▶ 0:00:08all right if everyone will please take EXC good morning and welcome to the first Hearing in the communications and Technology subcommittee of the 119th Congress I am honored to serve as the chairman of this subcommittee where there's a rich history of identifying and addressing the most pressing issues issues raised in the communications and Technology sectors as technology continues to advance this subcommittee will be at the Forefront of solving
▶ 0:00:38tough issues the subcommittee has historically worked in a bipartisan manner to solve many of the issues before us and I plan to continue that tradition by working with my ranking member representative Matsui uh who I respect very much and have admired her work and accomplishments as a leader in this space and look forward to working together and learning from Miss Matsui I'm grateful for the work chairman L brought to this subcommittee and I'm looking forward to continuing it and learning from him as well I'm also excited to work
▶ 0:01:08with my vice chairman Mr Rick Allen and all of my colleagues on this subcommittee on both sides of the aisle to advance important legislation in this Congress our nation is the world's economic Powerhouse and we lead the world in Innovation America is home to the best technology companies both large and small these companies lead in everything from Next Generation wireless tech technology to all the emerging technologies that rely on connectivity ranging from artificial intelligence and the internet of things to NextGen 911
▶ 0:01:39and precision agriculture our country's startup ecosystem is strong and should be fostered this committee must Advance thoughtful policy that continues to Grow American innovation and productivity rather than stifle it next Generation Wireless technology supports many of these technological advancements it impacts nearly every sector of our from powering everyday Communications networks and advancements in healthcare and Manufacturing to being used for our National Defense something heavily present in my
▶ 0:02:09district at Fort Bragg we call it the epicenter of the universe it's the home of our special forces and the largest army base in the world but if our wireless networks are going to keep Pace with the speed of innovation we need to make sure they have additional Spectrum resources spectrum is a crucial element for wireless technology to operate Americans depend on connecting devices in their everyday lives and the congestion on our networks has skyrocketed our wireless networks need to keep up as our wireless networks advance from
▶ 0:02:395G to 6G technology and Beyond the demand for spectrum will only continue to grow we must remember these important resources are finite managing these limited resources is vital to maintaining our economic dominance and protecting our national security we will take a balanced approach to making both licensed and and unlicensed Spectrum available this includes working with our federal Partners such as the Department of Defense which must have enough Spectrum to defend the Homeland but
▶ 0:03:09also be held accountable to use their resources efficiently last Congress the Federal Communications Commission Spectrum auction Authority expired for the first time due to disagreements about how Spectrum resources should be allocated these auctions have historically brought in billions to our national economy with the highest Spectrum auctions raising over $80 billion from private companies it is simple economics there's limited Supply Unlimited demand and a willingness to pay
▶ 0:03:40we need to reauthorize the fcc's Spectrum auction Authority immediately we must also continue looking for ways to make unlicensed Spectrum available unlicensed Spectrum unlocks the internet of things and smart device economy on which Americans rely providing tremendous economic growth under the first Trump Administration more than 1,200 MHz of unlicensed Spectrum was made available in the 6 GHz band leading to massive opportunities for Innovation for our Farmers
▶ 0:04:10industrialists and communities these successes are just a start however as we progress our adversaries are constantly trying to uh undermine our leadership and international standard setting bodies through IP theft and through cyber attacks the US must remain resolute in defending our leadership to safeguard democratic values and this happens by trusting in our private sector Partners to address some of our nation's most pressing challenges
▶ 0:04:41we recently learned about salt typhoon which may be the largest Chinese back telecommunications hack in our nation's history as we deploy Advanced networks and connected devices in an environment of great power competition we have to thoughtfully secure our networks every step of the way at the end of last year year I was glad to see Congress fund the removal of the remaining Chinese equipment in our Communications networks China is producing cheap Communications equipment at the cost of our national security
▶ 0:05:11and that needs a change we need trusted Alternatives companies are working to develop and deploy open Rand technology which is intended to promote an ecosystem of trusted vendors for communication Network equipment and I look forward to hearing an update on its progress today the key to our success is working together together with our stakeholders to deploy and secure our networks as our adversaries seek to undermine us leadership we will continue to build a comprehensive Spectrum policy in the United States and a unified position on the international
▶ 0:05:42stage I look forward to discussing these issues more in depth with our Witnesses today and discussing the future Spectrum policy in the United States I now recognize our ranking member of the subcommittee the general lady from California Miss matsi thank you very much Mr chairman and I want to congratulate you on serving as a new Communications and Technology subcommittee chair I look forward to working with you this Congress I'm glad that we're starting with such a timely issue on which we have a strong
▶ 0:06:12bipartisan track record the last time this subcommittee had a spectrum hearing the FCC spectrum auction Authority had just lapsed for the first time in history now nearly two years later the FCC is still deprived of this critical tool to lock the full potential of the spectrum Airwaves leaving US economic and National Security at risk spectrum is a key engine of Wireless Innovation it supports a wide range of Technologies
▶ 0:06:42from remote surgery to autonomous vehicles and Broadband our consumers businesses and federal agencies all stand to benefit when we maximize our Spectrum use this requires a comprehensive approach that strikes the right balance of license unlicensed and shared Spectrum we need a bipartisan solution that not only restores auction Authority but also promotes a healthy Spectrum Pipeline and ensures our federal
▶ 0:07:13government speaks with one voice on Spectrum policy and we need to be forward-looking by promoting technologies that will improve Spectrum sharing and efficiency equally critical is Our obligation to be responsible stewards of spectrum auction revenues as a longtime advocate for the fcc's rip and replace program I'm proud of our work to use Spectrum auction proceeds to remove unsecure Chinese equipment from our Communications networks
▶ 0:07:43spectrum is a public good and I'm dismayed to see prospects Flo that would use auction proceeds to provide tax cuts for the wealthy through reconciliation rather we need to work as a subcommittee to use these funds to close the Dig divide protect National Security and support Public Safety Communications this includes expanding access to life-saving Technologies such as Next Generation 911 for faster and more accurate
▶ 0:08:14emergency responses last congress's committee unanimously passed the Spectrum auction reauthorization act comprehensive Spectrum legislation that would have accomplished these very goals the house Republican leadership never brought this bipartison proposal to the floor for a vote this Congress we must build on a good work I hope my colleagues will continue our history of bip paring cooperation on Spectrum
▶ 0:08:44lastly I'd be remiss if I didn't highlight the important work of the national Spectrum strategy even amidst an auction Authority laps the Biden Administration answered my call for a unified Spectrum plan by launching the first compreh comprehensive us Spectrum strategy in six years this strategy offers a road map for securing us leadership and spectum Innovation and ensuring that the federal government speaks with one voice we can't afford to throw that progress
▶ 0:09:14away and return to the disarray that preceded the national Spectrum strategy the US needs a unified Spectrum position now more than ever to fight for our interest in international negotiations and to Rally up other countries to our vision if we fail to maintain our Global Leadership on Spectrum we create a vacuum that China will happily fill the stakes are high it is time for all stakeholders to come to the table and for
▶ 0:09:45Congress to pass comprehensive Spectrum legislation that has substantial bipartisan buyin clearly there's a lot of work ahead of us but I'm hopeful this subcommittee has a proven track record of by bipartisan coroporation that keeps America at the Forefront of global Innovation now is not the time to throw that aside we have a chance to continue our tradition of working across the aisle and I'm committed to advancing solutions
▶ 0:10:15that secure economic growth National Security and bipartisan funding priorities benefiting the American public thank you to our Witnesses for appearing before us today and I look forward to the and with that Mr chairman back the reminder of my time I thank the ranking member for her remarks and I now recognize the chairman of the full committee the gentleman from Kentucky Mr Guthrie for five minutes for his opening statement thank you Mr chairman and thank you for bringing us together for
▶ 0:10:45this important hearing and I thank you to the witnesses uh for your participation I look forward to the work we will do this Congress to close the digital divide protect our critical infrastructure and ensure Americans are prepared to out compete the Chinese Communist party I have long been an advocate for spectrum policy that serves both our national security and American innovation I served for many years as the co-chair with my good friend from California Miss Matsui I enjoyed always enjoy working with you and look forward to continue working with you
▶ 0:11:16as we move forward this Congress the United States needs a spectrum agenda that enables both big and small American companies to innovate and remain competitive globally ensuring that the US continues to be a leader in Next Generation generation Wireless Communications technology will create jobs and unlock new opportunities here at home as reliable highspeed connectivity supports a range of Cutting Edge applications like artificial intelligence and advanced manufacturing we cannot and we will
▶ 0:11:46not allow our adversaries like the Chinese Communist party to dominate 21st century technological battle as a first step we must reauthorize the FCC spectrum Authority second we must work together together with federal agencies and stakeholders to reallocate unused spectrum and third we need to look at Innovative tools to better utilize and manage Spectrum resources I'm looking forward to keeping our promises to Americans across the country that are that America is open for business and
▶ 0:12:16I eagerly anticipate bold leadership across many Industries ushering in the Next Great American Century I will now yield to our vice subcommittee chair my good friend Vice chair Allen for a few opening remarks I will yield my time toder my time thank you chairman Guthrie for yielding and chairman Hudson thank you for holding this important hearing and I look forward to working with you uh we're I'm looking forward to
▶ 0:12:46working with uh this committee and this Congress to tackle the issues the critical issues closing uh like closing the digital divide fighting rooc calls and strengthening our telecommunication infrastructure access to telecommunications isn't just a luxury it's something Americans depend on every single day students need it to finish their homework folks of all ages especially in rural communities rely on it for tele Health visits with
▶ 0:13:16their doctors and small businesses use it to reach customers and keep the doors open and let's not forget we all use it to stay in touch with friends and loved ones additionally when natural disasters strike Act access to Reliable Communications becomes even more critical Georgia's 12th District saw firsthand just how devastating this can be when hel hurricane Helen wrecked havoc in our communities last September that storm caused significant damage to our Communications infrastructure leaving
▶ 0:13:46our residents unable to call for help check in with family to let them know where they were and that they were safe and in many cases made it impossible to receive helpful updates about accessible resources thankfully we had satellite and other resilient emergency systems in place to help fill the Gap with recovery efforts and got and that got underway spectrum is absolutely vital for the wireless services and devices we use today and for the Technologies of tomorrow if we want to maintain our
▶ 0:14:16leadership in the world and keep Pace with China's in advancements we need to free up more Spectrum for both licensed and unlicensed uses Technologies like Precision agriculture Advan manufacturing and nextg wireless Services all depend on it again I look forward to tackling these issues as Vice chairman of the CNT subcommittee thank you Mr chairman and I Y back thank you Mr chairman I now recognize the gentleman from New Jersey the ranking
▶ 0:14:47member of the full committee Mr palone for five minutes for his opening statement thank you Mr chairman and we're here today to discuss Spectrum one of our nation's most underrated and economically valuable natural resources discussion of current Spectrum policy debates is important to better understand how our decisions impact America's standing in the world but we can't ignore that this hearing comes at a time when House Republicans are considering using Spectrum auction proceeds as a piggy bank to fund their costly tax breaks for billionaires
▶ 0:15:17and large wealthy corporations and I hope they reconsider going down that road because it would be a sharp departure from the way Spectrum policy and auction proceeds have been handled by Congress in the past spectrum is such a valuable natural resource because it's an essential building block for connecting family and friends as well as delivering critical services like education and health to people across the country it's also critical to Everyday safety for First Responders without Spectrum we would not have radio stations smartphones
▶ 0:15:47the app economy or drones and many of these technological advancements were developed by American innovators pushing the limits on the way Spectrum could be used in new and exciting ways but p performance does not guarantee future results so America must remain a leader in Spectrum policy for more than three decades Congress has granted the FCC the authority to make Spectrum available using competitive bidding or auctions and granting the FCC this Authority has served both the public and the nation weal today the United States is a global
▶ 0:16:17leader in delivering 5G Advanced Wi-Fi Bluetooth and other Next Generation Wireless Technologies to Consumers across the country at the same time Spectrum auctions which have raised over 200 30 billion of the federal government have helped fund important Public Communication priorities including the rip and replace reimbursement program the construction of first net and Broadband infrastructure grants and that's why Spectrum policy has long been an area of bipartisan agreement in fact we've worked closely with the Republicans on this committee
▶ 0:16:48for the past three years on bills to extend the fcc's auction Authority and use Spectrum proceeds to pay for bipartisan spending priorities and one of the areas of bipartisan agreement was the need to fund Next Generation 911 this funding would modernize our 911 networks to allow the public to use modern-day communication tools like sending texts images and videos to First Responders and emergency personnel and this technology will reduce response times and equip First Responders with life-saving information before
▶ 0:17:18they arrive at the scene which will better assist people in their critical time of need the recent devastating wildfires in California are another reminder of how vital seconds can be in emergency this program clearly serves the public interests and proceeds from auction of a public Airwaves are ideal to fund it unfortunately again it seems that Republicans are now going to abandon this bipartisan work in order to March ahead to give tax breaks to the rich and this is simply not the way these funds should be used the auction of public
▶ 0:17:48Airwaves should fund programs for the public good Republicans should keep that in mind and reject proposals that would include Spectrum in any reconciliation instead they should work with with us to set good Spectrum policy and to use auction proceeds to fund vital programs that actually serve the public and not the wealthy few and I don't think the stakes could be any higher failure to replenish the commercial Spectrum pipeline risk our nation falling behind AR our counterparts across the GL globe of course particularly China
▶ 0:18:19uh because we want to produce cuttingedge consumer Innovations and enhance our national security capabilities and we can't allow that to happen and that that's I I mean I'm we can't allow to not have uh Spectrum used for these good policy and public purposes and that's why we should be working together we should also work to ensure the advancements made possible by Spectrum are delivered to all Americans regardless of their income or zip code too often rural tribal and low income areas are left behind
▶ 0:18:49as Next Generation Technologies are deployed and have to continue to work on making these Services more affordable to everyone so finally I I I want to say um if I could take a minute um Mr chairman I want to Bid Farewell to Jennifer erson who is our chief Counsel on the subcommittee she's leaving the committee after six years of service uh and during that time she's played an instrumental role in the historic Broadband Investments we made in the bipartisan infrastructure law the creation of the affordable connectivity
▶ 0:19:20program and I bar partisan rip and replace legislation that I mentioned and we've accomplished a lot in the subcommittee much of it bipartisan and throughout her time I want to thank Jenna for helping for helping to make that happen so wish her nothing but the best of course I don't want her to leave but that's the way it goes and and you know thank I want to thank Jennifer for all her contributions thank you and I yield back to balance of my time thank
▶ 0:19:52Mr I thank the ranking member and I join him and thank him as erson for your service on the committee and wish you all the best in the future uh we have now concluded Our member opening statements the chair reminds members that pursuant to the committee rules all members opening statements will be made part of the record we would like to thank our Witnesses for being here today to testify before the subcommittee our witnesses will have five minutes each to provide an opening statement which will be followed by a round of questions from Members the witnesses here before us today
▶ 0:20:22are The Honorable Michael Powell who is the president and CEO of ncta the internet and television Association thank you for being here Mr Brad Gillan the Executive Vice President of ctia thank you for joining us miss Diane Ronaldo executive director of open ran policy Coalition thank you for being here I chair would also like to recognize Cole Peterman a special guest joining us in the audience Mr Ronaldo's son welcome Cole and finally Mr
▶ 0:20:52Chris Lewis the president CEO of public knowledge thank you for being here today I'd like to note for our witnesses that the timer light on the table will turn yellow when you have one minute remaining and will turn red when your time has expired and then I'll start tapping up here and then eventually banging but hopefully we won't get to that point U thank you um Mr pal you are recognized for five minutes for an opening statement thank you sir good morning chairman Hudson ranking member metsi chairman Guthrie
▶ 0:21:23and Mr palone and other distinguished members of this committee I am m Powell president and CEO of ncta the internet and television Association I thank you for the opportunity to testify today I'm going to discuss two topics Central to America's leadership in Wireless technology Wi-Fi and shared Spectrum which is an Innovative way to get more Spectrum more quickly to more users Wi-Fi has become the
▶ 0:21:53backbone of America's internet experience it Powers our homes work places schools and public spaces enabling nearly all modern interactions Wi-Fi allows multiple users to share a single connection and his democratized access to the internet making connectivity more affordable and widely available Wi-Fi also drives Innovation by offering open unlicensed access it enables entrepreneurs to
▶ 0:22:23create smart devices and Technologies from thermostats to virtual reality today the average us home has 17 connected devices and is projected to have 24 by 2027 moreover wisi supports critical Technologies like The Internet of Things generating 2.4 trillion dollars in annual economic value the US has led in Wi-Fi Innovation creating systems that enable universal access
▶ 0:22:54without heavy regulation however to sustain this leadership we must ensure enough Spectrum for Wi-Fi's continued growth particularly as demand surges with emerging Technologies like artificial intelligence and virtual reality Wi-Fi effectively is the internet it carries nearly 60% of all the world's data traffic it carries 10 times more data than all other wireless networks combined and
▶ 0:23:24when using our smartphones 80 to 90% of our data goes over Wi-Fi and not the cellular network and the best part is that Wi-Fi is an American Le Innovation Wi-Fi allows innovators to make devices that connect to the internet for free and without a license from the government we in America harness the power of our citizens to publish to produce and to invent this contrast starkly with China who prefers to spy on
▶ 0:23:54its citizens rather than Empower them Wi-Fi brought us the future and it will carry us into the AI intelligence age American Spectrum policy should embrace our leadership and continue to fnish Wi-Fi with the Spectrum it needs to continue its explosive growth and meet consumers expectations now it goes without saying America has a spectrum problem put simply demand for it is shooting up and supply of it is falling nearly all midband
