES: Federal Communications Commission, 445 12th Street, SW., 
Washington, DC 20554.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mary Shultz, WTB, at (717) 338-2656 
(for questions about the data collection) or Jamison Prime, OET, at 
(202) 418-7474 (for questions about the underlying Commission Orders. 
For additional ULS information or assistance, go to http://esupport.fcc.gov. You may also call the FCC Support Center at (877) 
480-3201 (TTY 202-414-1255) and select Option 2, Forms or 
Licensing Assistance.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This is a summary of the Commission's Public 
Notice, released June 14, 2006. The full text of this Public Notice is 
available for inspection and copying during normal business hours in 
the FCC Reference Center, Room CY-A-257, 445 12th Street, SW., 
Washington, DC 20554. The complete text may also be purchased from the 
Commission's duplicating contractor, Best Copy and Printing, Inc. 
(BCP), Portals II, 445 12th Street, SW., Room CY-B402, Washington, DC. 
The complete item is also available on the Commission's Web site at 
http://www.fcc.gov/wtb.

I. Background

    The 2150-2160/62 MHz band is allocated for fixed and mobile 
services and designated for Advanced Wireless Services (AWS).\1\ AWS 
licensees will be obligated to relocate incumbent primary BRS \2\ 
operations in the 2150-2160/62 MHz band to comparable facilities, most 
likely within the newly restructured 2495-2690 MHz band, as set forth 
under the rules and policies adopted by the Commission in the Ninth 
Report and Order in ET Docket No. 00-258.\3\
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    \1\ See Amendment of Part 2 of the Commission's Rules to 
Allocate Spectrum Below 3 GHz for Mobile and Fixed Services to 
Support the Introduction of New Advanced Wireless Services, 
Including Third Generation Wireless Systems, ET Docket No. 00-258, 
Second Report and Order, 17 FCC Rcd 23193 (2002), Eighth Report and 
Order, Fifth Notice of Proposed Rulemaking and Order, 20 FCC Rcd 
15866 (2005) (2005 Commission Order). See also Service Rules for 
Advanced Wireless Services in the 1.7 GHz and 2.1 GHz Bands, WT 
Docket No. 02-353, Report and Order, 18 FCC Rcd 25162 (2003) 
modified by Order on Reconsideration, 20 FCC Rcd 14058 (2005).
    \2\ The Multipoint Distribution Service (MDS) was renamed the 
Broadband Radio Service (BRS) in 2004 and all former MDS licensees 
are now referred to as BRS licensees. Herein, references to BRS 
Channels 1 and/or 2/2A refer to channel numbers under the pre-
transition frequency assignments. See 47 CFR 27.5(i)(1).
    \3\ See Amendment of Part 2 of the Commission's Rules to 
Allocate Spectrum Below 3 GHz for Mobile and Fixed Services to 
Support the Introduction of New Advanced Wireless Services, 
Including Third Generation Wireless Systems, ET Docket No. 00-258, 
Ninth Report and Order, FCC 06-45 at paragraph 13 (rel. April 21, 
2006) (Ninth R&O or 2006 Commission Order).
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    2005 Commission Order. In September 2005, the Commission concluded 
that reliable, public data on each incumbent BRS system that will be 
subject to relocation is essential in advance of the planned auction of 
the 2150-2155 MHz band.\4\ The Commission also concluded that, because 
the BRS service is currently licensed on the basis of geographic 
licensing areas, neither the Commission nor the public has reliable, 
up-to-date information on the construction status and/or operational 
parameters of each BRS system in the 2150-2160/62 MHz band that will be 
subject to relocation.\5\ Accordingly, the Commission ordered BRS 
licensees to submit information on the locations and operating 
characteristics of their BRS systems in the 2150-2160/62 MHz band, as 
well as for any constructed and operational stations of their lessees, 
and noted that the information required would ultimately be necessary 
in the context of relocation negotiations.\6\ The

[[Page 39320]]

