[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 120 (Monday, June 22, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Page 37453]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-13314]


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FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION

[GN Docket No. 18-122; DA 20-609; FRS 16871]


Order Denying Stay Petition

AGENCY: Federal Communications Commission.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: In this document, the Federal Communications Commission 
(Commission) denies the Joint Petition for Stay of Report and Order and 
Order of Proposed Modification Pending Judicial Review of ABS Global 
Ltd., Empresa Argentina de Soluciones Satelitales S.A., and Hispamar 
Sat[eacute]lites S.A., and Hispasat S.A.

DATES: The Order Denying Stay Petition (DA 20-609) was released on June 
10, 2020.

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

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Anna Gentry of the Wireless 
Telecommunications Bureau, Mobility Division, at (202) 418-7769 or 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This is a summary of the Order Denying Stay 
Petition (DA 20-609) released on June 10, 2020. The complete text of 
the Order is available for viewing via the Commission's ECFS website by 
entering the docket number, GN Docket No. 18-122. The complete text of 
the Order is also available for public inspection and copying from 8:00 
a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Eastern Time (ET) Monday through Thursday or from 
8:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. ET on Fridays in the FCC Reference Information 
Center, 445 12th Street SW, Room CY-B402, Washington, DC 20554, 
telephone 202-488-5300, fax 202-488-5563, or you may contact BCPI at 
its website: http://www.BCPIWEB.com. When ordering documents from BCPI, 
please provide the appropriate FCC document number, for example, DA 20-
609.

Synopsis

    On May 15, 2020, ABS Global Ltd., Empresa Argentina de Soluciones 
Satelitales S.A., and Hispamar Sat[eacute]lites S.A., and Hispasat S.A. 
filed a Joint Petition for Stay Pending Judicial Review of the 
Commission's Report and Order and Order of Proposed Modification in the 
above-captioned proceeding. Petitioners asked the Commission to stay 
the C-band auction and transition process while their challenges to the 
3.7 GHz Report and Order are pending before the United States Court of 
Appeals for the District of Columbia. In their Stay Petition, 
Petitioners argue that the 3.7 GHz Report and Order will trigger a 
chain of events--beginning with the May 29, 2020 election by eligible 
space station operators to relocate on an accelerated basis--that may 
be irreversible and that will harm them by benefiting competing space 
station operators that are eligible for relocation and accelerated 
relocation payments and depriving them of spectrum access rights 
without compensation. They argue that the Commission exceeded its 
authority to modify their spectrum access rights, allocated too much 
money available to certain space station incumbents in the form of 
accelerated relocation payments and reimbursement of relocation costs 
associated with new satellites, and arbitrarily excluded Petitioners 
from receiving any relocation payments.
    The Commission denies the Stay Petition. First, Petitioners have 
not shown that they will suffer irreparable harm. The harm that 
Petitioners allege is not imminent, is conjectural, and consists of 
economic injuries that are not severe enough to be cognizable as 
irreparable harm. Second, Petitioners have not shown a likelihood of 
success on the merits. The Commission addressed Petitioners' principal 
arguments at length in the 3.7 GHz Report and Order. The Stay Petition 
does not persuade the Commission that the Petitioners' arguments are 
likely to succeed in court any more than they did before the agency. 
Third, Petitioners have not shown that the equities favor a stay. 
Petitioners have not met their burden of showing that the public 
interest militates in favor of a stay and that others would not be 
harmed by a stay. Moreover, Petitioners have not shown that the public 
interest would favor grant of the stay. The Commission's actions to 
repurpose the C-band are an indispensable element of its overall 
strategy of promoting the deployment of fifth generation (5G) wireless 
services, with millions of jobs, and billions of dollars in economic 
growth and other public benefits, at stake. Grant of a stay pending 
judicial review would significantly delay the auction and transition 
process and harm multiple stakeholders, including prospective bidders 
and the diverse incumbents involved in the transition process. The cost 
of such delay and disruption could be enormous. In addition to the 
public interest harms, grant of a stay would undercut the specific goal 
of U.S. leadership in 5G and the general goals of the auction program. 
Accordingly, we conclude that a stay of the Order and Order and 
Proposed Modification Pending Judicial Review is not warranted.

Federal Communications Commission.
Amy Brett,
Associate Division Chief, Competition and Infrastructure Policy 
Division, Wireless Telecommunications Bureau.
[FR Doc. 2020-13314 Filed 6-19-20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6712-01-P