▶ 0:24:24spectrum that we all want to use is used by critical Mission government system systems most of it in the hands of our war Fighters traditional approaches clearing government held Spectrum for auctions are increasingly unsustainable we can't compromise our combat capability in the face of a dangerous World there are fewer places to move these critical systems and moving them is costly and timec consuming for example just clearing the lower 30 GHz ban for exclusive
▶ 0:24:54use would take 20 years and cost1 billion doar we need a better way out of this problem shared spectrum is the solution advances and dynamic Spectrum management allow government and Commercial users to coexist resolving conflicts and reducing delays the success of citizens ban Radio Service cbrs proves this approach works it supports a diverse range of users including schools factories and even
▶ 0:25:24Disaster Recovery efforts while fostering competition and Innovation to maintain us leadership we must prioritize coexistence and shared Spectrum models Congress should extend the fcc's auction Authority while embracing both shared license auctions and unlensed Wifi designations this includes allocating more Spectrum for Wi-Fi and exploring shared models in critical midband ranges like the 3 gigahertz and 7
▶ 0:25:54gahz bands by adopting forward-looking Spectrum policies we can accelerate deployment of Technologies like 5G 6G Wi-Fi 7 and 8 strengthen National Security and sustain our Global Wireless leadership and our Innovation this committee has always embraced Innovation and we are on the cusp of a great Innovation Revolution and we need an Innovative Spectrum policy to meet the moment thank you for the opportunity to speak today thank you uh Mr
▶ 0:26:24Gillan you're recognized for five minutes for an opening statement good uh thank you congratulations Mr chairman reg member metsi members of the subcommittee it's a privilege to be with you your microphone on make sure it's a privilege to be with you uh a privilege to be here on behalf of the wireless industry 4.5 million jobs strong across this country we invest $30 billion a year to make this and so much more better and I really want to Echo your opening comments uh this is a conversation around Spectrum
▶ 0:26:55but it's a lot more than that it's about Economic Opportunity for all it's about our national security it's about our Global competitiveness and really comes back to connectivity drives so much of this conversation particularly 5G connectivity and Spectrum at its core is our oxygen I was here two years ago asking for more Spectrum I'm back today and that ask is more urgent because we've Stood Still as a country the last two years the rest of the world is moving forward aggressively and so to our American consumers who use more and more of this each and every
▶ 0:27:25day and we want to make sure we continue to meet that demand now our screens today are in 5G enabled so we're going old school with pictures but it's easier to explain through pictures so if you think about how much traffic has been on wireless networks the last few years uh this is where we've been when I was here last time we were in the orange I actually bragged about just how much traffic was being carried on these 5G networks we're now just two years later here 100 trillion megabits of traffic on these networks almost doubling in only two years of time I think the economist
▶ 0:27:55uh call that kind of growth bananas uh uh we just don't see that kind of growth and we were able to do that only thanks to the leadership of this committee it was the auctions that you directed in 2020 and 20121 that gave us the oxygen the Spectrum to actually meet that moment so when you look forward to the next couple years the uh by the end of the Generation by the end of the decade we're going to have almost three times more traffic on our networks than we do today and the challenge we face right now is we don't have new auctions right now the FCC doesn't have auction authority
▶ 0:28:26to meet that moment so how do you actually meet that consumer demand and part of it is our responsibility we need to invest and we do each and every year 20 to30 billion doar to make our networks denser to have more facilities throughout the country we have 40% more than we did generation ago we also all of us need to be more efficient with this finite resource uh and we're very proud of our record to doing that we're 42 times more efficient with the technology we use on a per meaher basis that we were a generation ago all of that
▶ 0:28:56is necessary but it's not if you plug that all in the traffic models it reveals that we need roughly 400 more megahertz of Spectrum by 2027 and over 800 by 2029 uh where does that Spectrum come from uh the federal government today reserves roughly two-thirds of this asset the midband Spectre we're talking a lot about today for their own use so if you look at the slide in terms of who has midband right today uh the federal government has 600% more than we do today we're in the teal on the bottom 450
▶ 0:29:26megahertz uh licensed Wi-Fi uh has 300% more than we do uh thanks to the six gig decision you alluded to uh what's happening in the rest of the world they see the same type of growth curve that we see and they're building uh they're getting access to Spectra more quickly uh nowhere is that more true than with respect to China you know 2023 we're roughly even with China in terms of midband access looking forward now to where we'll be in 2027 uh they're be in a position to have four times more than us that's untenable from a global
▶ 0:29:56competitiv standpoint so what do we need we would love this committee's help over the last 30 years the committee on a bipartisan basis has provide FCC auction Authority and each time you do that you provide a plan a road map of what you expect them to do with that Authority and that's critical uh now this conversation gets very jargony fast I am extremely guilty of that but at its core what this conversation is about why we really care about Spectrum why we're excited about what Wireless can be is because we have a role to play in almost everything you came
▶ 0:30:26to Washington to work on everyday household cost we can help beating China creating jobs a new study just released this morning from Nera said for every hundred beger hers of midband spectrum you release for 5G creates 1.5 million jobs Rippling throughout the economy both those building those networks all across the country but also those innovating on top of that and we also just want to close with there's a huge role here for the digital divide and the role Spectrum to play both connecting Americans on the mobile and the home broadband side this is too important
▶ 0:30:56technology for not everyone to be involved so we want to partner with you to make sure that this resource is available to all Americans that everyone has a fair shot at this uh greatly appreciate you including us look forward to your questions thank you Mr Ronaldo you recognized for five minutes for an opening statement thank you chairman Hudson ranking member Matt suoi and esteemed members of the committee thank you very much for the opportunity to testify on America's leadership in Wireless Innovation this hearing and topic are vital to the National
▶ 0:31:27and economic secur security importance to the United States and I welcome the committee's interest in this subject and also thank you for recognizing my 10-year-old son Cole he is a budding Telecom engineer we take Workforce Development very serious at the Coalition so I've had the distinct pleasure of serving this body in a couple of different capacities I was the lead cyber security and uh Tech Telecom staffer at the house intelligence committee um I was also the acting administrator um of ntia in the executive branch
▶ 0:31:57today I serve as the executive director of the open Ram policy Coalition a coalition that promotes to drive the adoption of open and interoperable Solutions in the radio Access Network our Coalition represents a diverse group of communication and technology companies unified under a common goal policy that that can help dismantle technological and Market barriers to cultivate competitive secure and resilient Marketplace since the launch of the open Rand policy Coalition Oran
▶ 0:32:27has experienced tremendous growth with more than 100 Global deployments from the world's largest rate here in the United States with 100% open Rand 5G Network that dishes Boost Mobile has deployed Nationwide open Rand has achieved its initial goal of providing additional vendor choice for mobile operators this Congress and the new new Administration assume office at a pivotal time in the wireless communication space the next two to four years are critical to ensuring our country's Contin
▶ 0:32:57continued leadership and competitiveness in the global contest with the People's Republic of China beijing's efforts to dominate the Wilder space are simultaneously wide- ranging prolific and focused the PRC seeks to supplant the United States at the as the world's leader in wiress Innovation and Market leadership this is not about free market competition but about state sponsored Market manipulation put simply the PRC does not want to compete it wants to rig the game to win
▶ 0:33:28throughout my testimony today I will return to three critical themes first is the pivotal role of us in pioneering Wireless Innovation the second is a necessity of leadership inspection policy and lastly is the important of public private policies we truly do need to work together the United States has had a proud Legacy of leadership and wireless technology from the groundbreaking development of four and 5G networks to the creation of global Positioning Systems an an innovation that transferred
▶ 0:33:58Global navigation and timing our country has consistently been at the Forefront of advancements these technologies have driven economic growth and job creation contributing billions of dollars annually to our economy Industries such as Healthcare transportation and Manufacturing have been revolutionized by Wireless Innovation enabling new applications for remote surgery autonomous vehicles and smart factories for example estimates indicate that 5G loan will create
▶ 0:34:28millions of jobs and contribute over $1.5 trillion to Global GDP by 2035 looking ahead the opportunities are boundless however achieving these advancements depend on one critical Factor secure and um efficient access to Spectrum now the prc's ascendency is by no means destined for Success the strengths of America remain and have the potential to grow provided they are carefully Steed
▶ 0:34:59encouraged and indeed Unleashed it is Silicone Valley not shenzen to which innovators and Industry flock how can Congress and the federal government help maintain this Edge by fostering an environment conducive to Innovation removing roadblocks for growth and aligning policies to facilitate the expansion one fundamental un under element underpins all our aims and that is Spectrum leadership spectrum is the lifeblood of Wireless Communications driving Innovation and
▶ 0:35:29economic growth and National Security in closing the United States is at a pivotal moment we are the world's leader in Wireless Innovation but maintaining this position requires sustained effort investment and collaboration by prioritizing superiority in optimizing Spectrum strengthening Partnerships and enhancing our participation in global forums we can assure that American Innovations continues to define the future connectivity thank you for the opportunity to testify today and I look forward to your questions thank
▶ 0:35:59you Mr Lewis you are recognized for five minutes for an opening statement thank you Mr chairman uh re member Matt suoi I appreciate you inviting me here today representing public knowledge uh on a topic that I agree is jargony but uh wonderfully nerdy and at public knowledge that is always a compliment so thank you uh over the last 30 years the United States has led the world in Wireless technology and this leadership is in no small measure due to the Innovative and bound Spectrum policies that have carried out a bipartisan
▶ 0:36:29basis on a bipartisan basis over these decades I will highlight three key factors from my written testimony that have led to the success and then I look forward to the discussion first our system is managed Spectrum the public Airwaves as a public asset and in the public interest all while encouraging private investment and Innovation other governments effectively nationalize their Spectrum only the government could operate broadcast radio or authorize New Uses of spectrum these government acted through Ministries under the
▶ 0:36:59direct control of the country's chief executive the United States we went a different way we created an independent agency to oversee Spectrum use designed to strike the right balance between the many users of spectrum such as Public Safety local governments broadcasters to encourage Innovation and private investment most importantly Congress recognized that Spectrum represents a unique non-renewable public resource Congress enshrined in the communications act that the FCC managed the public Airways for the public interest this means that
▶ 0:37:29no one can own the public Airwaves policy on lenses are balanced with public needs and come with public interest obligations and that Spectrum policy including auction design and proceeds should make efficient use of the spectrum allocations and benefit the needs of the public under the FCC mandate to connect all Americans today's public needs to connect all Americans include deploying NextGen 911 supporting infrastructure needs and especially supporting digital inclus funding need needs in local communities
▶ 0:38:00local digital inclusion efforts actually lower the cost of deployment for Broadband providers while giving communities large and small the support to realize the full potential of those INF deployments second the FCC has with Congressional Authority experimented with new regulatory models to create competitive opportunities in the market and Foster Innovation there is no greater example of regulatory Innovation than the success of Wi-Fi Wi-Fi technology was invented in the 1980s when the FCC opened unlicensed
▶ 0:38:30Spectrum for experimentation by engineers and inventors these unlic Spectrum bands allow anyone to use any device for any purpose under rules authorized by the FCC to avoid interference with licensed Services Wi-Fi carries 53% of all internet traffic and almost 90% of wireless internet traffic without supporting Wi-Fi and unlicensed Spectrum Innovation we would not have the mobile Communications Revolution we now enjoy in this Century newer regulatory models for
▶ 0:39:01spectrum access like CVS sharing models are increasing access for small community institutions Rural and tribal communities and other Private Industry outside of the big Wireless carriers third and finally Congress has carefully divided Spectrum Authority between Federal and non-federal users at ntia and the FCC respectively requiring cooperation between agencies and between Federal and non-federal users the public may not follow the day-to-day operation of ntia and the FCC
▶ 0:39:31but they do put their trust in government to make sure this resource and the technologies that use it work efficiently thankfully ntia and FCC have worked to develop more than oneou to support cooperation between agencies and therefore processes to balance Federal and commercial use needs without this coordination we would return to chaos and governmental infighting if America is going to continue its leadership in Wireless techn Technologies we must continue to follow these proven principles that led to Our Success to
▶ 0:40:01date Congress can lead in this direction by permanently restoring auction Authority at the FCC this is critical for enabling effective coordination between Federal and Commercial users driving efficient use of the public Airwaves and delivering public interest benefits that connect all Americans to secure reliable and affordable Communications thank you and I look forward to your questions thank you Mr Lewis we will now begin questioning and I will recognize myself for 5 minutes um
▶ 0:40:32listen Economic Security is National Security and the lead in technology as a nation I believe uh we need a balanced Spectrum policy that benefits both licensed and unlicensed use of spectrum making licensed Spectrum available is more difficult but I don't think we should resort to making everything unlicensed just because of the challenges associated with it um Mr Powell recognizing that uh your companies primarily utilize unlicensed Spectrum would you uh talk a little bit about what advancements in technology
▶ 0:41:02happening in your industry uh that might increase the demand for unlicensed Spectrum the question um it's it's interesting to note that the cable industry pursued the convergence that we all dreamed of in the 96 act it uses all forms of spectrum to compete it uses Wi-Fi it uses shared license spectrum and we also use exclusive license Spectrum which has allowed us become the fifth uh fourth most uh significant uh mobile service provider in the country
▶ 0:41:32offering competition so we believe that going forward you have to be creative in using all forms uh of spectrum allocation in order to be effective and we look forward we see a continuing conflict with what's available uh for the market to use quickly uh and the processes we are using to allocate that Spectrum which is why we're committed to uh advancing and advocating shared Spectrum models those models now use very sophisticated Dynamic Spectrum technology in order to coordinate and manage among
▶ 0:42:03uh uses and competing uses and it works quite effectively thank you um artificial intelligence has been a topic receiving a lot of attention recently um because it is revolutionizing so many of our Industries as a result it's also putting significant Demand on our nation's resources Mr Gillan does artificial intelligence require more bandwidth and if so will it need to be licensed Spectrum uh we're going to need more bandwidth period uh when you think about what AI promises
▶ 0:42:33it really is a good frame for this entire conversation the ability of AI to help all sectors much like 5G can help all sectors but they really need to work together uh would you think about the vone CEO in Europe talks about the risk in Europe of AI bottleneck because there's not enough cellular capacity to meet the data needs of AI so absolutely when you talk about the growth curves we're talking about AI growth we we need to make sure our networks are strong enough to carry that to drive that Innovation we want that Innovation to happen here and that Innovation is going
▶ 0:43:03to happen globally who has the best networks that's always been us and we're in a great place on Wi-Fi to continue to be the best we need to do the same in 5G as well thank you um Congress and the White House need to take a leadership role in repurposing Federal Spectrum for commercial use access to Spectrum by federal and Commercial users is necessary to protect our national security but Federal a agencies are not actively looking for ways to be more efficient with their Spectrum Mr Ronaldo as a former active
▶ 0:43:33administrator of Nia and in your current role you were responsible for managing Spectrum used by federal agencies also uh looking for opportunities to repurpose Spectrum for commercial use what are the biggest challenges presented by agencies when trying to make Spectrum available thank you sir yes so I was as an example when I was at nitia in August of 2019 I sent a memo to all of the federal agencies asking them to do um an assessment of their Spectrum needs and just today in
▶ 0:44:032025 are those bands finally being studied so I would say it is just time we need to make decisions um a lot sooner um in order to deploy thank you I'll I'll pose this question to everybody so we'll go down the line but but how does spectrum policy disputes domestically affect America's leadership on the global stage and I'll let's go in reverse order Mr Lewis start with you I'm sorry how does spectrum policy what so disputes that we have here domestically
▶ 0:44:34how does that impact our leadership on the global stage you know I I think uh history has proven that when we chart a path that uh promotes Innovation and uh promotes um uh meeting a variety of needs uh with our Spectrum policies uh that the world follows us and so uh a you know debate might might be good but I think disputes uh that that freeze us picking a direction that uh continues to promote
▶ 0:45:04those values uh in our balance Spectrum policy can can hold up our opportunity for leadership as we look at uh the next generation of Wireless Technologies like Wi-Fi s and 6G thank you I'm about to run out of time here but he's absolutely right debate has a time and purpose but we need to be decisive when we go into um standards bodies we need to speak with one voice thank you well my time has expired uh Mr Gil Mr P if y'all want to submit something I just think our adversaries are unified
▶ 0:45:34they government military and Industry are working together we need to be two to compete good point all right equals delay thank you my my time has expired and I can't hold my committee members accountable if I don't hold myself accountable so I'll I will stop and at this point I'll uh I'll recognize Miss Matsui for five minutes questions thank you Mr chairman um before the Biden administration's National Spectrum strategy the United States went six years without any comprehensive
▶ 0:46:05Spectrum strategy during those six years drown out Spectrum disputes compromise our ability to maximize our use of this vital resource if America is Remain the pay Setter for Global Innovation we need to maintain consistency and a spectrum policy Mr Lewis how is a national Spectrum strategy keeping the US on track to lead on the Wireless Technologies and why is it important critical to continue its work yes Congressman the the Spectrum strategy
▶ 0:46:35was a important step forward um it laid uh a path for us to follow uh in studying uh five Spectrum bands uh that could create a pipeline in the future um it uh it talked about long-term planning and research uh into technological developments like Dynamic Spectrum sharing that can make the use of those bands more efficient um and uh and hopefully uh also points in the direction of continued cooperation between Federal
▶ 0:47:06and and non-federal users so it is an important step forward we need to continue to move on thank you uh Mr Gillan and U Mr pow can the United States afford to delay studies of spectrum bands and undo the national Spectrum strategies progress and increasing Spectrum access Mr absolutely absolutely no okay M I agree with Mr Gan it's important to quickly study these bands and get them into the market okay thank you I've been a