Commission directed and authorized the Office of Engineering and 
Technology (OET) and the Wireless Telecommunications Bureau (WTB) to 
issue public notices with the specific data that BRS licensees in the 
2150-2160/62 MHz band must file along with the deadline dates and 
procedures for filing this data electronically in the Commission's 
Universal Licensing System (ULS), where it will be available to the 
public.
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    \4\ 2005 Commission Order, 20 FCC Rcd at 15890-91 paragraph 53 
(citing 47 U.S.C. 154(i)).
    \5\ Id., 2005 Commission Order. See also 70 FR 61747 (October 
26, 2005).
    \6\ Id. The Commission also noted that the information submitted 
need not be signed under oath; however, willful false statements 
made therein are punishable by fine and imprisonment, and by 
appropriate administrative sanctions, including revocation of a 
station's license. See id. at n.139 (citing 47 CFR 1.917(c)).
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    On November 30, 2005, OET and WTB released a Public Notice (First 
BRS Data Collection PN) setting forth two data collections concerning 
BRS licensees in the 2150--2160/62 MHz band.\7\ The deadline for filing 
the first set of information (``First Data Collection'') was December 
27, 2005. The deadline for filing the second set of information 
(``Second Data Collection'') could not be set until the Office of 
Management and Budget (OMB) approved the new or revised information 
collections pursuant to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, Public Law 
No. 104-13.\8\ On April 26, 2006, OMB approved the new or revised 
information collections contained in the Second Data Collection.\9\
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    \7\ Licensees of Broadband Radio Service Channels 1 and/or 2/2A 
Must File Site and Technical Data by December 27, 2005, Public 
Notice, DA 05-3126, 20 FCC Rcd 19273 (OET&WTB 2005) (First BRS Data 
Collection PN).
    \8\ See 2005 Commission Order, 20 FCC Rcd at 15890-91, 15893 
paragraphs 53, 66.
    \9\ The new or revised information collections contained in the 
Second Data Collection were approved by OMB on April 26, 2006, see 
OMB Control No. 3060-1090, and the Commission published a document 
in the Federal Register announcing this approval at 71 FR 27498 (May 
11, 2006).
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    2006 Commission Order. On April 21, 2006, the Commission released 
the Ninth R&O in ET Docket No. 00-258. Among other things, the 
Commission decided that BRS licensees with primary status in the 2150-
2160/62 MHz band as of June 23, 2006, will be eligible for relocation 
insofar as they have facilities that are constructed and in use as of 
that date. After June 23, 2006, all major modifications to existing BRS 
systems in use in the 2150-2160/62 MHz band will be authorized on a 
secondary basis to AWS systems, unless the incumbent affirmatively 
justifies primary status and the incumbent BRS licensee establishes 
that the modification would not add to the relocation costs of AWS 
licensees. Do not confuse ``major modifications'' after June 23, 2006, 
under the eligibility rule \10\ with ``major'' and ``minor'' 
classifications under the application rules.\11\
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    \10\ See 47 CFR 27.1254 (Eligibility). For purposes of this 
eligibility rule, major modifications include the following: (1) 
Additions of new transmit sites or base stations made after June 23, 
2006; (2) changes to existing facilities made after June 23, 2006, 
that would increase the size or coverage of the service area, or 
interference potential, and that would also increase the throughput 
of an existing system (e.g., sector splits in the antenna system). 
Modifications to fully utilize the existing throughput of existing 
facilities (e.g., to add customers) will not be considered major 
modifications even if such changes increase the size or coverage of 
the service area, or interference potential. Id.
    \11\ Under 47 CFR 1.901-1.959 (Wireless Telecommunications 
Services Applications and Procedures), licensees may make minor 
modifications to station authorizations, as defined in Sec.  1.929 
(other than pro forma transfers and assignments), as a matter of 
right without prior Commission approval. Where other rule parts 
permit licensees to make permissive changes to technical parameters 
without notifying the Commission (e.g., adding, modifying, or 
deleting internal sites), no notification is required. For all other 
types of minor modifications (e.g., name, address, point of contact 
changes), licensees must notify the Commission by filing FCC Form 
601 within thirty (30) days of implementing any such changes. See 47 
CFR 1.947 (Modification of licenses).
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    The Commission noted that, in response to the request for 
information in the 2005 Commission Order (implemented in the First BRS 
Data Collection PN), sixty-nine BRS licensees provided information on 
127 stations.\12\ Based on the information collected, the text of the 
First BRS Data Collection PN, and other record data, the Commission 
concluded that BRS licensees who did not file under the mandatory data 
collection requirements contained in the First BRS Data Collection PN, 
and who subsequently claim that they are entitled to relocation or 
reimbursement, have the burden to demonstrate to an AWS entrant that 
they meet the relocation eligibility requirements provided in the 2006 
Commission Order.\13\
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    \12\ See Ninth R&O at paragraph 13. Although the licensing 
records indicate there are approximately 565 active BRS licenses in 
the 2150-2160/62 MHz band, the Commission noted that licensees that 
did not have constructed and/or operational facilities were not 
required to file system information in response to the 2005 
Commission Order. See 2006 Commission Order at n.40.
    \13\ See Ninth R&O at n.40. The Commission added that an AWS 
entrant that does not engage in relocation negotiations with such 
BRS licensees, absent this showing, is not subject to a claim that 
it is failing to act in good faith. Id.
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II. Required Actions

