WASHINGTON, DC - Energy and Commerce Committee Republican Leader Greg Walden (R-OR) and Subcommittee on Communications and Technology Republican Leader Bob Latta (R-OH) react to the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) C-band auction plan.
“The U.S. must win the race to 5G; it’s us or China. I know the Trump administration and Chairman Pai share that view-and today the FCC will take a major step forward in pursuit of that shared goal. The incumbent license holders agreed to the accelerated relocation of their operations on the C-band spectrum. This ensures critical mid-band spectrum gets to market for the deployment of 5G services," said Walden and Latta.
Background: As has been recently reported, Republican Leader Walden has been in discussions with Chairman Pallone about bipartisan legislation to ensure that this critical mid-band spectrum is made available to carriers as quickly as possible to deploy 5G. While the FCC does not need legislative authority to hold the auction, Congress must act in order to direct proceeds from the auction to fund federal priorities that will improve the lives of many Americans-like rural broadband.