▶ 0:47:36strong advocate for modernizing our telecommunications Network through open interoperable solutions that diversify our supply chains and create new opportunities for American innovators to compete in the market Miss Faldo the dod has partnered with members of the open ran coalition to leverage commercial commercial Wireless Technologies for secure resilience networks what next steps should us Spectrum policy take to ensure we can continue to enhance
▶ 0:48:06National Security through commercial Innovation yes thank you absolutely um the dod has been incredibly bullish on open ran and and are actively um working with my member companies to deploy 5G around the world unfortunately their budgets continue to get cut so in 2025 I think people would be shocked how little 5G is deployed at our DOD basis around the world so I'd say continued funding the continued partnership um and and it's great to see the um the the two sides the
▶ 0:48:36commercial side and the in the p in the uh public side working together to deploy um commercial Technologies certainly um thank you Spectrum demands continue to grow and there is no more easy Spectrum to access we must have a unified Federal Spectrum policy to continue the work towards sustainable Spectrum pipeline that benefit American people Mr Lewis how have American consumers and innovators been harmed in the past when the federal government failed to speak with the unified voice on Spectrum
▶ 0:49:07policy yeah I think our innovators are looking for um reliability on where they can uh design and uh and so the natural Spectrum strategy that you mentioned and and setting up clear path forward on what bands can be used in the future is important for for providing that certainty for innovators okay thank you Mr Gillan I've worked collabora across the government for years to Advance America's Spectrum policy can you tell me why it matters that the government speaks with one voice and why it matters
▶ 0:49:37what other nations do with Spectrum for us to succeed we need one voice and really appreciate your leadership really pushing Nia to be at the Forefront we need the expert making these calls and to get some r to some of the turf wars we're fighting uh when you think about it the US is a big Market but we're only 4% of all the Global Wireless Connections in the world so for in order to succeed we need to amplify our voice we need to make sure other countries are using our equipment are using our Spectrum everything Mr Ronaldo said so it's critical that we
▶ 0:50:07lead and we lead first thank you cutting edge Technologies like Dynamic Spectrum sharing hold great promise in efficiently using our finite Spectrum resources there are a number of possibilities to leverage emerging Technologies like artificial intelligence to better manage Spectrum as published in a national Spectrum research and development plan Mr pal and Miss Ronaldo how can quickly answer investments in emerging Technologies like AI improved Spectrum efficiency and management
▶ 0:50:37Mr pow I think it's critical I mean you can you can bet on technological innovation to resolve conflict or you can rely on political Rel regulatory conflict to resolve conflict um we think there's a stunning advances in the ability to use Spectrum more efficiency and more importantly to allow multiple users to use the same bands simultaneously without interference allowing greater competition uh and greater Innovation um m r i you've got seven minutes and 7even seconds can you yes absolutely
▶ 0:51:08I think with open ran um the use of a you're going to see a lot of use case especially inspection management okay thank you very much G A Ys back uh the chair will recognize the chairman of the full committee Mr Guthrie for five minutes to ask your questions thanks Mr chair for the recognition and Mr Ronaldo um it's great to see Cole here those not many of us on this committee remember and used to work for a member of this committee and it's hard to believe I've been here that long because he's 10 years old now that's that I remember when you were having him um so so my question is I know we have newer members and some of
▶ 0:51:38us need refresher as well so Nia which you were leading in in the previous administration we now well I don't know if it's still pre 45 um it it manages the federal Spectrum but a lot of agencies try to manage their own Federal Spectrum do you explain how that's not supposed to work and the problems of how it what that causes when that happens yeah absolutely so fragmentation is one of the worst things that we could do um to move things forward you would lose everything from the efficiencies that you gain through the IRA
▶ 0:52:08where all the federal agencies come together to discuss management of spectrum to National Security concerns can you imagine if each agency was responsible for cyber security of their individual bans um it it would be disastrous for for some agencies try to do that right some would like to yes okay so all right right I'll uh so we had um chair Hudson and and ranking member matsie talk about disputes going into these International bodies and just kind of refresher for some and some are needed the committee what were
▶ 0:52:38the so at the 2023 R World radio communication conference there were disputes that went in that made us less effective so if you would talk about what those some of I know there were several but kind of highlight a couple of the disputes why that made us ineffective or less effective I was an less effective and if if we go into those International groups less effective how China will take advantage of that yeah absolutely so there's a lot of prep work that goes into um these events years years ahead of time we work with others
▶ 0:53:08around the world to ensure that we can um have a unified response not just us but but Partners as well and so if we are still arguing over policy decisions as we go into these standards bodies then we're not able to speak with unified voice so what kind of policy discussions were happening what we what were we ging over Spectrum bands Spectrum bands yeah so everything so right the the adversary wants the chaos because if there's chaos internal among amongst us that means we're not fighting them for our um
▶ 0:53:39strongest hand in our in our position so these International standard setting body set the standard because obviously Spectrum knows no border because it's just it's physics in the air only I know Mr obot can explain it I can't but uh but we do know that it crosses borders and and so what Advantage does China have if if they get the leverage well what what could they do with with having the leverage in those what kind of Standards could they influence that that's negative to us and positive to them so it does Advantage their vendor
▶ 0:54:09Community a great deal um it's incredibly expensive to put together a radio and so if you're walking in and if your standards accepted then you you're going to have the first movers advantage and that's what we want so like what kind of Standards I mean just kind of more details would they yeah so whatever bands so you're G to have um transistors in all your radios and so that becomes incredibly expensive you're going to want to ensure that you have um this so uh other other countries around the world are on the same bands that that China is and so that's what
▶ 0:54:39their aim is is just to coales everyone together so it's kind of like if they become the dominant player then everybody else has to play if if you want to be interoperable most people want to be interoperable with the dominant player correct and so if they become the dominant player then then we have to follow them instead of them follow us exactly well thank you very much I appreciate that and I do have another minute if anybody wants the time if not I'll y back and I'll y back thank you Mr chairman uh chair will recognize the ranking member of the full committee Mr palone
▶ 0:55:09for five minutes ask your thank you thank you Mr chairman I'm concerned by reports suggesting that Republicans would rather spend $70 billion in Spectrum auction proceeds on tax cuts for the rich instead of investing this money in bipartisan Public Safety priorities such as Next Generation 911 which is going to save the lives of a lot of Americans including First Responders let me go to Mr Lewis to the best of your knowledge has Congress ever directed Spectrum auction proceeds
▶ 0:55:39to pay for tax cuts for billionaires that's my knowledge all right and why is using Spectrum auction proceeds to deploy uh ng911 networks a worthwhile investment if you would I view ng911 has an important uh public interest need um uh that makes all Americans benefit from secure networks uh faster Emergency Services um and and it matches the Mandate of
▶ 0:56:09the communications act that uh says that we should push to have all Americans connected to Reliable secure Communications well thank you I mean obviously I'm very proud of the fact that we've used spectrum in the past for public purposes and don't want it to be just used for tax cuts for you know corporate or billionaires um you know we're debating Spectrum policy but here in this committee but as far as the people in my district are concerned they just want to know what we're doing to make
▶ 0:56:39their monthly bills more affordable that's what they care about you know bottom line they you know they can't afford things they want us to bring prices down so Mr Lewis do you think that the FCC should require through LIC licensing or other means wireless service service providers to offer an affordable service option that we should require that if will uh I think that would be okay I don't think it would be a substitute uh for restoring the uh the low-income subsidy for
▶ 0:57:10Broadband that we lost last year uh uh even with a low-income option uh there's a cost uh to low-income people in every state and every every District so uh so yes but it's not it's not all we we would need you think some of those the things are just as important certainly I think the subsidy is is very important uh it was proven you know over 20 million people signed up for it uh before it went away uh and uh folks are making difficult
▶ 0:57:40budgetary choices without it yeah know I I I certainly agree with you that that was a major accomplishment and um we should try to continue or expand it um the the last question I want to ask and I could ask about Mr Lewis Mr Powell possibly too if you like um the Biden Administration made great strides in advancing the US Spectrum policies by adopting the national Spectrum strategy which got bipartisan support in this committee and this strategy
▶ 0:58:10requires the federal government to undertake studies of certain Spectrum bands before making any final decisions on whether or how they should be made commercially available so let me start with Mr Lewis and then Mr Po we've got a couple minutes will completing these studies allow us to more effectively compete against China and other countries and if so how if you could take a minute and we ask Mr Po I'd say Yes actually for some of the reasons that Mr Ronaldo was talking about uh uh to point in a unified Direction
▶ 0:58:40um instead of the disputes we had between different agencies in the past the studies can can really set what the scientific facts are about uh how different bands will work and the technolog using it and then hopefully um coordination can be built off of those scientific facts okay Mr pal do you I would just quickly say that the banss that we being evaluated are the very bands that all of us are sitting here asking for uh the government to get into the market uh we all have acknowledged those banss are heavily encumbered
▶ 0:59:10and so there's complex questions associated with the current users and potential commercial use so at some level no matter what form it takes uh there has to be continued evaluation of the viability uh of doing that and the appropriate approach to doing that all right thank you both thank you Mr chairman yil back thank you Mr palone the chair now recognize the vice chair of the subcommittee Mr Allen you recognize for five minutes thank you chairman Hudson for yielding and now we'll get back to the subject we were
▶ 0:59:41uh came to talk about Mr Powell can you explain why it's important to our strategic competition with China for your members to have more Spectrum made available for their use yes sir um you know I think attacking China is a is a multi-front war and I think uh you know to follow the advice of sunu don't attack where they're strong attack where they're weak uh our Innovations in wifi are unprecedented in the world uh China does not uh appreciate or Embrace that technology approach because it would Empower their
▶ 1:00:11citizens in a way that they're unwilling to do in their communist system and this gives America an enormous competitive Advantage because we harness The Innovation potential of every one of our citizens uh and they don't uh they have a command and control exclusive license regime because they want to maintain control of that regime and they want the world to use uh their approach as well good thank you Miss ralo what uh can you give me an answer to that question about why it's important for your members to have more Spectrum
▶ 1:00:41to compete Channel excuse me absolutely so if you want to get open Rand deployed we need new Spectrum to bring online it's updating it's updating networks um it is us and our Alli friends around the world's Innovation that's coming to Bare okay today I will be introducing the Spectrum pipeline act which was originally co-led last Congress by Senators Cruz and Thun this bill is designed to ensure the efficient allegation of midband spectrum
▶ 1:01:12a resource critical for the advancement of 5G and Next Generation Technologies Wireless Communications technology is a Cornerstone of our strategic competition with China this bill lays out a path for us to promote Wireless innovation a while protecting National Security interests Mr Gillan can you explain why the Spectrum pipeline Act is needed and how it would benefit the nation's economic and National Security interest absolutely and thank you for your leadership and for the bill it's a really important thing to address a lot of the
▶ 1:01:42challenges we're talking about that we we need to move quickly we need to move decisively and it's congress's role to set that direction and that structure you proposed is flexible it allows the agencies to act to determine which bands are right that we need to do together uh but ultimately uh when we're trying to talk about China in our view we need to be the best of the world at un licensed and we are today we also need to be the best of the world in 5G we shouldn't be choosing we need to do both and we need to have the Innovation available on both of those platforms and so your bill
▶ 1:02:12would help equalize that imbalance we have right now on the 5G side to put us in a position we lead the world today in unlicensed Spectrum we can again in 5G with this kind of Bill good thank you uh Mr Gil my rule District still does not have consistent mobile phone service what assurances can you give me that your member companies are making uh the necessary investments in upgrading their cell towers and building new WS as necessary absolutely it's a project every day uh that we continue to build
▶ 1:02:42it's one of the things why it's important when we talk about what kind of spectrum is available why full power Spectrum matters that if you think about uh some of the models the sharing models we're using you need seven times more the facilities to cover the same geography so when we're trying to get out Beyond Augusta what are we trying to do how far that signal goes matters there's also a role for the government the 5G fund at the FCC to help supplement and complement those places to help us push out faster uh but absolutely we need to get further than we are
▶ 1:03:13today is anything Congress can do to help us help companies uh bu build more Towers in the in the rural areas country uh certainly continued work on permitting reform would help to help uh cut modernize that process to let us build faster uh and get to more places and more spe full power Spectrum would be both great and then finally I've got about a minute can you explain the difference in the approach of spectrum policy between the first Trump Administration and the recent Biden Administration
▶ 1:03:43and what exactly needs to happen to get Spectrum policy out of the gutter and back on track and how long will it take uh we saw great success the first Trump Administration released more Spectrum than any other admin ministration uh particularly some of the midb spectrum we're talking about uh under the Trump direction of Mr Ronaldo's leadership we saw a 380 megahertz of spectrum midband Spectrum auction for over hundred billion dollars the the Spectrum directly adjacent to both of those
▶ 1:04:13is prime Spectrum for that same opportunity again so it came down to we had a lot of uh we were speaking with one voice and the white house uh push us all forward uh with a good plan so it's important that this committee understand that uh you know we've got to move quickly with this and uh and we need we need to move in a bipartisan way and quit talking about you know political issues and and let's get this done and so we can uh lead lead the world in
▶ 1:04:44uh Communications technology and I want to thank each one of you for your for being here today and for your input on this important subject and uh please help us get this done thank you thank you gentlemen for yielding back I'll now recognize uh representative of Florida Mr stto for five minutes to ask your questions thank you Mr chairman spectrum's one of our most valuable Commodities our information Super Highway when I think about all the uses from cell phones and getting to 6G to Ai and Commercial rockets in
▶ 1:05:14Central FLorida by the way tella Health streaming gaming internet e-commerce one of the greatest economic inefficiencies we have is buffering the dreaded Spinning Wheel I I even remember when it used to be an hourglass a lot of you may remember that uh and so it's critical for us to ensure access to Spectrum for these commercial and Technical uses unfortunately Congress allowed the fcc's auction authority to lapse um back uh nearly two years ago and we
▶ 1:05:44saw you know the Department of Defense our military they need to defend the nation but with nearly two years uh of this lapsing Authority we need to work out these dis these differences there's been a history of using this funding uh for public safety for National Security um that's Communications related whether it's first net uh Ripp and replace broadband and the new infrastructure law I could tell you in rural places in my district like South ool and East Orange where there
▶ 1:06:15U have ranches and farms and and Groves uh using this funding in a related way to Communications not only makes sense but it's the just thing to do uh Communications are only going to require more investment as technology and competition evance especially making our Telecom system more resilient to cyber security hacks like salt typhoon which has been mentioned a bunch of times here so we need to make sure we're reinvesting these in the Telecom system and not seeing
▶ 1:06:46tax cuts for billionaires that'll siphon this off most Americans and American small businesses will suffer uh identity theft ransomware spying uh if we don't continue to reinvest uh so first Mr Giles I was shocked to see we would see China over the last three years nearly four times the amount of uh midband Spectrum for commercial uh use Unleashed and just so we're clear it's been a bipartisan opposition
▶ 1:07:16in the Senate through DOD through senat rounds I see Senator hono too who helped slow down how do we what are the consequences if this continues to happen thank you for the question I I think the consequences is where you started it's the buffering hourglass uh and when we talk about what these networks can do it's inconvenient on a phone call when we want what 5G and we want connectivity to do in manufacturing
▶ 1:07:46and Healthcare and transportation we need these to be highly reliable and resilient Network so it has to work uh and so ultimately at its core that Vantage in China is giving them legs up and their ability to innovate there are 14 times more 5G connected factories in China than in the US you can draw a direct line back to our Spectrum policy they're continuing to move forward there's four Global bans for 5G right now they support three we support zero we need to get on the playing field
▶ 1:08:16we need to start competing again M raldi you were had of ntia when you had worked with the dod on these issues What were what was their hesitancy I feel like there's I get it there's National Security implications to this but what are some of the things you can disclose of why there's still that tension there that's blocking a lot of this from coming forward yes I I feel that there's a lack of trust they of course have National Security aims that they need to protect and the industry wants those protected too but there are so many efficiencies coming
▶ 1:08:47online how can we ensure all users public and private are taking advantage of these efficiencies um and so I think that's what we really need to get back into this conversation is how do we get the trust back we're all we're all one country thank you Mr Lewis if you could have a top three reinvestment in Telecom uh and in communication systems with the proceeds of spectrum sales what would it be top three uh definitely ng911 which we've talked about
▶ 1:09:17uh number two would be uh uh digital inclusion efforts on the ground uh congress's investment in the partson infrastructure law and in uh digital inclusion efforts on the ground was the first of its kind but it it's not permanent uh Spectrum auction Authority could create a Permanent Fund um and uh and then other infrastructure needs uh resiliency uh there there may be others but uh Spectrum auction proceeds are hard to predict as well uh the uh those auctions since
▶ 1:09:48there's no Green Field space come with costs as well so uh it would prioritizing would make sense thanks n y back thank the gentlemen the chair now recognizes uh Mr L for five minutes to ask your questions well thank you Mr chairman and thanks to our Witnesses for being with us today this is really a conversation our national security depends on the United States maintaining an edge in Advanced Technologies this committee has acted
▶ 1:10:18decisively over the years to meet this goal autonomous vehicle legislation securing Americans data from communist Chinese collection and advancing Spectrum policies like the beat China for 5G Act of 2020 the expiration of the FCC spectrum auction Authority is not something I take lightly an auction Authority remains crucial for wireless Technologies to have the ecosystem developed and thrive in the United States if I can start my question uh Mr pal and there's been a lot of discussion
