[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 109 (Thursday, June 6, 2019)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 26363-26364]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-11047]


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FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION

47 CFR Parts 1 and 27

[WT Docket No. 12-357; FCC 19-29]


Service Rules for Advanced Wireless Services H Block--
Implementing Section 6401 of the Middle-Class Tax Relief and Job 
Creation Act of 2012 Related to the 1915-1920 MHz and 1995-2000 MHz 
Bands

AGENCY: Federal Communications Commission.

ACTION: Notification of order on reconsideration.

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SUMMARY: The Commission denied in part and dismissed in part the 
Petition for Reconsideration filed by the Rural Wireless Association, 
Inc. on September 16, 2013.

DATES: June 6, 2019.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Paul Malmud at the Wireless 
Telecommunication Bureau, at (202) 418-0006 or [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This is a summary of the Commission's Order 
on Reconsideration, FCC 19-29, adopted on April 10, 2019 and released 
on April 12, 2019. The complete text of this document is available for 
public inspection and copying from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Eastern Time 
(ET) Monday through Thursday or from 8 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. ET on Fridays 
in the FCC Reference Information Center, 445 12th Street SW, Room CY-
A257, Washington, DC 20554. The complete text is also available on the 
Commission's website at https://www.fcc.gov/edocs. Alternative formats 
are available to persons with disabilities by calling the Consumer & 
Governmental Affairs Bureau at (202) 418-0530 (voice), (202) 418-0432 
(tty).

Synopsis

    1. In 2013, the Commission released the H Block Report and Order 78 
FR

[[Page 26364]]

50214 (Aug. 16, 2013), which adopted licensing and technical rules as 
well as a band plan for the 1915-1920 MHz and 1995-2000 MHz bands (the 
``H Block'') and procedures for assigning H Block licenses through a 
system of competitive bidding. The Rural Wireless Association, Inc. 
(RWA) filed a Petition for Reconsideration later that year asking the 
Commission to reconsider its decisions to license H Block spectrum 
using Economic Areas (EAs) and to adopt population-based performance 
requirements. The Commission disagrees with RWA's contention that the 
Commission should have: (1) Licensed H Block spectrum using CMAs rather 
than EAs, and (2) adopted geographic-based, rather than population-
based, performance requirements.
    2. In this document, the Commission dismisses in part and denies in 
part RWA's Petition for Reconsideration because the Commission acted 
well within its discretion, struck a reasonable and well-justified 
balance among multiple statutory goals. RWA also asked the Commission 
not to use package bidding, particularly Hierarchical Package Bidding, 
in the H Block Auction. The Commission dismissed this request as moot 
because package bidding was rejected in a related proceeding. 28 FCC 
Rcd 13019. Accordingly, it is ordered pursuant to section 4(i), 4(j), 
303(r), and 309(j) of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended, 47 
U.S.C. 154(i), 154(j), 303(r), and 309(j), as well as Sec.  1.429 of 
the Commission's rules, 47 CFR 1.429, that the Petition for 
Reconsideration filed by the Rural Wireless Association, Inc., on 
September 16, 2013, is dismissed to the extent specified in this Order 
on Reconsideration and, alternatively and independently, denied as 
specified in the Order on Reconsideration.

Federal Communications Commission.

Marlene Dortch,
Secretary, Office of the Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2019-11047 Filed 6-5-19; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 6712-01-P