    On or before July 14, 2006, BRS Channels 1 and/or 2/2A Licensees 
(``you'') must do the following:
     Amend each of your pending applications electronically on 
ULS to submit (upload) an attachment with the data required for the 
Second Data Collection.
     Review all information contained in each of your 
applications (filed in December 2005 for the First Data Collection), 
including all information that may have been automatically entered, to 
confirm that each application is complete and accurate as of June 23, 
2006.
    [cir] If necessary, update the data that you reported in December 
2005, for the First Data Collection, so that each of your amended 
applications is accurate and complete as of June 23, 2006.\14\ You do 
not have to provide the coordinates for any subscriber/customer 
premises equipment.
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    \14\ Applicants must ensure the continuing accuracy and 
completeness of information furnished in a pending application. See 
47 CFR 1.65. During the First Data Collection, licensees reported 
certain site and technical data by filing applications to modify 
their geographic-area licenses. These applications, which had to be 
filed by December 27, 2005, remain pending.
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    [cir] If you determine that no changes are needed for each of your 
applications to be complete and accurate as of June 23, 2006, then just 
submit an attachment to each application with the data required for the 
Second Data Collection. Keep in mind that you must electronically re-
sign and certify the accuracy of your complete application, as amended, 
as of June 23, 2006.
     These amendments will be treated as minor amendments that 
do not require payment of a fee if the requested information is 
submitted without making additional changes to the license.

A. Initiate Amendment

    Take the following steps to initiate the electronic filing of an 
amended application on ULS:
    (1) Access the ULS homepage at http://wireless.fcc.gov/uls and 
click on Online Filing.
    (2) Enter the FRN and CORES password of the licensee and click 
Submit.
    (3) If you have saved applications, you will be taken to a page 
titled ``My Applications.'' From this page you should click on My 
Applications and then Pending Applications.
    (4) Select the file number of the application to be amended.
    (5) Select Update from the right side of the ``Application at a 
Glance'' screen.
    At this point, begin entering information onto the amended 
application. ULS will take you through a series of screens that collect 
FCC Form 601 information and you will need to continue through many of 
the screens to get to a point where you may submit your amended 
application. The application information is carried over to the amended 
application and you do not have to reenter information, unless

[[Page 39321]]

the information is changing. Certain fields and questions collected on 
the FCC Form 601 Main Form, Schedule D, and Schedule E must be 
completed or ULS edits will not allow you to continue to the next 
screen. ULS will display a message if a required field is left blank 
and you will be given the opportunity to go back to the screen and 
complete the required fields.

B. Second Data Collection

    In order to determine the extent and scope of operations in the 
2150-2160/2162 MHz band, additional information beyond that collected 
on the FCC Form 601 for these services is required. Because this 
information is not normally collected on ULS, you will need to submit 
the information as an attachment to each pending application.
    To ensure that ULS correctly identifies and processes your amended 
application(s), select Attachment Type: ``BRS Channel 1, 2, 2A 
Notification.''
    On the Application Information screen, select ``Yes'' in response 
to the question ``Is an attachment being filed with this application?'' 
Upload the attachment at any time during the filing process following 
these steps:
     Click on the Attachment link, which is listed at the top 
of every online filing page. Select the newly created Attachment Type 
called ``BRS Channel 1, 2, 2A Notification''--and upload your 
attachment using this Attachment Type.
     Be sure to select Attachment Type ``BRS Channel 1, 2, 2A 
Notification'' when attaching your file. Failure to use this Attachment 
Type may result in the automated rejection of the application or a 
charge of an application fee.
    You must include the following information on the attachment (for 
each operational station in the 2150-2160/62 MHz band as of June 23, 
2006).
    (1) The ULS location number of the station transmitting on 
frequencies in the 2150-2160/62 MHz band. The location number can be 
found on the ``Site Specific Technical Summary'' screen.
    (2) Category of service (e.g., one-way or two-way; fixed point-to-
point, fixed point-to-multipoint, base-to-mobile).
    (3) For each station reported, the following receiver information.
    (a) For a fixed point-to-point transmitter: The receiver 
coordinates, elevation and the receive antenna's make, model, 
beamwidth, gain, azimuth, and height to center above ground level. 
(Note: You do not have to provide the receiver coordinates for any 
subscriber/customer premises equipment.)
    (b) For a mobile or portable transmitter: The receiver elevation, 
covered service area, and each receive antenna's make, model, 
beamwidth, gain, and height to center above ground.
    (c) For a fixed point-to-multipoint or base-to-mobile transmitter: 
The approximate coverage area and type of receiving equipment. If 
separate receive antennas are used, include the receive antenna's make, 
model, beamwidth, and gain.
    (4) Operational status of the station, including whether the 
station is providing service to customers or students.
    (5) Type of equipment used by subscribers associated with this 
station (e.g. handheld device, fixed customer premises equipment).
    (6) Number of subscribers associated with the station as of June 
23, 2006.
    (7) The type of application being provided (e.g., video, broadband 
data, backhaul).
    (8) For fixed point-to-multipoint systems: the number of links 
associated with the station.
     Licensees should also note in their attachment if both BRS 
Channels 1 and 2/2A are used as part of the same service (e.g., as a 
link to a two-way data service).