▶ 1:10:48back and forth but I want to get your get your thoughts on this in your testimony you speak to the American Innovations that have come to thanks to unlicensed Spectrum availability availability do you expect that as technology continues to develop coexistence or some sort of sharing in a band will be easier or have less interference let me and before you answer you you really went in depth in your testimony on shared spectrum and but the question we've been going around and
▶ 1:11:18around on this for all because I've been on this committee for almost 15 years especially with DOD and we just heard from Mr Ronaldo talking about you know having some kind of working relationship back forth and having that trust but how do we get there because we can do a lot of talking but how are we going to get that that because we're going to have to have the Spectrum yeah I think if you look at the examples of WiFi and the cbrs Spectrum you will look at dramatic increases in our ability to utilize
▶ 1:11:48Advanced Technologies to allow conflicting uses to coexist uh cooperatively that allows you to get the Spectrum out uh have all users who need it have access to it and be able to provide services in new and innovative ways I think one of the trust problems is is the defense department and others believe and I've worked with them for many years including when I was chair of the FCC uh they lose trust when they feel like people are hunting to take the Spectrum completely away from them and not offer them an alternative
▶ 1:12:18uh they're charged constitutionally with protecting our borders protecting United States national security uh and I can tell you a a cach uh a flipping um hourglass while you're watching a video is one thing a loss of three milliseconds on a missile intercept means you miss that's a very fundamental loss of capability so you can understand the conflict it takes talented uh leaders and policy makers to bring that trust back but I would argue looking more fully at shared Spectrum models
▶ 1:12:49would allow them to see a future which they can continue to operate while coexisting with commercial users well thank you very much Mr Rado uh some of the conversations we've had in the past related to the benefits of Oran networks how does having a diverse Spectrum ecosystem strengthen our national security and protect against foreign attacks excuse me I keep doing this you never want an overreliance on a single band that's why it's important to diversify I think all you have to do is look
▶ 1:13:19to GPS um where it is incredibly vulnerable because all of our eggs in one basket you don't want to create a high value Target thank you you know in your testimony uh you mentioned that the United States cannot and should not try to act more like China when it comes to Spectrum management what are some of the areas we should be looking at to encourage that Innovation here while spreading American Wireless values abroad so so they operate by Fiat they have a handful of companies as opposed to us where we have hundreds of
▶ 1:13:49companies in this space so it's important to um bring them together to collaborate multi-stakeholders through government public private Partnerships um and so that's where we do have the Innovative Edge well thank you U Mr Gillan um are there bands that have already been studied by ntia that should be part of the spectrum pipeline our Studies have studies uh absolutely the when you the structure really there's many different ways that you can structure
▶ 1:14:19the bill you can direct in the past you've directed you must auction this particular ban sometimes it's amount of Spectrum within a range the clear priority for us is that uh that you include a plan with auction Authority and there's lots of different ways it can do it in terms of specific bands absolutely the 3 gigahertz band and the 78 gahz band are two Global bands they're both identified by the national Spectrum strategy we think those are key parts of the road map going forward well thank you very much anyways we and in this Congress we've
▶ 1:14:49got to do as I mentioned a little bit earlier on our uh Spectrum auction authority to get this done uh you know it's just not for making sure that we have dollars coming in to U the uh on the federal side but it's also so absolutely essential out there that we get the Spectrum out there and so Mr chairman I uh hope we can get this done this Congress and I yield back the balance of my time thank the gentlemen I'll now rep recognize the representative from California Mr Ruiz for five
▶ 1:15:19minutes to ask your questions thank you Mr chairman it's an honor to serve on this subcommittee I represent California's 25th district the southeast corner of California where far too many of my constituents are dealing with persistent issues of limited Broadband access inadequate cell coverage and aging infrastructure it's one of the most underresourced uh rural communities in state of California and in communities like mine the lack of reliable high-speed internet creates
▶ 1:15:49obstacles students are unable to fully engage in online education small business uh struggles to remain competitive and families are disconnected from critical Services the need to expand Broadband access to tribal Nations is particularly pressing because they face some of the lowest connectivity rates in the nation and addressing this digital divide will not only ensure Equitable access to education and Economic Opportunity but it would also
▶ 1:16:20provide essential services like teleah Health to communities that need it most and especially our vulnerable communities during the pandemic we saw that the lack of access made them even more vulnerable and we must prioritize modernizing our telecommunications infrastructures to close this Gap and build a stronger more connected future for all Americans uh Mr Lewis could you speak to how the absence of broadband access affects a community and in particular uh what the National Security implications might
▶ 1:16:50be I think you started with some great explanations I saw some of those examples firsthand I served on the school board in Alexandria for six years and saw students who did not have connectivity and how it impacted their ability to uh to compete uh and to get a full education um uh Broadband connectivity uh promotes economic development uh and opportunities to reach a global Marketplace for for adults as well and and is incredibly important for communities um
▶ 1:17:20and and you know we're here talking about Spectrum policy there's so many different ways to serve rural communities like yours uh uh and certainly the investments in the bead program that get fiber hopefully out to as many communities as possible is important for wireless because you can't have wireless connectivity and towers without the fiber backbone that those Towers connect to um and then finding other ways to uh use different sort of spectrum uh uh deployments uh whether it's licensed Spectrum whether it's it's shared Spectrum whether it's Wi-Fi like uh
▶ 1:17:51unlicensed Spectrum like TV whites spaces uh the basic between the channels the TV channels is used for Broadband deployment so there's so many different ways to I mean we need those during disasters for communications one of the critical things that we need them for and so these connectivity gaps also pose critical risk during emergencies where reliable communication networks are essential for delivering timely information ensuring the safety of all Americans last week on January 10 2025 due to various reasons 911 outages were reported in the Cella Valley where I
▶ 1:18:21represent particularly in Cathedral City in India resident who relied on AT&T and Frontier Services were unable to reach 911 for several hours First Responders directed people to call alternate numbers or text 911 which are not always available or reliable options and this is not the first time people in my district have experienced this as an Emergency Physician I've witnessed firsthand how every second counts during an emergency not being able to reach First Responders is simply unacceptable in the 118th
▶ 1:18:51Congress the subcommittee on a bipar Bas has made significant strides towards providing federal and state governments with the resources necessary to transition to Nationwide IP based Next Generation 911 systems this technology will modernize our outdated 911 infrastructure and will allow texts photos and videos to be sent to 911 improving communication during emergencies and location tracking and ensuring better coordination during natural disasters like the ones we experienced
▶ 1:19:22tropical storm Hillary and then also the LA Wildfire so could you elaborate Mr Lewis on the specific benefits investments in ng911 will bring to our communities uh I think it starts with the idea that when an emergency happens what do a lot of us do we we grab our phone we take it with us it's our it's our Lifeline to emergency services and our families uh people are more likely to die when they're having a cardiac arrest and they can't get the paramedics to
▶ 1:19:52their home to help them uh because of lack of n11 so I think when we're looking at Spectrum auction we should be using the funds to expand ng911 and help save everyday American lives rather than trying to use those funds to uh give Millionaires and billionaires more tax breaks uh people that need it the least uh we should be serving the American people who need it the most everyday middle class hardworking Americans who rely on 911 systems
▶ 1:20:22to to save lives thank you I yield back thank the gentleman for yielding back and now recognize the representative from Florida Mr Bill rakis for five minutes to ask your questions thank you Mr chairman I appreciate very much and congratulations uh you're going to make a great chairman uh I have to admit though I was surprised that Congress let Spectrum uh auction uh Authority Labs let alone for two years at least we can say that the house did its job in trying to reauthorize Spectrum auctions
▶ 1:20:53uh last Congress but this clearly remains a top priority for members of this committee on both sides as we move forward we shouldn't just be simply thinking about reinstating auctions but also consider process reforms in the past federal agencies have attempted to sty uh auctions sometimes even after an auction is held and bidders have woron licenses uh Mr Gillan uh how does the uncertainty of
▶ 1:21:23post auction agency medling impact the value of a spectrum license and what can Congress do to address these problems in the future thank you for the question uh you're exactly right uh biders hate uncertainty Capital hates uncertainty uh and therefore asking companies to spend tens of billion dollars on an asset there's expectations that they're going to be able to quickly then use that to deliver service to Consumers unfortunately uh that has not always been the case recently I think it comes back to some of what Mr raldo said about the need
▶ 1:21:53for one voice and ntia to make those calls uh and ultimately agencies and Industry and everyone needs to live by that decision and we need to get back to that place that you could help empower the Spectrum experts at the FCC and Nia to be the ones that have to make the hard choices among how all of us want Spectrum to be used thank you very much uh Mr Po uh in the aftermath of the historic double hurricanes of Slam Florida and North Carolina and other parts of the South and the wildfires have destroyed cities in
▶ 1:22:24California these communities need to rebuild from scratch how will permitting policies impact rebuilding efforts and what can Congress do to more quickly and coste effectively rebuild robust networks in these areas potentially allowing them to achieve a Citywide network uh like Charter has done in Charlotte North Carolina if you could answer that I appreciate yes I think you mentioned most importantly that um
▶ 1:22:54uh efficient receipt of Permitting is essential uh our members often uh in communities run into situations which they're ready to lay fiber across an enormous expanse of Rural and and you're you've been waiting for a permit for two years is both happens at the both the federal and the state level I think there are other things about recovering infrastructure in disasters like in Florida North Carolina for example how do we get polls back up and what quality polls do we put are we just going to put the same polls that blew down
▶ 1:23:24and broke are we going to improve those uh not only for withstanding the elements but also uh being able to handle the expansion of broadbend that we're all looking for in the bead program um we've had companies like Charter who've been on the ground in both n LA and North Carolina have learned a lot about how we improve coordination with power companies and utilities to avoid infrastructure being cut after it's been restored which is something we run into a lot in these situations so I think Congress and local
▶ 1:23:55governments can play a major role uh in improving the way we recover from these disasters thank you very much uh during his first term president Trump signed an executive order that streamline environmental permitting processes uh for infrastructure projects particularly highlighting projects to increase Public Safety due to this executive order Pasco County Florida which is in my congressional district was able to finally get a project shovel ready after nearly 25
▶ 1:24:25years of bureaucratic red tape if you could believe it this streamlining was eventually rolled back by President Biden on Tuesday president Trump once again signed an executive order significantly streamlining the environmental permitting process for infrastructure projects some experts are even suggesting this order could cut down permitting a Tim LMS from the better part of a decade down to one year uh or under one year Mr
▶ 1:24:55Gillan historically about how much time and money is spent on the environmental review process as opposed to physically building the networks to reach new customers and or improve service for existing customers uh according to the Commerce Department stats it can take well over two years which in often case is a decision of whether or not we're going to build or not that particularly when we have the conversation you dovetail Spectrum policy we're not getting spum how quickly and then
▶ 1:25:25how quickly can we actually deploy it on the permitting side to get sites built to build networks further out and that often time the cost is considerable but the time is really what hurts in our ability to actually build out the facilities as quickly as we want to so I think any steps to modernize those permitting programs to allow us to to do that more quickly with more certainty transparency can be a GameChanger in terms of how quickly we can amplify what you do on Spectrum very good thank you I go back Mr Tim thank the gentleman for yielding back I'll now
▶ 1:25:56recognize the representative in California Mr Peters for five minutes to ask your questions thank you Mr chairman I'm looking forward to working with you on this subcommittee is the first time I've been on this subcommittee um one of the benefits of seniority besides creaky knees is um when the third committee comes around you can choose choose a new one so I'm happy to be here um and throughout my time in Congress I prioritized um some of the main pillars of um of our economy in San Diego two of which I think are directly implicated here just
▶ 1:26:26science and Innovation and also our military presence uh in San Diego we take pride that our Industries are at the Forefront of innovation Qualcomm is head headquartered in my district um it plays a pivotal role in the progress of 5G and 6G Technologies and what we can achieve with a balanced Spectrum policy common complaint I hear from innovators like Qualcomm is that more spectrum is needed to meet demand from an increasingly online population and to be able to compete with competitors abroad and you've already talked um extensively about about that in some ways
▶ 1:26:56Mr Gillan can you describe about a little bit about the increasing demand for low cost lowc cost um highquality uh Broadband services and how that relates to the need to make Spectrum more commercially available absolutely one of the exciting things fiveg is created is our ability to compete in the home broadband market so we can now provide an option in both rural areas and areas where we have not as much competition as you have traditional mobile space uh but we've seen that to be a greatly attractive product if 10 million households
▶ 1:27:26have signed up to that product But ultimately at the end of the day the ability to deliver that service the promise of $8 billion by one study of savings to households if we could roll that out we don't have enough Spectrum to actually keep delivering that everywhere we already have a company with a million person waiting list or spectrum means that person has Broadband right how about how how efficient would you say the wireless industry is with the current Spectrum Holdings and what opportunities are there for the federal government to be more efficient with the uh spectrum that it uses it's a
▶ 1:27:56critical question we all need to be more efficient I think uh if you think about it from our perspective uh 20 years ago this was cutting edge Wireless technology we reinvent every 10 years our Network gets created we get more efficient we're 42 times more efficient we have government systems from the 70s still out there so it really is a matter for all of us to be in a position to make sure that those equipment that we get the government better resources better tools to be as efficient as we can be as well like I used to carry around a slide
▶ 1:28:27rule that's really going back um the iig the infrastructure investment of jobs act directed the Department of Defense to to study and plan for making specific segments of spectrum available for shared Federal and non-federal use to potentially identify frequencies for auction Mr Powell given your service in the military and as a former chairman of the FCC can you tell me why it's important for the federal government to take a comprehensive approach including natural National Security applications when studying Spectrum currently used by DOD
▶ 1:28:57for potential commercial use yeah I think we've all celebrated the value of spectrum but we need to understand it's valuable for multiple important public uses um not only commercial uses for consumers uh and businesses but uh critical systems this nation relies on everything from NASA to OSHA to um um the oceanographic isn't what I meant um and our national security uh I was a soldier in the field I was a Cavalry Scout and you know what I was trained
▶ 1:29:27to do when the Russians come through the Gap find the antennas right I mean it's critical to shut down command and control systems in the military uh because that spectrum is essential to their ability to operate uh similarly that spectrum is essential to intercepting intercontinental ballistic missiles like the the Dome over Israel for example uh you imagine if they didn't have the effective Spectrum for that system uh things would be very very different in that Community um so it's essential to the military and we have to work it out there is no
▶ 1:29:57just take it from them and we'll be fine right we have to have a public answer to how we replicate anything we compromise and so the imers process in which the imers report in which the dod uh studied the feasibility of sharing uh came to the conclusion that it was possible to share and frankly if we had accepted that recommendation then we'd be well on our way to providing this spectrum of the market under a shared Spectrum model but for whatever reason uh including opposition by the wireless industry
▶ 1:30:27it got restudied uh by the nitia uh because somehow people didn't like the answer uh but if we really wanted the Spectrum we could have moved off of that report well I'm looking forward to talking more about this with you and I I I have the military in my ear and welcome on my ear and uh yes you I'm really I'm really interested in I think that that people do send us here to work things out and so that's what I like to do and look forward to working with you all I yield back thank gentlemen for yielding back we now recognize the representative from Florida Mr dun for
▶ 1:30:58five minutes to ask your questions thank you very much Mr chairman uh as a returning member of the subcommittee I want to remind my colleagues that what we map out for National Spectrum usage sets the stage for all telecommunications nationally and importantly for the entire world I'd like to emphasize the advantages that we enjoy in this particular Congress we not only have Republican controlled house senate and administration but we have a president who actually understand Spectrum policy was very successful in spearheading
▶ 1:31:28some uh Innovative and competitive policies in his first term I'm going to read a statement from Brendan Carr chairman Carr uh that highlights the successes from 17 through 20 the FCC freed up roughly 6,000 megahertz of spectrum for licensed use alone plus thousands of additional uh megahertz for spectrum for unlicensed use the chup administration put four times as much Spectrum into the commercial Marketplace for Consumer use in one term than the last Administration
▶ 1:31:59studied to put into use two years ago Congress allowed Spectrum auction authority to lapse for the first time in three decades this is while China edges into the lead on Spectrum occupation and the offerings of its Associated Technologies it's on the me members of this Committee in this room to lead on Spectrum policy to direct or authorize C FCC to enact authorization to auction these critical and finite resources
▶ 1:32:30and it starts by asking one general question how much Spectrum does the America need for commercial use and how much do we need for government use and can they share the resource and next what are our licensed versus unlicensed needs for the commercial sector to innovate and grow can we strengthen and sustain us leadership in the field or will we continue to lose ground in China China three years ago or several years ago the US lagged as a country in adopting 3G
▶ 1:33:00technology and Europe got ahead of us uh the tables turned when we switch from 3G to five 4G and America was head so now as we get into 5G and 6G we're we're competing with a Cutthroat adversary China and I want to caution us that as Americans we may feel entitled to win every big Tech race in advancement but that's no by no means guar gued unless we protect the Telecommunications infrastructure Wireless ecosystems and that includes
▶ 1:33:30working with the it and the world radio conference it also includes addressing priorities like diversifying Spectrum uses for streamlining for satellit space AI Etc you all of this you know to keep foreign adversaries out of our telecoms uh and I believe by the way our adversaries have proven their hostile Intentions by disrupting at least six submarine cables in the last few months alone my esteemed colleagues on this subcommittee enjoy a bipartisan
