Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-Tex.) ranking member of the
Senate Commerce Committee, says the FCC's broadband plan due to Congress next
month must be "more than a 'plan for a plan'" and must look at all
stakeholders before deciding to take back spectrum from any one of them.
In an op-ed piece for The
Hill Wednesday, Hutchison said that finding more spectrum should be a
priority of the commission and a focus of the report. But she also said there
are no easy solutions. "The Commission's analysis must look broadly at all
spectrum use by commercial entities and the federal government before reaching
conclusions about particular spectrum that should be reallocated," she
said.
Broadcasters are concerned that the beachfront status of
their spectrum allocation--it is well-suited for wireless uses because of its
propagation characteristics--and hard lobbying by computer companies arguing it
is being underutilized, could put their holdings in the commission's
crosshairs.
Hutchison called for a "bold and comprehensive"
report that had a big role for state and local governments.