C. Make Any Necessary Updates to the Data Reported in December 2005

    If applicable, you must update the data filed in December 2005 to 
report any technical changes since that time so that the data is 
accurate and complete as of June 23, 2006. In order to update technical 
information, you should update and continue through the application 
screens until you get to a screen titled ``Site Specific Technical Data 
Summary.'' From this screen, you have the option to either add 
technical information for a new station by selecting Add Location or 
modify the technical information for any existing stations by selecting 
the location to be modified. If all information on the locations is 
accurate, there is no need to update the individual stations. You may 
click Continue and proceed with submittal of the application with the 
supplemental data.
    Facilities that require individual licenses. Licensees are 
cautioned that adding or changing a facility that requires an 
individual license or changing the technical parameters of a facility 
that is already individually licensed \15\ may cause the filing to be 
treated as a ``major'' modification under the application processing 
rules, as discussed in the box at the top of page three, and require 
payment of a fee.\16\
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    \15\ See 47 CFR 27.1207(b), 27.1209(b).
    \16\ Physical modifications made after June 23, 2006 to existing 
BAS facilities may also affect a licensee's eligibility for 
relocation. See 2006 Commission Order.
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D. Submit Amended Application

    When the Second Data Collection is attached and all information for 
the individual locations (as of June 23, 2006) is entered, click 
Continue to proceed through the screens to the ``Summary'' screen. If 
the system detects any errors, a message will be displayed on this 
screen that directs the licensee to go back to the relevant section of 
the application and correct the errors. When all errors are corrected, 
click Continue to Certify from the ``Summary'' screen. You must sign 
the amended application and click Submit Application to complete 
filing. Upon successful submittal, the licensee will receive a 
confirmation.

III. Further Information

    For additional ULS information or assistance, go to http://esupport.fcc.gov. You may also call the FCC Support Center at (877) 
480-3201 (TTY 202-414-1255) and select Option 2, Forms or 
Licensing Assistance. Hours are from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. Eastern Time, 
Monday through Friday (except Federal holidays). To provide quality 
service and ensure security, all Telephone calls are recorded. For 
questions about the collection of information, contact Mary Shultz, 
WTB, at (717) 338-2656. For questions about the underlying Commission 
Orders, contact Jamison Prime, OET, at (202) 418-7474.

IV. FCC Notice Required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995

    The total annual reporting burden for this information collection 
including the time for gathering and maintaining the collection of 
information, is estimated to be 0.5 hours to 1.25 hours. If you have 
any comments on these burden estimates, or how we can improve the 
collection and reduce any burdens it causes you, please send an email 
to the Federal Communications Commission, [email protected]. Please include 
the appropriate OMB Control Number (see below) in your correspondence.
    Under 5 CFR part 1320, you are not required to respond to a 
collection of information by the Federal government, and the government 
may not conduct or sponsor a collection of information unless it 
displays a current valid OMB Control Number. No person shall be subject 
to any penalty for failing to comply with a collection of information 
subject to the Paperwork Reduction Act that does not display a valid 
OMB Control Number or if we fail to provide you with this notice.

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    [cir] The First Data Collection discussed in the instant Public 
Notice has been assigned OMB control number 3060-0798.
    [cir] The Second Data Collection discussed in the instant Public 
Notice has been assigned OMB control number 3060-1090.
    The foregoing notice is required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 
1995, Public Law 104-13, October 1, 1995, 44 U.S.C. 3507.

Federal Communications Commission.
Alan Stillwell,
Senior Associate Chief, Office of Engineering and Technology.
Cathleen Massey,
 Deputy Chief, Wireless Telecommunications Bureau.
 [FR Doc. E6-10795 Filed 7-11-06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6712-01-P