▶ 1:34:01pro-american approach to uh technological innovation which is fundamental in finding solutions to inter agency debates and political disputes standing in the way of America's Global competitiveness and I look forward to finding Solutions uh and I trust this panel to help us Mr Ronaldo I was fascinated by your testimony in your opinion what is the safe and most secure path for the expansion of commercial use of spectrum band given your expertise in open Rand space
▶ 1:34:31can you tell us what you see in the future for that technology how we're expanding the usage of open ran and where we go from here yeah well if I could give you one little quick vignette to to Really um get your mind wrapped around it um Canada in 2022 baned wallway they're going through RI replace just like we are um one of the executives at telis has publicly said by 2029 they're going to be 100% open ran because he never wants to be in this position ever again vendor lock is such a big part of this so we talk about vendor
▶ 1:35:01diversity but it's also about the vendor lock it's going to allow you to be nimble um make updates as as needed so it really does have um the power of National Security concerns as well as commercial connectivity thank you very much for that you know I'm looking at a list of questions here I know I'm going to run out of time before I get there but I'm going to submit questions to everyone on on the panel and and all too of we do not get responses I will say that when we ask for written uh responses this is not a gotcha moment this is a chance
▶ 1:35:31for you to educate Congress improve your government and I I'm sure you recognize the uh the need for that so you know please think of us as a as a receiving intent and not a uh not a nosy imposing government and so with that Mr chairman I'll I'll yield back I thank the gentleman for yielding back I now recognize the represent from Illinois Miss Kelly for five minutes to ask your questions thank you chair Hudson and thank you for the peanuts
▶ 1:36:02and ranking member matsi for holding this morning's hearing and thanks to all of our Witnesses for participating you've heard some concerns already about uh how Spectrum auction proceeds will be spent I think Congress should invest this money in ways that benefit local communities and public interest objectives for instance last Congress and our bipartisan Spectrum bills some auction revenues were directed toward HBCU and other msis to help them increase Broadband adoption in their local
▶ 1:36:32communities as one of the co-chairs of the predominately black institution or PBI caucus I know such funding would have enormous benefits as these communities are too often underresourced and lack affordable reliable internet connectivity Mr Lewis do you agree that directing revenues towards expanding Broadband adoption and community served by HBCU and msis is a worthwhile investment and if so why I'd say yes uh uh when
▶ 1:37:02I talked about digital inclusion efforts on the ground uh many of them are being led by folks in and of very specific communities whether it's the black community Or Hispanic community at HBCU or msis um and so yes I think those dollars incredibly important uh to to support folks who know the local community well in getting people connected and my district is urban suburban and Rural and uh I have 4,500 farms in my district
▶ 1:37:33so I I can relate to what my colleagues on both sides have been saying about um their constituents the exploration of the affordable connectivity program of the ACP poses a significant challenge for low-income households that depended on it to afford internet services unlicensed Spectrum technology such as has provided connectivity across all income levels due to its wide distribution and deployment we've seen schools and libraries utilize Wi-Fi to help connect
▶ 1:38:03their students and patrons Mr Lewis can you talk about the role Wi-Fi can play in connecting the unconnected particularly with the expiration of ACP it's a powerful tool you uh you see libraries and schools loaning out uh Wi-Fi hotspots for students who don't have connectivity at home I know we we we we did that years ago and I was Andre when I was on the school board um uh the uh unlicensed is also important for uh continuing to support the next generation
▶ 1:38:33of of diverse scientists and Engineers you talk about HBCU uh they're generating the vast majority of black scientists and engineers in this country if if those schools don't have access to unlicensed Spectrum to uh to study uh new Innovations and develop new uh new devices and new Innovations then they miss out on those opportunities thank Mr power your written testimony notes that shared Spectrum models are the key to meeting our growing Wireless needs and you go on to list some of the advantages of shared
▶ 1:39:03Spectrum what is it about these shared Spectrum bands that make them attractive to a wide range of different entities including isps schools libraries and manufacturers yeah I think important thing to emphasize is when you do shared Spectrum like we did in cbrs you attract a whole bunch of biders who win licenses not just a single company or a couple of companies so for example in cprs 228 companies or entities at one licenses and and when you use those licenses
▶ 1:39:34they're lower power smaller geography so it allows innovation in communities to set up their own wireless networks for example you reference HBCU Howard University is using shared cbrs Spectrum on its campus today uh as a consequence of the shared Spectrum policy and the cbrs auction uh you mentioned agriculture um There Are Places all over the country uh that are using cbrs to manage uh Moisture Control automatic temperatures uh these are
▶ 1:40:04bands that they would have never had access to uh but for the shared model you kind of my next question was how has the development of CBR service or cbrs Advanced Precision agriculture um you know how's that been affected yeah as I mentioned you know uh there's a there's a company called Hurst Greenery uh in Missouri uh that has 600 acres of green houses and they use cbrs
▶ 1:40:34uh shared Spectrum in order to uh control fertilizer feeds in order to check moisture uh of temper moisture uh uh in the soil uh as well as to automatically controll temperature control and they were able to access that Spectrum as a consequence of that FCC auction um my uh increase in farms joined me to join my colleague rep l in leading the um House pass Precision agriculture satellite connectivity act which asked
▶ 1:41:05the FCC to review its rules for certain satellite services to see if there are a rule changes that can be made to promote Precision agriculture so thank you Mr chair and I yeld back thanks the gentle lady for yielding back uh chair and I'll recognize the representative from Pennsylvania Mr Joyce for five minutes to ask your questions thank you chairman HUD and ranking member Matt suie for holding this hearing and to our Witnesses for testifying I appreciate that this sub subcommittee is starting with a topic that is clearly at the top of everyone's mind
▶ 1:41:35and that is Spectrum the Energy and Commerce Committee has a longstanding commitment to Smart bipartisan policies that both modernize and govern Spectrum use our jurisdiction is on the issue and it has a storyed history and I'm looking forward to working with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle on this issue spectrum is a finite resource and we must ensure that we're being Innovative and thoughtful when forming any Spectrum legislation moving forward
▶ 1:42:06solving the Spectrum auction Authority laps and generating new Spectrum policy is my top priority on this subcommittee and I look forward to working with chairman Hudson on getting this across the Finish Line Mr Po speaking of innovation your members have leveraged spectrum and its high-speed Broadband networks in many ground baking ways and are becoming fastrowing mobile providers can you describe this incredible growth and competition
▶ 1:42:36and the role that unlicensed and shared Spectrum have been playing yes you can you can look at how we innovatively use the spectrum that was available to to enter the mobile uh telephone Market as the fourth major player so we use Wi-Fi where 80 to 90% of our traffic goes over that infrastructure we should remember 90% of the time human beings are indoors and so they have access to that Spectrum then we use shared spectrum and we use exclusive license spectrum
▶ 1:43:06and by doing that we've been able to create a service that's dramatically cheaper than other Wireless plans uh plans from the cable companies on mobile services on average sa of consumers up to $700 a year uh on their mobile wireless uh services being offered by cable companies Mr Gillan can you speak to the ways in which your members have utilized license Spectrum to innovate in the wireless space and to what extent that has the lapse in auction Authority affected your
▶ 1:43:37ability innovate it's a great question and I think we talked a little bit about 5G home an example of providing the second or third choice in home broadband uh right now thanks to the power of 5G home you 20% of those subscribers are new to broadband all together as the ability of Wireless to get deeper in those communities makes a big difference uh and the the differences can be Stark it's up to 8 billion dollar in savings to Consumers thanks to that competition as a practical matter we already have
▶ 1:44:07companies out there that have waiting lists because there's not enough Spectrum to continue to beat that feed that competitive spirit and so across the board the more Spectrum we have the better we can compete both in the mobile space and in the fixed space in continuing Mr Gillan join the first trumpet Administration 100 megahertz of prime midband Spectrum was auctioned into the 3.45 and to 3.55 gigahertz band for $22 billion estimated relocation costs
▶ 1:44:37by DOD were over $13 billion but according to ntia less than 300 million have been spent is that ban currently operational by commercial users and if so are they currently operating with incumbent do operations uh absolutely I think when we talk about shared Spectrum there's different types of shared Spectrum there's Dynamic sharing where it's actually real time and preemptable that makes it hard for us to be used reliably there's other Spectrum like you're alluding to
▶ 1:45:08some systems are moving out their government systems some stay and the best thing we can do is get engineer to engineer together as to which systems belong here which systems can be used more smartly elsewhere and I think one of the auction you just referred to uh is one of those places is that 12 that the money that is left over right now is a marked for the Navy to design a better radar that could help in the Drone environment and so part of the magic of auctions is the Spectra relocation fund Congress created creates win-win opportunities that we can
▶ 1:45:38actually help the government get the tools they need for the Modern Warfare environment that we have now so how do we get smarter how do we share better and we have a lot of tools available that we actually know can work that both the military Radars can work and we can coex with 5G do you think Mr Gillan that the Innovation that can occur with the United States Navy and other military is a byproduct of the additional funds that occur through Spectrum auction absolutely this is a key piece of the puzzle to help them
▶ 1:46:08continue to advance and improve what they need us what we all need them to do keep us safe Miss Ronaldo what policy priorities should Congress have when addressing development Spectrum policies in this Congress are are there issues in Spectrum with your experience what you bring to the table that have not been addressed and you want to be seeing in this Congress occurring so I would say first and foremost good oversight um we need a plan we need to implement
▶ 1:46:38that plan and we need to sure that we need to make sure that we have oversight to hold everyone's feet to the fire thank you Mr chairman again thank you for holding this important Spectrum hearing today uh thank you Dr jois and now I recognize uh representative Baragon from California for five minutes for questioning uh thank you Mr chairman for holding this hearing on American leadership and wiress wireless technology um I love to hear about the bipartisanship and there is bipartisan
▶ 1:47:09bar bipartisan agreement on the importance of extending Spectrum auction authority to support our wireless networks and further Innovation however I think it's critical the American people know how we plan to use the tens of billions of that will be raised from the Spectrum auction and I also have concerns about reports that Republicans May propose to use the revenue from Spectrum auctions to give out tax cuts to billionaires and corporations instead I believe that we should be using uh those dollars investing
▶ 1:47:40um in things to benefit all Americans such as through broadband and through Public Safety initiatives um Mr Lewis I'm I'm going to start with you um after witnessing firsthand the devastating impacts of the recent wildfires in the Los Angeles area it's clear how important it is to have a strong emergency communication when strike we often hear about people on the wrong side of the digital divide and how they miss out on essential Education Health and and commerce opportunities and you touched upon this topic
▶ 1:48:11briefly um but you kind of ran out of time so I want to follow up if you could talk more about what it means when an entire Community still have old out-of-date 911 I think uh without ng911 you have uh less you you have slower responses uh you have you have missed opportunities to uh get location information from people's mobile devices uh other communication uh Beyond phones like texting uh that
▶ 1:48:41uh help people reach Emergency Services faster um and so uh it's incredibly important that we continue to deploy ng911 everywhere thank you I think that's one of the reasons we should invest money from things like Spectrum auctions an important Communications priority like the nextg 911 Mr Gillan um I want to follow up with you how do wireless networks support Public Safety Communications and emergency alerts and are there any additional measures we should
▶ 1:49:11consider to ensure people in emergencies receive timely life-saving information to improve uh response efforts thank you for the question and I think the last few weeks have reinforced the importance of that that program uh and the wireless emergency alerts we've sent over 84,000 during that program and one of the things we've learned recently is we've continued to add more functionality to that program so before it went out through a broad area we increasingly allow smaller Geographic areas to go out we give options as to how often a message is
▶ 1:49:41broadcast to a community in case your phone is off or other things and I think some of the challenges we saw the last few weeks underscores that we need to partner with those Public Safety origin ators who actually start the alert process as to how the tools work and what it actually happens but I think it as core uh it's a critical functionality that we're proud to be able to help uh we need to always continue to work to make that program stronger both in terms of how The Originators add to it and the the functionality we create both for consumers
▶ 1:50:12and for the public safety Community great thank you U Mr Powell there is a significant Workforce shortage across the telecommunication sector with tens of thousands of skill workers needed to meet current and future demands what steps are the companies you represent taking to address the shortage and particularly through Workforce Development and engagement with underrepresented communities yeah this actually is a very serious problem it's one of the big problems with the bead infrastructure program um our expectations of
▶ 1:50:42what we're going to be able to build uh fall short of the amount of Workforce available to build it uh consequently our companies are focused on a number of significant Workforce training programs uh some of them include particularly uh programs targeted at veterans uh we have some programs targeted at young people to help them learn the skills and develop uh engineering talents that allow them to move into the cable industry and we have very ongoing efforts uh in the daily in order to bring people into the company
▶ 1:51:12and train them um this is not uh simple cut and paste work it's important high quality work uh and we're committed to uh continuing to build a Workforce that can allow us uh to bring Broadband to every corner of the country great thank you Mr Gillan is there anything you want to add about what the companies you represent what they may be doing any policy recommendations how Congress can help fill the gaps absolutely I I Echo everything chairman pal said we we need to be in a position to have the workforce ready uh I think the wireless industry Association
▶ 1:51:43is a great apprentic program I think we're all working together to get people into this these are good paying jobs these are good opportunities I think one of the things Congress can do is if we know over the next 5 to 10 years when spectrum is coming those Tower companies know when the work is coming and then so right now when you talk about gaps in time between auctions and everything else we don't know when the next one's coming and so I think when you're looking at companies with Tower Builders across this ecosystem the more certainty we can provide is a road map to like I can hire because I know the work's going to be
▶ 1:52:13there so I think the more certainty you can provide but we would welcome your support because the workforce is critical to achieving everything we're doing great thank you I Y back uh thank you representative Baragon uh now I recognize rep representative fure from Idaho for five minutes for questioning thank you Mr chairman to the panel thank you for being here today we always learn something and every time I listen to you all talk I realize that I know about a fraction of what I need to know about the some
▶ 1:52:43of these things and so thank you for being here uh a couple of questions just for clarification Mr Gillan I come from a a state with a lot of space there's a lot of rural area in Idaho uh but it's growing and and the needs are growing rapidly it's a it's a fast growing State a lot of open space a lot of federal land all that but uh We've touched on some of this but just for clarification purposes would you just share what's the cost of us doing nothing what if we what
▶ 1:53:13if we do nothing in regard to license Spectrum shortage identifying that what's the cost of that the cost of it is at its core at some point this is going to stop you working the way that you expect it to work a lot of the Innovation and expectations we want to talk about whether it's AI or anything else isn't going to have that platform to ride on so that we're going to need to make sure a licensed perspective and unlicensed perspective we have enough Spectrum to actually meet our daily needs the first thing you're going notice in
▶ 1:53:43hight traffic areas you're going to see slowing down and that's going to get progressively worse but really is we're accustomed to our wireless service getting better each and every year without more spectrum that can't happen thank you for that so that just shows the urgency that we're under here is is I wanted to clarify that Mr pal good to see you again thanks for joining us here today uh on a a similar topic let's let's go to Wi-Fi just for a moment I'd like to get your input Wi-Fi handles as we've talked about a lot
▶ 1:54:14more traffic than any other Wireless technology Wi-Fi 7 is coming uh can you touch on that and just just tell us what what from your Vantage Point what's that going to bring and what does this mean for spectrum col policies as we advance Wi-Fi yeah if you had walked the floor of the consumer electronic show this uh past January you would have seen a ton of emphasis on Wi-Fi 7 uh Wi-Fi 7 is a Next Generation technology that in short
▶ 1:54:44uh allows faster commun faster use faster data rates and wider channels one of the things we're having to manage in the home is an explosion of devices that need to be utilized on the same network so when you get wider channels you're able to get uh applications that require lower latency so for example um 4K or 8K video uh or um another example would be virtual reality systems of any type uh and gaming so Wi-Fi 7 is essentially
▶ 1:55:15uh critical to the kind of devices that are coming into the home and coming into the market uh as we continue to innovate and also important for research search research development the unlicensed Spectrum oh 100% um you know we continue to use Wi-Fi and um uh research environments medical environments environments that have heavy Reliance on it uh and the more we have a uh these Advanced systems the better we'll be thank you for that Mr Ronaldo i' like to steer a question to you uh the open ran
▶ 1:55:45situation is is an exciting one uh personally as as I hear you talk and as I just think through some of the things we've been I'm concerned about equipment made by some of our adversaries you mentioned the Huawei and some of that some of those things that quite frankly at least some of us don't think can be trusted what steps if any do you think that we should be taking in a leadership role to encourage trusted equipment American Equipment whether it's America or anybody else but but but trusted equipment what
▶ 1:56:16steps should we be taking so the two so the two biggest things that we face right now is lack of deploy floral Spectrum here in the United States so how do we get Spectrum Authority back up and going how can we make more Spectrum available also as we look internationally I would say how we um use our investments our International Assistance programs for instance XM bank they have um risk caps associated with and Telecom is such a infrastructure heavy industry we always bump up against those
▶ 1:56:46caps and so no Telecom projects are able to get funded so we're currently working with Congress on legislation that would allow XM to wave risk if we're going up um against a WWE or ZTE so those are the the a handful of items that could really help make a difference in in getting open ran um deployed around the world great thank you for that Mr chairman I do have more questions but not enough time to ask them so I'm going to put those in written form with that Mr chairman a yield back uh thank you representative fure for yielding
▶ 1:57:16uh next uh is representative Menendez from New Jersey you have five minutes for questioning sir thank you Mr chairman spectrum is one of our most valuable public resources it's become a Cornerstone of Modern Life for American families enabling smart phones navigation systems telea Health Services emergency alerts Aviation systems like air traffic control and the list goes on how we manage our radio Airwaves has a profound impact on access to and affordability of essential Services technological innovation
▶ 1:57:46and digital inclusion so it's vital that Federal Spectrum policy is designed to support and benefit all this requires a range of spectrum access regimes that include both exclusive and shared use licenses for Reliable networks and access to unlicensed spectrum that supports Innovation achieving the right balance is critical Mr Lewis would you agree that if we use auction proceeds to invest in our digital infrastructure and programs that serve the public interest we can further unlock the next generation of American innovation
▶ 1:58:16and close the digital divide yes I think it meets the mission of the communications act to do so and uh fills the gaps that we have uh in making sure that everyone is connected great and I agree that's why I join ranking member palone in his concern of reports that our Republican colleagues are instead preparing to use reconciliation to put Spectrum auction proceeds towards funding tax breaks for corporations and Wealthy Americans this is why we have heard a lot of talk from Republicans about affordability and putting America First
▶ 1:58:47and here we are with a clear opportunity to invest in the public good in a way that will have a real impact in our constituents access to Affordable Wireless services and on our nation's ability to lead the world in Wireless Innovation So This Is The Moment of Truth and I invite my colleagues across the aisle to make good on their promises and join us in making life more affordable for American families to make our community safer by improving first net and to main America's maintain America's leadership and technological innovation
▶ 1:59:17Mr Lewis I believe Federal Spectrum policies must serve the public interest first and formost for most as we discuss extending the fcc's auction Authority we must be intentional about how licenses can provide the maximum maximum benefit to our constituents how should the FCC design Spectrum licenses to ensure that wireless services are more accessible and affordable for our constituents I think it it starts by uh using the new uh Spectrum uh access
▶ 1:59:48models that have been studied to give the greatest benefit and the greatest efficienc icy of the use uh we've heard at this hearing uh just how diff different bands can be used for multiple uses at the same time including the military while uh uh while the mobile uh license carriers are using it as well as unlicensed uh smaller power uh uses all at the same time and manage through Dynamic Dy Dynamic Spectrum sharing so uh most of finding the most efficient uses
▶ 2:00:18uh I think is incredibly important uh and then after that uh running auctions with the authority from Congress hopefully uh that produce additional public interest benefits like ng911 it's great and excuse me and building on that how can licenses be structured to ensure that communities that tend to be underserved by commercial licenses are not deprived of opportunity I think the opportunity comes from those sharing op uh examples that uh we've already seen some
▶ 2:00:48of this happen uh you know in the cbrs band uh there are great opportunities for some of the most unconnected communities in rural areas tribal areas especially are are most unconnected um to use spectrum that is not being used uh that may have licenses uh but uh prioritize but creates opportunities for them to have community-owned built networks um and I think that's in the spirit of some of the relationships we have with our tribal communities so that's one example there's many others yeah great would love to continue the conversation but
▶ 2:01:18down to the last minute um and in your past testimony you noted that auctions if designed correctly have the potential to reshape the workforce how can licenses be structured to promote a robust and diverse Spectrum Workforce and increase Supplier Diversity I I we've seen the FCC uh meet their statutory mandate to promote uh vendor diversity they have the office of Communications business opportunities helps connect uh women and minority vendors
▶ 2:01:48uh uh to opportunities to work with uh larger carriers and and big providers um they've created the uh ecip program uh which uh promotes uh taking license Spectrum but creating secondary Market uh so that if it's not being used by the large carriers uh other uh groups can come in and get access to that that uh Spectrum so uh there's great opportunities if we design it and create and continue those programs great I appreciate you all so much for appearing here and I yield back
▶ 2:02:18thank you gentlemen for yielding back and now recognize representative from Texas Mr fluger for five minutes to ask your questions thank you Mr chairman and appreciate the uh opportunity to have this hearing I'll start um with Mr Gillan I'd like to talk about the The Embers report um and basically DOD nitia uh concluded that the the 3 gigahertz band um couldn't be cleared for exclusive use so I kind of want to talk through a sharing model or a segment model
▶ 2:02:49and really what I want to hear is what needs to happen and especially from DOD uh what do we need DOD to come back with how do we need to work together what settings are we expecting that to happen and I'm familiar with this band I've used it in professional career and kind of want to get to the bottom of where we need to go process-wise absolutely and I think there's just been a misunderstanding amongst everybody as to what our goal here is if you think about the lower three gahz Spectrum it's 350 MHz that's almost as much a spectrum
▶ 2:03:19as 5G has available for it no one thinks all those Radars should go away that's a bad idea and too much of this conversation is oh we need $200 million and $200 billion in 20 years to do something that no one's asking them to do that ultimately we need to get to a place that we've engineered engineer we think segmentation makes the most sense around what's happening globally so if you look at just the top 150 and then in that top 150 what are those systems there are systems there's a missile defense facility in
▶ 2:03:49Alaska no one should move that there's no need to move that there's awax there's the air Airborne system out there that's going to get replaced by wedgetail in 2032 so let's talk about what's available in 2032 there's other systems let's say it's using Channel 5 it's like old TV canot work on channel three other systems can we talk about can we use it smaller channels if we actually invest some of the money from the last auction is going to the dve to move s Radars to X Radars that are actually better in the Drone environment so we think that
▶ 2:04:19that we've got to get away from a binder Choice it's either the military or Wireless we need both we just need to be smarter and more efficient and we need to start with going getting Engineers talking on a system by System basic understanding your needs understanding our needs and making everybody stronger well I I couldn't agree more and I think working together and I used those AI Radars I flew those aircraft I used the services of uh aircraft like awax and I think the time and Geographic um the the be the ability to
▶ 2:04:49bifurcate those and and to separate so I want to explore more on the segmentation process Mr Powell I'll let you answer there and I've got a question for M Ronaldo after that well I think I could only incrementally add that I mean the the the answer we just heard sounded a little bit like finding ways to share uh and that's exactly what we're supporting I I think the big conflict is uh are we going to move forcefully in that direction following the examples and precedents we've had in the past to do so or
▶ 2:05:19are we going to continue to fight over how much we can actually take away for full powerered exclusive use by the commercial industry I mean I I appreciate that you could go through system by System but I think we also have to respect the military experts judgments on what they need and how they need it uh those of us in Industry Engineers or otherwise aren't necessarily the best people to make those National Security decisions do you feel like that we've been together in the right rooms at the right classification level uh to understand
▶ 2:05:50other uh I probably um don't have enough direct experience to answer that question but I would say look there's a there's a component of what happens on the military side that stays behind a confidential curtain you have to trust that people are protecting things that must be protected but typically we learn enough about what they're doing to have a pretty good appreciation of what the sort of range of possibilities is I I'm convinced that we can share I'm convinced that there's a plan that we can make work and actually the benefit will be Innovation and and that will benefit DOD
▶ 2:06:20as well um it's a finite band U Miss Ronaldo I'll come to you in your testimony you talk about uh uh the the uh role standard setting bodies such as the world radio conference radio communications conference and what that plays in shaping technology um there's I think there's some concerns about that process and concerns about getting to that conference and having the US take a leadership role what needs to change in that process and how do we uh affect affect it
▶ 2:06:50better before so I think there's been a lot of chaos um going into the WRC and it's so incredibly important that we go in and we have debate right we have the fight in the room um that's where great ideas happen but then when we leave that room we need to have a decisive decision in um people need to stick to that decision and that's been the breakdown so if we're at WRC and we're still fighting then our adversar is winning Mr chairman great uh hearing today our national security depends on this
▶ 2:07:20I'm convinced that Innovation will result from moving forward with an auction yield back appreciate the gentleman yielding back and I appreciate your perspective on this I think your experience in the military uh uniquely qualifies you to help us figure this out and I think this committee is is determined on both sides of the aisle to figure this out so thank you uh the chair now recognizes representative from Virginia M mcclelen for five minutes to ask your questions thank you chairman hson and ranking member Matt sui for convening today's hearing as many of you know I
▶ 2:07:51began my legal career a little over a year after the Telecommunications Act of 1996 passed that is how I started as a lawyer I ended as a lawyer right before coming here two years ago uh figuring out how to implement uh the uh bead program and to expand Broadband I have witnessed first had a front row seat at the table witnessing the transition of the Telecom industry from a regulated Monopoly
▶ 2:08:21uh where mainly landline was the form of communication uh to now a uh Wi-Fi based databased industry um and I have seen firsthand the explosion in the use of and the demand for more uh bandwidth for more and more data growing at an explosive rate um so I am very excited that my first hearing as a member of
▶ 2:08:51the this committee has brought me back home dealing with issues that I have dealt with since I was a baby lawyer um and with that I would like to First focus on uh the discussion we've had about Spectrum being a finite natural resource that does found the for the foundation for technical innovation in our dramatically increasing Digital World um its allocation and utilization carry significant potential to either Bridge or widen the digital
▶ 2:09:21IDE particularly for our Rural underrepresented and marginalized communities and so for Mr Powell and Mr Lewis could you elaborate on the benefits of unlicensed Spectrum including how his it has historically driven Innovation and expanded connectivity especially in underserved Rural and tribal communities thanks I'm happy to go first um I'd say a couple things real quickly first of all it's important to understand
▶ 2:09:51how much value Wi-Fi brought to the typical American family over the way the internet first unfolded when I was first at the FCC you paid $60 you got a single connection and you got one computer to operate on that connection today that price is about the same and every single person in the house can use it so you've dramatically increased the value and the affordability of the service for all communities uh secondly the thing that we're learning is Wi-Fi is very effective
▶ 2:10:21uh as a public resource anybody can get on it in the airport in the public park in the library in the famed McDonald's parking lots where students have studied at times during the pandemic we wouldn't have survived uh without Wi-Fi being able to allow us to operate at home the other thing is as we move to share models we're learning that people can take matters into their own hands I have a great respect for the wireless industry they're great but they have challenges in building out infrastructure but we with with cbrs we empowered loal communities
▶ 2:10:52to set up their own wireless networks we have uh small utilities who are able to use cbrs and provide services to their communities we have small wireless internet service providers who use these bands that they're able to get at low cost uh to provide services to rural communities so one thing to remember in the models that we're championing is that you allow anybody to take uh delivering wireless service into their own hands and use it privately in manufacturing facilities in stadiums in football
▶ 2:11:22fields um the NFL is going to use it for all of their uh 24 stadiums um so it's a democratizing approach and I think we think we see a lot of benefits that come from that just to add on it it uh it is democratizing in how it impacts uh folks who then get to innovate on unlicensed Spectrum uh we talked earlier about uh you know the important research that can be done to build new devices uh uh and we want to see that happen everywhere uh whether you know
▶ 2:11:52uh on HBCU campuses or in high schools around the country um uh it's benefiting in both rurban Ural rural and urban areas um you see uh Wi-Fi uh create uh local networks in urban areas like Harlem and and the most remote rural areas tribal communities are building on multiple bands uh there's in California the ener tribe uh serving the uro and kak and Hoopa tribes uh HOA tribes I mispronounced it
▶ 2:12:22um uh where they built their own networks uh using the shared cbrs uh structure uh but on the unlicensed level uh thank you Mr chair um in my last 10 seconds I'd just like to ask for Mr palum Mr Gillan if you could share uh in written response back what steps Congress can take uh to ensure that vital programs like the now expired affordable connectivity program can foster greater competition in the wireless market
▶ 2:12:52and to drive down prices uh while also ensuring providers have the resources necessary to deploy and maintain the um networks that are necessary to provide those Services uh and with that I yield back do that thank you thank you the gentoman yelds back the chair now recognizes the representative from Georgia Mr Carter for five minutes to ask your questions thank you Mr chair and congratulations to you Mr chair on your um chairmanship of this subcommittee it is a great subcommittee I served as Vice chair for a while
▶ 2:13:22last session I tell you they got a great team too so you you surrounded they've surrounded yourself with good people and um we appreciate it because it is extremely important this this this area as we all know is extremely important Mr Gillian I want to start with you you said today that um we as the US are watching other countries whether whether it's um allies are Rivals make more 5G Spectrum available for their 5G networks than it is in the US
▶ 2:13:53can you talk more about that and and what and why other countries are are doing what they're doing with Spectrum why it matters and specifically about China absolutely thank you for the question Congressman uh you go around the world England has twice as much of the spectrum that we do Japan has three times as much there's just been a recognition when you look at these demand curves what are we going to need to actually meet that moment and also to create Innovation
▶ 2:14:23if you think about all the Innovation the sharing economy all those apps they happened in the United States because 4G was the best in the world in the United States and we need to get back to that place in 5G what we see in China is both domestically they want to be able to deliver Innovation manufacturing they're pushing forward with smart manufacturing leveraging that spectrum they also want to as M Ronaldo has talked they want to export their values their equipment through Spectrum policy so right now globally there's four F
▶ 2:14:53four 5G Spectrum bands out there for the globe to use China supports three of them we support zero of them for 5G we're not in the game right now to be able to help shape where our allies where we go which impacts our ability our manufacturing base to have someone to sell equipment to it impacts our impact to innovate So the faster we get back to more Spectrum the better off will'll be great thank you for that explanation Mr pow H how will the the unlicensed in the shared community help us
▶ 2:15:24address the the China threat as it was just explained thank you for the question one one example I'd like to share which is Georgia based is the United States Marine Corps at the logistics base in Aly Georgia is using cbrs shared Spectrum right now uh to advance our uh War Fighters abilities to use robotics on the battlefield um I think it's important to remember that you know China's a threat on multiple fronts uh and if they invite Taiwan we're going to find out the most important one is
▶ 2:15:54whether uh we're able to meet that threat um so cbr's shared Spectrum has been a solution uh on a number of military bases uh to allow them to set up their own private networks uh in order to train and operate equipment good thank you for that Mr Gillan I want to go back to you as you know I introduced the American Broadband deployment act that takes steps to eliminate the bureaucracy and the red tape and and I tell you that that's one thing we're the Trump Administration is going to address
▶ 2:16:24is is just the all the permitting all the regulations that go throughout all our economy I don't care if you're talking about health care if you're talking about technology or energy everywhere I go everybody's telling me permitting regulations crushing us crushing us so obviously in the previous Trump FCC they made great strides in this area and chairman car's leadership has been needed I'm wondering do you think it's important to codify those changes and and should we go even further yes
▶ 2:16:54I think your bill is a key companion to this conversation on spectrum that in order particularly as we're waiting years to get Spectrum access we need to hit the ground running and I think what chairman Carr did previously on permitting reform we need to do more we need to go beyond small cells to macro cells how do we get to federal land so I think your legislation is a key piece of how do we actually codify that common sense modernization that we need to get people out building again do you think Spectrum would be more valuable if Broadband
▶ 2:17:25permitting was faster and and more transparent the local and the state level yes it gives us a road mapap to how quickly we can build if you buy that asset how quickly can you put it on the towers across the country actually delivering service to Consumers I think that's very important I hear it all the time as well about problems not only at the federal level but State and at the local level as well we need to be assisting them in that as well absolutely Mr chairman thank you very much and um thank all of you for being here again this is extremely important and we
▶ 2:17:55all know that and and we recognize that so your your input is very valuable and we appreciate you taking time out to spend with us thank you Mr chairman I yield back gentan yields back the chair and I recognizes the representative from New York Miss Clark for five minutes to ask your questions thank you good afternoon everyone and thank you chairman Hudson and thank you ranking member Matt suie for convening this important hearing let me also thank our panel of experts for joining us this afternoon finally my warmest regards and welcome
▶ 2:18:25to all of my new colleagues on the subcommittee and the Energy and Commerce Committee Spectrum policy is such an important part of this committee's jurisdiction and a fitting topic for our first subcommittee hearing of the 119th Congress particularly given the continued lapse in the FCC spectrum auction Authority while I'm disappointed the Senate was unable to follow our lead in the 118th Congress on auction Authority I'm proud of the work this
▶ 2:18:55committee has done in recent years on Spectrum policy the need to advance and enact legislation that reinstates auction Authority and thoughtful Spectrum policy is more important than ever given the multi-year lapse but it is equally important that we get it right spectrum is a public resource and must be treated as such our Spectrum policies must carefully balance the needs of both Federal and non-federal users while fostering
▶ 2:19:26new innovations that maintain our Global Leadership Spectrum auction proceeds must also be reinvested for the public good and not as a pay for for additional tax cuts for billionaires this committee has historically shown an ability to work in a bipartisan manner to establish a creative regulatory framework that Fosters the kind of innovation and competition that made us global leaders in the first place
▶ 2:19:56cbrs is a prime example of the kind of creativity that we can achieve when we work together and I believe that together we can break this Log Jam and Advance Innovative Spectrum policies that serve the public interest at the heart of this imp pass is the fundamental tension between critical National Security needs and the priority ities of Wireless carriers reauthorizing Spectrum auction Authority requires
▶ 2:20:26addressing this tension head-on and a successful framework must enable Technologies to coexist ensuring that neither side feels the need to obstruct future attempts to reauthorize the authority having said that uh chairman Powell in light of your response to rep fluger what are your thoughts on Spectrum shearing Frameworks like cbrs and how can this help us Charter path forward yes thank you
▶ 2:20:57um think about just the number of Topline benefits When You pursue Spectrum in this way number one you help resolve the conflicts we've all been talking about rather than having a tug-of-war between two different important interests we find a way to have them share attracts secondly attracts a lot more investment so you know when you had cbrs you had 228 winners not one or two they're all able then to provide a whole range of diverse Services you could provide Wireless ISP service Precision
▶ 2:21:28agriculture um um new networks for your school uh and you allow people to do that without further permission from the government um these are enormous benefits so uh you know I think when you add that all up it's a very important tool in the quiver of Congress in the United States government as it tries to think about a forward-looking spectrum policy because no matter what when we resolve this band we're going to be here next year and the year after talking about wanting more and it's going to get harder and harder the more we
▶ 2:21:58squeeze the more we try to get more juice out of the lemon you know we're going to get to the pit uh and we're going to have to find some new creative way to continue to have Spectrum um roll off the assembly line into the market very well thank you very much um as we all know different communities have different needs when it comes to connectivity Mr Lewis can you discuss whether whether and how different Spectrum access models affect the ability of people from different backgrounds regardless of socioeconomic
▶ 2:22:28status to access the latest Wireless Technologies uh each Community uh can take use uh unlicensed Spectrum uh uh in different ways uh and we're we're seeing so those different access models allow for that flexibility um uh in rural areas uh we've seen the use of TV whites uh to get Broadband deployment out uh to communities that don't have it uh we've seen uh I've talked about the tribal
▶ 2:22:58communities but uh also uh we've seen uh uh in in uh urban areas folks build co-ops uh using unlicensed spectrum because of both sharing models as well as broad uh unlicensed uh uh bands that uh that the FCC has reserved uh we need to continue to do that uh I can't I can't uh I can't OV exaggerate I think the importance of Wi-Fi 7 that was talked about earlier uh that uh the
▶ 2:23:28the broad channels that are needed uh to make that happen so that when we get 6G when we get you know gigabit Broadband to a lot of places you don't want to have that slowdown uh when you get to the modem inside the building yi7 allows for that so all these different sorts of access models are just critically important to keep everyone connected whether you whether you live in urban areas densely populated areas with co-ops and mesh networks or rural areas with white spaces and um and Community
▶ 2:23:58built networks very well I yield back thank you Mr chairman this Clark yields back the chair now recognizes a representative from Florida Miss kamik for five minutes to ask your questions well thank you Mr chairman and congratulations on the new role it is so great to be back at work on so many important issues with our colleagues and of course Spectrum as we know is critical to our economic and National Security and it's never been a partisan issue which is honestly why I was so disappointed to hear the ranking member and several
▶ 2:24:28of my colleagues on the other side of the aisle attempt to assert that Spectrum Spectrum auction Authority will be used as a means in his words to quote unquote give tax cuts to billionaires by ex by extending the tax cuts uh from the Trump tax cut plan now that is clearly a hyperarch and I highly doubt that the constituents of the ranking members District in New Jersey Six would appreciate the 19% annual tax increase across the board on workingclass families nor would the
▶ 2:24:598,800 families in his district appreciate their fam's child tax credit getting cut in half if we do not in fact extend the Trump tax cuts a similar comment was echoed by Democratic colleague from California Miss Baragon which again I don't think that her constituents in California's 44th district would appreciate a tax increase on average of $1,621 annually so Mr chairman I felt it appropriate to set the record straight seeing as how we are only a few hours into the first hearing of
▶ 2:25:29the 119th and attempts are already being made to turn this vital issue of both economic and National importance into a political wedge so I'm sure their constituents just like mine care deeply about the national and economic security would appreciate folks staying focused on primary Mission here rather than partisan attacks so miss Ronaldo you had started down a line of answering representative Joyce's questions um and you had mentioned oversight talking about what you would like to see Congress do more of in this space please elaborate
▶ 2:25:59on the oversight elements that you were alluding to yeah so sometimes through that we we've seen in the past through an inter agency process um they fail to come to a decision and then you just get to a stalemate I think when you're talking about these issues it's so incredibly important to continue to move the ball forward that you as members of Congress um can provide that oversight to hold feet to the fire to make sure that we are able to move forward uh can you give any examples of a particular stalemate where a decision has kind of lingered yeah
▶ 2:26:29so I think um some somebody else asked about um I was chair MC Guri asked about other agencies looking to separate out of the Iraq system which is the management of all Spectrum management and that is so incredibly important to keep that group together um you lose all efficiencies and it does have National Security implications if agencies are protected ing um on their own terms and not through the collective good of the of the entire ecosystem so in a little bit in that same vein you started discussing um
▶ 2:27:00I think I think it was uh representative fure who started talking about this um you started talking about the risk caps and how telecommunications infrastructure typically gets um excluded because it is so Capital intensive from funding opportunities obviously that hinders our ability to compete with China as you started talking about can you continue down that line for me sure so XM Bank we have the tools they already exist we don't need to recreate the will we just need to retool them to ensure that we're able to get Capital out um so again the
▶ 2:27:30legislation would just allow doesn't require would allow them to to um wave the risk caps if um a company was up against Huawei now let's say Beyond XM I mean is the development Finance Corporation also an area where this is a problem correct um absolutely now talking a little bit more in the Department of Defense realm how how can we I know obviously you talked about the risk caps what other ways can DOD and others can we be competitive and support operations
▶ 2:28:00abroad yeah so I again I would say that DOD um needs to be fully funded at their 5G Department the open ring Coalition we have an excellent relationship with the 5G office and the future G office but their budgets continue to be um cut in half so they're unable to deploy 5G around the world do you f do you feel that in the previous radio conference uh that the United States was adequately represented um I think there's lots of leadership changes that led to um a disorganization and how would we address
▶ 2:28:30that disorganization going forward again it's it's ensuring that we get people um identified and in position um earlier you China has an advantage they rued by Fiat but we go in through a multi-stakeholder process our process at the end of the day is going to create um a broader more impactful decision but what does mean that we have to start hard we have to start earlier and we have to work harder excellent my time is almost expired I'll submit the rest of my questions and writing thank you to all our Witnesses for appearing before us
▶ 2:29:00and I'm so sorry it is freaking freezing here it really is amen can we do something about that so cold it is freezing gentle lady is yielded back I will assure you it's colder outside than it is inside uh the chair now recognizes the representative from Florida is caster for five minutes to ask your question well thank you Mr chairman I'm I'm so looking forward to working with you and ranking member Matt sui on this important subcommittee it's uh really critical to to Innovation
▶ 2:29:31keeping uh Wi-Fi and internet affordable for our families and small businesses and to our national security um and I know this subcommittee did a lot of good bipartisan work last year and you passed a spectrum auction bill unanimously out of committee Why didn't it uh why wasn't it brought to the the floor I'd ask I'm just curious what's your view on that Mr pow uh what's your view of that Mr Gil um just quickly you know I
▶ 2:30:01I I think I would stand with our we we have been we have all so forcefully seen the value of the FCC spectrum auction I I stewarded that responsibility at the FCC I think it was a tragedy that we lost it um it's important to remember when the FCC has auction Authority it's not just that they can move forward with an auction they're empowered defin bands of spectrum to bring to auction so they're stalemated in playing the leading role that they've always played I think unfortunately it we get back to this issue there is a lot of conflict about
▶ 2:30:31how these bands should be used and who should be used them if people believe it's a political opportunity to bias the out the outcome of that study in a way that they might want or to protect constituencies even those protecting the defense department it can lead to political stalemate which is why we continue to believe that we have to start looking toward technological solutions like cbrs and Shar Spectrum to try to resolve those conflicts as opposed to have them always thrown at your doorstep uh and ask lobbying and advocacy to produce
▶ 2:31:01Spectrum policy and you all have talked about it before on the lack of trust is it is there something else that I I'm was missing on all that why it didn't broadly B bipartisan just quickly just quickly no I think chairman pal uh covered it I think a lot of the conversation right now is um we're having conversations around winners and losers and we need to get to a place that these are win-win opportunities I agree with that and that's that's one reason why we are
▶ 2:31:31concerned that um Spectrum proceeds could be used to fund tax cuts whereas uh Mr Lewis U started off this is in the public interest you use those proceeds in the public interest and why we're bringing it up is now the the chairman of the budget committee uh there's a u a list and a paper out on the street that that has it pegged as Spectrum proceeds as a possible pay for and that's why we're we're very concerned it
▶ 2:32:01shouldn't go to fund tax cuts for big corporations and Millionaires and billionaires it needs to stay in the public realm and I can tell you back home uh in the Tampa Bay area as we recover from the most damaging and costly hurricane season and we look at it the other damage across North Carolina to our neighbors uh across fellow Americans in Southern California no place has been immune to these um these extreme uh climate catastrophes but
▶ 2:32:32you know we're learning a lot in the aftermath in the aftermath we learn how to better prepare and respond and um the Florida Department of Emergency Management and the University of Florida piloted a new tool to provide emergency responders andc local governments with a Dependable means to share alerts I mean information is critical during emergencies they have the new broadcast emergency alerting uh and communication op
▶ 2:33:02uh operational Network Beacon it uses AI to quickly convert text into speech for AM radio broadcast and it has the ability to translate into different languages automating these kind of critical safety uh broadcasts before during and after a disaster they really help the First Responders they help get critical information to Neighbors at a time of need U cell phones go down you lose the internet and this is the kind
▶ 2:33:32of critical infrastructure that Spectrum supports and that Congress should be encouraging U Mr Lewis in your written testimony you say uh that Spectrum policies about Innovation and connectivity and that Revenue raise should serve the public interest is this the kind of thing were talking about it is uh you know our just just with the public safety and emergency alert systems when I was growing up I'm 45 years old when I was growing up emergency alerts came over the television now they come
▶ 2:34:02over your phone and so whether you're in your home or you're on the Move uh receiving those are are critical and so uh we want to support those and uh and continue to build them ng911 is a part of that right uh as well as uh other resiliency and infrastructure supports that we've talked about about uh as public interest needs good and I hope that's the tack we can take thank you Mr chairman I yeld back J Le yields back the chair now recognizes representative from South Carolina Mr Fry for five minutes to ask your questions thank you chairman and congratulations
▶ 2:34:32on your uh chairmanship I will note just for the record that I appreciate North Carolina peanuts and they are good but South Carolina peanuts might just be a little bit better um but thank you uh this is a a a crash course as a new member into spectrum and what that means for the country and I really appreciate the discussion today I'm glad that this is a a largely bipartisan Affair um Mr Gillan earlier you talked about China a little bit and and the the risks that they pose uh in the space of spectrum what are the consequences
▶ 2:35:03of uh China taking a lead in making 5G Spectrum available to their carriers thank you for the question as someone with teenagers I spent my weekend talking about Tik Tock uh and the ultimately the core that is China export technology you you go back to 4G 3G that was the US in that position that's Tik Tock now imagine extrapolate from that impacts on manufacturing on ports on how we're doing so many other different things it is that Innovation runs
▶ 2:35:33to connectivity it runs to capacity and so really it is all the things we want to lead in going forward is going to go where the capacity and the connectivity are thank you for that chairman pal um obviously with um the internet economy has drastically changed over the last 12 years everything is different the way we communicate is different the amount of video content and that we absorb is different uh the way consumers use uh Wireless technology is vastly different how might our other than
▶ 2:36:03I think we've talked about auctions a lot and uh how might our policies change as well given how the world is changing yeah I I think one of the things that I'd recommend to the committee is to to keep the consumer at the center of the focus of the policy how do Americans really use Spectrum what are they most dependent on I think one of the reasons we celebrate the Wi-Fi story is that the vast majority of Americans interaction with the
▶ 2:36:33internet goes over that infastructure um we we spend 90% of our days indoors and when we're indoors we're utilizing those Services you're watching Netflix tonight you're on Wi-Fi um frankly if you're using your cell phone 80 to 90% of the time you're also using Wi-Fi not even the cellular network it is the sort of Workhorse of the entire internet economy so um as you focus and align your spectrum policies I think just keeping in mind the rapid Innovation
▶ 2:37:04the way consumers are evolving uh my you mentioned 12 years ago the stuff in my house today as opposed to 12 years ago that expects to find and utilize my network is stunning compared to 12 years ago thank you for that Miss Ronaldo how does access to Spectrum allow Innovative companies like those in the open Rand policy coalition to continue to lead on the design of the Next Generation networks and as a follow up um as the Spectrum environment gets more congested uh could new technologies like AI driven Network
▶ 2:37:34management help manage the Spectrum issues uh and lead us to uh more commercial Spectrum on the market so I would say that uh open rant is an nent concept um really first rolled out by rakitan in Japan in 2017 so we kind of missed the 5G wave and so as new Spectrum bands come online we're able to build out using open ran I would say um other than dish who has deployed 20 plus thousand AT&T has made um an investment of 14 billion
▶ 2:38:04in open ran we're really focused internationally at this point so more bands more open Rand and as far far as AI um it's been a great story for the Telecommunications industry we can use everything from management of spectrum Energy Efficiency um and there's a lot of talk these days as you can imagine um with concerns around drones can we do uh detection um using AI thank you for that and this is a broader question I think for the for the panel but it we'll just go down uh what specific actions would you recommend for us as
▶ 2:38:34Congress to take I mean obviously we've talked about some of the legal problems some of the regulatory hurdles uh some of the outdated regulations that may that may exist what would you uh share with Congress about ways that we can modernize our system we'll start with sir uh I think we all agree I hope auction Authority is is where you start correct um and and I would say make it permanent provide the reliability uh that the FCC has the power to do it and
▶ 2:39:05uh and then how that then uh impacts band planning in the future auction Authority r& and they're just working with our allies around the world to deploy um safe and secure networks globally okay same auction Authority with the plan associated with it and permitting reform permitting reform okay yeah I would agree with that I think auction Authority uh Improvement in the inter agency coordination process with appropriate congressional oversight uh and assistance
▶ 2:39:35to the administration on developing um uniform and single uh voice policies when we appear at the next work in 2027 thank you for that Mr chairman I yield back chairman yields back the chair now recognizes representative from Ohio Mr lansman for 5 minutes to ask your question uh thank you Mr chair and and ranking member for this incredibly important hearing the Broadband Wi-Fi work that we do probably one of the most important things we have to get right um
▶ 2:40:05nationally and obviously Congress has to play a big leadership role in that and and this has been as one of my colleagues said largely a bipartisan discussion because it is a bipartisan issue I mean there's there's two pieces that are really important uh um that stand out for me one is just the relevancy the impact it has on our economy I mean growing economies are economies where there are massive investments in infrastructure and education and Broadband is obviously a huge huge piece of of the
▶ 2:40:36infrastructure and and it's it's core to our Global competitiveness uh the second is just the impact it has on our daily lives which uh chairman pal you've talked a lot about um I represent Southwest Ohio it's a city suburbs Ohio and it is is one of the most important things that we do to make sure that everyone has access because of how important it is to their health care to their education uh to their connection to the world and to each other two big questions have emerged here from me uh one has to do with
▶ 2:41:06uh reauthorization and you know how we divvy up the the the broad uh the Spectrum uh capacity and and the second has to with what we what we do with that Revenue right those are those are two big questions that I think we'll sort out in a bipartisan way let me start on the the uh reauthorization question maybe each one of you could just talk a little bit about if you had one big I I I've heard a little bit from each of you about priorities but one big priority
▶ 2:41:37you I'm new so uh if there's one thing you want us to really nail uh as we as we work on reauthorization what would it be for us it's key when you go back each time Congress has done this 1997 2005 2012 it's always been Authority plus sometimes you direct specific auctions sometimes you say you need to auction a certain amount but that particularly because the government controls so much of this if you
▶ 2:42:07give the FCC an independent agency authority to auction without something to sell it's can be an empty tool got it and so for us it really is that connection I think the import The Authority is important but I'd slightly disagree with Mr Gillan you know the FCC when it has plary auction Authority it has the authority to find an auction Spectrum without further direction from Congress I wouldn't want to leave you with the impression that you have to tell them what spectrum to authorize they've been doing that for better part of this Century
▶ 2:42:38um so I think that's important um and I also think that if you uh entertain the idea of assigning specific bi Spectrum Bands then you have to wrestle with the conflict we've spent all morning talking about you got to figure out how you're going to resolve the complexity of the defense department systems that needs to be done by experts down at the agent so I would say that the Niti administrator needs to be an under secretary and government titles matter and it makes a huge difference if you're the Niti administrator you're
▶ 2:43:08having to brief the deputy secretary to talk to you know an agency about an issue that they have no know nothing about Mr Lewis thank you I'd agree with that and uh with auction Authority I would say uh I agree with former chairman uh you don't have to be prescriptive uh because there's not a lot of new Spectrum bands out there letting Mr Ronaldo agency the ntia and the FCC do the studies that point to in the right direction is important U and preserving the balance of license unlicense
▶ 2:43:38and sharing uh Wi-Fi 7 uh is a great opportunity but 360 mega megahertz of spectrum band yeah and then the second pieces on the revenue it's obviously there's there's some consternation some worry because of a document that that came out that maybe this these these dollars could be used for pay fors uh and on the tax piece you know I I I think there's Bri uh broad support for tax relief for working folks middle
▶ 2:44:08class uh uh small businesses it's it's the top 1% that I think folks like me struggle with the revenue uh assuming it stays here um and and anyone but Mr Lewis start with you um just you mentioned a few big things if I mean again if you had to pick one major investment I'm assuming it's the expansion and then the inclusion but I I I'm curious what what piece where where do those dollars
▶ 2:44:39need to go I usually highlight to definitely uh digital inclusion work on the ground needs long-term funding uh as do other Broadband other other that's really just making sure that more people have it yeah uh addressing all three drivers of the digital divide not just infrastructure not just affordability but adoption and helping people get it but if I picked a second ng911 I mean kudos to the chairman and former congresswoman ESU for leading on the NG 911 Bill last year thank you y back thank the gentlemen
▶ 2:45:09for yielding back chair I'll recognize a representative from New Jersey Mr Kane you recognized for five minutes to ask your questions uh thank you Mr chairman and and thank you to all of our Witnesses being here today uh Mr Powell and Mr Gillan um my district boasts some of the most capable innovators in the world it also has areas that still face gaps in connectivity how can Technologies using licensed and unlicensed Spectrum both supercharge
▶ 2:45:39our existing Industries and generate growth in more rural areas do every one of you would like to go first thank you question the the power of Wireless particularly full power 5G Wireless gives you the opportunity to push out Broadband other places rapad County Virginia Royal Virginia there's no terrestrial fiber cable services right now because of bid ban auctions you've made possible there is now 5G home service available so roughly 20%
▶ 2:46:10of those new customers have never had Broadband before because that's an ability to scale and move quickly so I offer it's one of the places that you can push push out Beyond where we are today thank you thank you one one of the challenges in rural is always infrastructure one of the challenges the wireless companies have is in order to serve those Community effectively you have to densify the network have to go out there and spend the money to put up Towers at to concentrate that's expensive it's a big Capital expense for them and so that's been slow if you look at shared Spectrum
▶ 2:46:40on cbrs it covers 70% of all unserved rural areas that's why you're seeing projects that allow communities to take matters into to their own hands and in your own State uh CBR spectrums being used at nework International Airport uh without having to await uh the use from a commercial service thank you um Miss Ronaldo can you speak to the effect the adoption of open Rand Technologies could have on our supply chain and strengthening American
▶ 2:47:10Wireless competitiveness globally and can you Pro also provide an update on where the development and deployment of these Technologies St now stand absolutely I think one of the biggest concerns is that we wake up one day and there's only one vendor for the entire world so the concept of open ran I believe has been so successful because we've gone from a handful of vendors now to hundreds a lot here in the United States but also Japan Taiwan and Europe um so since since we launched as a coalition
▶ 2:47:41there are now over 100 Global um deployments incl I mentioned tus earlier tus they're going to deploy by um 100% % by 2029 vietel in Vietnam is deploying using Qualcomm and deepsig to our PC members um palao a small island in the South Pacific they just put out an RFP and the number of um proposals that they received were astonishing because the uh because the competitiveness of open ran does allow uh more vendors to participate
▶ 2:48:11in the market so it's a really a win-win thank you um and then Mr pal and Mr Gillan can you both speak to how licensed and unlicensed Spectrum are used in emergency response in cooperation with First Responders and what needs to be done to make sure that spectrum is used as effectively as possible to keep Americans safe in the event of an emergency or a disaster I I think both are critical I want to say that I've been involved in these situations I'll give you an example
▶ 2:48:41just in the LA wire fire situation um Charter was able to open 35,000 Wi-Fi hotspots immediately to try to improve uh Communications when other infrastructure have been devastated um you know that's really important to be able to use every technological resource uh to get uh a network up quickly in these communities often ones that are suffering without power uh as well as infrastructure Mr
▶ 2:49:11G I agree with the chair but this is a disaster we all need to be working together all these Technologies can complement each other in terms of of Wireless we're proud that 80% of 911 calls are made on a smartphone today and the amount that we've invested to make sure that we that First Responders can find you uh when you make that call with location accuracy and the power of wireless emergency alerts to be an amplifier to voice Mr Lewis talked about how far we've come in that program and then in terms of the disaster recovery themselves the technologies that we're leveraging
▶ 2:49:42now that there's cows and Colts we put cell phones on Wheels we put cell phones on trucks to go into an area to immediately have have coverage because it's so critical that's you you've lost everything you need that connectivity and so we take that responsibility very seriously and this situation that you know we can disagree on a lot of things when it comes to disaster relief we all come together to customers thank you to all of our Witnesses um and uh I'll you back thank you gentlemen for yelding back the chair
▶ 2:50:12and I'll recognizes the uh representative from Indiana is Hing for five minutes to ask your question thank you chairman Hudson and ranking member Matt sui uh and thanks to the witnesses for your testimony and for speaking with us today I want to start my remarks first by saying how excited I am to be here as a member of the Energy and Commerce Committee this is my first hearing as a member of ENC and I look forward to working on the issues under this committee's jurisdiction uh back home as a state senator I worked um on expanding Broadband access particularly in rural areas
▶ 2:50:42I was proud to lead that fight uh and it's a fight that I'm excited to continue at the federal level um um I look forward to certainly working with each member of the committee Mr chairman on our shared priorities and hope that we can find some common ground to bring real and positive results for the American people and I'm glad we're starting this work this Congress on this issue of importance of uh both National Security and Global competitiveness and that is Spectrum while we not may not realize it Spectrum directly impacts the ways in which millions of Americans go about their daily
▶ 2:51:12lives both at home and at work from listening to the radio to watching television to using cell phones and browsing the internet Spectrum determines how these devices carry data uh that said it is a limited resource and I recognize that the United States uh must play a leading role in Innovation relative to Spectrum to maintain our position as the world's leader in new technology so my first question is for Mr Gillan my district in Southern Indiana is largely rural made up of small towns and cities and I'm certainly proud
▶ 2:51:42of the work that we did in the state senate to level the playing field for rural parts of the state but the truth is we continue to lag behind the coasts and urban areas in access to the internet and the tools that Spectrum can provide how can your company's use of spectrum help with closing the digital divide for Rural America thank you for the question uh nerra earlier today released a report that said for every 100 MHz of new Spectrum available it can help create access for 275,000 household
▶ 2:52:12that don't have it today and so the opportunity particularly with the 5G home product to get to place that home broadband hasn't gotten to yet that the benefit of that opportunity is we can see that happen real time Accenture says that we can get to roughly 40% of houses without any help and then the question is where does the help come whether it's the 5G fund at the FCC or the bead fund at ntia we're going to need government's help but with Spectrum we can continually provide more and more coverage throughout the your area great
▶ 2:52:42um Mr pal do you have anything uh in addition to that to add about uh how the companies use this Spectrum can help close the divide uh yes um as we talked about earlier when you use some of the cbrs shared Spectrum you're allowed to let communities take matters into their own hands and build networks while they're awaiting commercial systems to come and densify their Network I also want to put a plug in because it's equally in this committee's jurisdiction it's it's getting the fixed infrastructure out there too
▶ 2:53:13a lot of Wireless needs fixed infrastructure in order to put those signals into the ground pretty quick so with the bead Investments that we're making and the companies uh that I represent are are deepening their penetration in Rural America these things have to be seen as complement uh one will not survive without the other thank you um we've talked a little bit um my colleague from New Jersey talked about open ran uh so I want to ask a few questions about that I'm excited by the prospects there um to potentially increase vendor
▶ 2:53:43diversity uh both in the United States and with our trusted Partners around the globe uh um to open the door for new entrance uh into radio access into the network Marketplace so miss Ronaldo uh how can o technology help us stay competitive with China so for so long especially so I used to work for the house intelligence committee when they wrote the wawe report and then at ntia and it was the policy of the United States to go around the world and say don't use WWE it's a security concern
▶ 2:54:13open ran is the if not them then who we give people something to run to was opposed to run away from and I believe that's why it's been so incredibly successful so as we 5G and as we look to 6G it's software Define networks and virtualization um I use an example about tus tus is ripping and replacing right now and an executive said they're going to move to open Ram because he never wants to be in a position of vendor lock ever again so we are bringing that National Security Supplier Diversity as well as the opportunity um that
▶ 2:54:44that Opa R can bring well that lets uh Str particularly to my next question does the deployment of 5 to 6G help with with um deployment of open ran I think the answer to that is yes um are there any barriers that do stand in the way of deploying the networks currently and when do you believe we might expect more widespread development yeah so the the inability to auction new spectrum and make new Spectrum bands available that's going to impact deployment um as well as as we look internationally I think
▶ 2:55:14it's important that we use diplomacy as much as possible to ensure that we're getting um a supplied uh telecommunications chain out there thank you thank you for your testimony I yield back G lady yields back the chair now recognizes a representative from Texas Mr Goldman you recognized for five minutes to ask your questions thank you Mr chairman thank you very much it's uh I had about a 100 questions that have all been asked already so uh but I do appreciate y'all's time today and for being here today I'll ask a couple of quick questions and um
▶ 2:55:44we'll move on to my colleague from North Dakota um this is uh both from Ronaldo and Mr pal um M Ral oh sorry Miss Ronaldo you'll go first how can we protect important National Security missions while also fostering Innovation and how do shared Spectrum approaches help us avoid those n National Security risks while still helping us find new Spectrum for commercial use yeah so there's currently an ongoing multi-stakeholder process that I'm participating in um that brings the private sector
▶ 2:56:14as well as the public sector together they're going to start classify sessions soon and so I think as Ben mentioned you bring the engineers in the room um and then we can get things uh get things moving a little faster so how do we take the emotion take the policy out of it and get the engineers um to you know pave the path forward understood thank you Mr pal I think the quick answer is um coexistence how do you allow people to live together and both be able to do and operate and provide the services
▶ 2:56:44that are critical whether they're military National Security Services or commercial Commercial Services many of the bands we've had in the past uh have pioneered approaches to sharing um there are a lot of bands even in the cbrs ban we have uh protection of incumbent military systems particularly Naval Coastal systems uh and it allows them to operate effectively while we're able to offer commercial service great thank you very much and Mr Gillan your testimony notes that significant demand for wireless networks and more commercial license spectrum
▶ 2:57:14is necessary to keep Pace with that demand can you explain the various types of spectrum auctions the FCC has used over the last decade work and how those address the American Consumer needs absolutely uh the fcc's auctioned both commercial spectrum and government Spectrum over the last 10 years uh particularly in the three gigahertz range a lot of the spectrum we're talking about is midb Spectrum today uh we were able to work through a process with the military to auction 100 MHz for $22 billion
▶ 2:57:45uh 3.45 and then cban was satellite spectrum that we're able to repurpose for 5G and that is the you know we've had 87% growth in our networks over the last two years it was those Spectrum bands that made it possible for us to have the capacity to meet that demand and so when we look at what's coming next it's how do we replicate the successes of those and where do we find that spectrum and we think both of those bands adjacent to it we can run that same playbook in an effective way interesting thank you all again very much Mr chairman I
▶ 2:58:15yield back the rest of my time thank you the representative yields back the chair now recognizes uh the representative from North Dakota M fedorek you recognized for five minutes to ask your questions thank you Mr chairman uh thank you for organizing this great hearing today uh as a representative from North Dakota I'm big into natural resources and resources and spectrum is a very important National resource so I appreciate the opportunity this hearing has to talk about how to best manage
▶ 2:58:46this resource for the benefit of American citizens um I'll have to say that you know to the extent that managing this resource results in additional funding for the federal government I'm really confident that my uh host colleagues uh especially in this committee and and on the Republican side of things are committed to putting any additional revenues that might be generated from the sale of those two the benefit of everyday Americans the farmers
▶ 2:59:16the ranchers the coal miners oil field workers teachers nurses those folks from North Dakota and throughout the country who are hard at work I know that we will be very diligent to use those resources appropriately uh so for all of you thank you for your time you've been sitting here a long time now probably are thinking about lunch and bathrooms and other things so I I promise I'll be I just have two questions but your expertise is really vital to helping us make the best decision and how to use these resources
▶ 2:59:46so quickly um um I wanted to ask Mr Gillan help help me understand the uh the need for the dedicated spectrum and what sort of uh uses you you use in that space that can't be um done in the in the open the unlicensed spectrum and what the interference is that um is created in the in the unlicensed that causes problems for you thank you for the question I
▶ 3:00:16think when we pick up our phones we want that reliability and what interference protection gives you is the security that you know that we're going to build out that Spectrum $30 billion last year we know that we control that spectrum and that uh our neighbors or others can't use that same spectrum and so the certainty and reliability that you rely on every day comes from that licensed spectrum and I think a lot of the conversation today all spectrum is shared at some core uh there is no clear Spectrum really it's just a matter of what different tools of shared Spectrum you're
▶ 3:00:47using and whether or not government has preemptable rights whether or not you have full power ability to do it so for a lot of these conversations it's how do we work around the government how we work with systems to make sure that is something that works for us to be able to compete against China but also Safeguard incumbent users as well okay thank you that's helpful and then the second question is um to both you and Mr Powell if you were designing the proper mix between licensed and unlicensed how would you do that
▶ 3:01:17how would you separate um for my mind as a former policy maker I I would I would evaluate the demand uses that American citizens make of the spectrum um it's not a simple matter of comparing who has how many megahertz versus who else has how many megahertz you you you have to assign weights to that you know if if 60% of all data is going over
▶ 3:01:47unlicensed networks and Wi-Fi if 80 to 90% of that cell phone's uh data is going over Wi-Fi uh then then it's a false equivalency to say they have exactly the same amount um you need to allocate more toward the highest and greatest demands now I think there's a distance I'm not misunderstood there is a place for exclusive licensing and high-powered Spectrum it's about getting that right but I think that we have underappreciated uh the significant uses that Americans make
▶ 3:02:18and I would focus more on how to find shared Solutions than you'll be surprised to know I have a slightly different take so for our perspective we absolutely need both and we Le the world today in Wireless Wi-Fi access and I think we need to get back to there on 5G and so I think in our minds you look at at where data growth is on our networks what the congestion is I think the congestion and how much actual capacity challenges should dictate a lot of this conversation I think absolutely we use Wi-Fi a lot on
▶ 3:02:48this device because when we're at home we love these devices you're not plugging into a desktop so a lot of these statistics a matter you know when you're out of your house it's not on Wi-Fi you're on this and we need both of them to work so I think we need to work for towards a policy that we're the best at both of these things awesome thank you uh Mr chairman I yield thank you Gentle lady for yielding back and I want to welcome representative Miller Meeks from Iowa to the to the subcommittee and you are going to bring us home here I recognize you for five minutes
▶ 3:03:18for your questions uh thank you Mr chairman and thank you chairman Hudson it's uh wonderful to be back uh on this uh committee and ranking member Matt sui uh as well for allowing me to wave one to this critically important hearing today critically important because as the chairman said I'm from Iowa and I also happen to be a military veteran so both from the National Security and the connectivity Viewpoint uh this is an important uh hearing today and I also want to thank our uh Witnesses for testifying before the subcommittee you've been here long time so I'll try
▶ 3:03:48to be brief um I'm just going to um uh make a mention of something Mr Gillum just said we don't want you to work around the government that has a different context when we say that we want you to work with the government because we know that the dod needs access to this uh spectrum and they may need to preempt other uh uses uh in Iowa our Farmers depend on the latest technology to make their operations more efficient think Precision a and I think you mentioned that Mr uh pal um our schools our Healthcare facilities rely on
▶ 3:04:18strong connectivity for Educational Tools and tele medicine and businesses across the state need access to cuttingedge communication system to remain competitive in the global market when as a state senator in Iowa I passed Broadband bills I said I lovingly name these please get Dr Miller Meeks better internet connection so her children will come home for more than a day uh that's how bad it was and I cannot tell you how many Wi-Fi providers I switch so uh or satellite providers Spectrum which makes all of this possible is finite resource
▶ 3:04:49that must be responsibly managed Mr poell in your testimony you point out that the US could potentially fall behind in 5G and 6G deployment and when I've traveled overseas I would Echo that sentiment without embracing shared Spectrum policies what safeguards do you propose to ensure that critical National Security infrastructure and government operations are not jeopardized in the process yeah I think the whole predicate while we're champions of this spectrum policy approach is that uh it fundamentally
▶ 3:05:19presumes that we'll work together and share what those systems as supposed to displace them or minimize them um that doesn't mean that's always possible but we think that's the going and effective approach uh when we know both have equally compelling uses you you should try to figure out if there's a way for them to coexist first Mr Gillum you noted that 5G is helping to create high- paying jobs and economic opportunities in manufacturing and Agriculture and as an advocate for us industry as we both are can you explain how
▶ 3:05:495G is specifically contributing to the growth of these sectors you might have in the your uh posters particularly in the context of rural economies like Iowa's and what additional Spectrum could do to accelerate these benefits AB on the on the first piece I think manufacturing is one of the places that we really feel opportunity uh how do you bring manufacturing back uh and you look at Ericson as a plant in Texas that's 120% employee productivity emplo Improvement so it's one of those opportunities that it's a it's a road
▶ 3:06:20mapap for how we can do this in terms of in rural it really is a matter of uh the 5G home product is beginning to make a dent uh to the challenges that you face to the state legislature and that the more Spectrum gives us the ability uh it's a capacity starved service and so you need have more capacity let's it do it more people so one provider has a million people on a waiting list right now we can put make those subscribers with more Spectrum Mr raldo in your testimony you mentioned the prc's aggressive
▶ 3:06:50efforts to dominate Wireless Technologies and markets through state sponsored corporate theft and Market manipulation how do you propose the US respond to these efforts and what role can American companies and policy makers play in countering this state driven competition help support vendor diversity and work with our partners around the world to do the same and and given the ongoing cyber security threats from adversaries such as the PRC what specific policies or Investments would you recommend to enhance the security and resilience of us wireless
▶ 3:07:20networks particularly in protecting our Vital Communications infrastructure so Congress needs to reauthorize a cyber Security Act of 2015 which allows information sharing um it needs teeth I was plugging that for you thank you thank you very much Mr chair I yield back thank the representative for yielding back seeing that there are no further members wishing to be recognized I would like to thank our Witnesses for being here today and staying for over three hours uh ask unanimous consent to insert in the record the documents included on the
▶ 3:07:50staff hearing document list without objection so ordered I remind members that they have 10 business days to submit questions for the record and ask the witnesses to respond to the questions promptly members should submit their questions by the close of business on Wednesday February 6th without objection subcommittee is adjourned job