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 PUBLIC  NOTICE  Federal  Communications  Commission  445  12th  St.,  S.  W.  Washington,  D.  C.  20554  News  Media  Information  202  /  418-  0500  Internet:  http://  www.  fcc.  gov  TTY:  1-  888-  835-  5322 
 DA  05-  2515 
 September  23,  2005 


 The  International  Bureau  Reissues  Procedures  to  Provide  Emergency  Communications  in  Areas  Affected  by 
 Hurricanes  Katrina  and  Rita 
 The  International  Bureau  previously  announced  procedures  to  help  emergency  communications  services  initiate,  resume,  and  maintain  operations  in  the  areas  affected  by  Hurricane  Katrina.  This  public  notice 
 expands  those  procedures  to  include  communications  in  areas  affected  by  Hurricane  Rita.  For  additional  information,  applicants  should  contact  the  International  Bureau  (IB)  staff  specified  below. 


 Special  Temporary  Authority  (Satellite  Earth  and  Space  Stations):  Emergency  requests  for  special  temporary  authority  (STA)  related  to  Hurricanes  Katrina  and  Rita  may  be  submitted  by  letter,  e-  mail  or,  if 
 necessary,  by  telephone.  Applicants  also  may  file  requests  electronically  through  the  International  Bureau  Filing  System  (IBFS)  at  http://  svartifoss2.  fcc.  gov/  myibfs/  welcome.  do>.  All  requests  should 
 provide  the  technical  parameters  of  the  proposed  operation  and  a  contact  point.  The  Bureau  will  handle  all  STA  requests  on  an  expedited  basis.  Consistent  with  Section  309(  c)(  2)(  G)  of  the  Communications 
 Act,  47  U.  S.  C.  §  309(  c)(  2)(  G),  the  Bureau  may  grant  STAs  for  up  to  30  days. 
 To  ensure  that  the  Bureau  has  a  complete  record  of  the  action,  applicants  who  do  not  file  through  the  IBFS  should  follow-  up  the  initial  request  with  an  electronic  version  submitted  through  the  IBFS  as  soon 
 as  possible.  In  this  filing,  operators  should  note  in  the  first  description  field  on  the  electronic  STA  form  that  this  is  a  "Hurricane  Katrina-  and/  or  Hurricane  Rita-  related  STA  request"  and  the  date  the  initial 
 request  was  granted. 
 Satellite  earth  and  space  station  operators  who  were  previously  granted  Katrina-  related  STAs  are  encouraged  to  evaluate  whether  they  will  need  to  continue  operations  beyond  the  term  of  the  initial  STA 
 granted.  If  such  additional  authority  is  required,  the  operator  is  strongly  encouraged  to  contact  the  International  Bureau  as  soon  as  possible  to  initiate  such  a  request  for  additional  authority.  As  with  the 
 initial  STA  request,  an  extension  may  also  be  submitted  through  the  IBFS  system,  by  letter,  e-  mail,  or,  if  necessary,  by  telephone. 


 Ex  Parte  Rules.  The  International  Bureau  views  presentations  relating  to  pending  Hurricane  related  STAs  as  falling  under  the  Section  1.1204(  a)(  3)  exemption  from  the  prohibitions  in  restricted  proceedings.  See 
 47  C.  F.  R.  §  1.  1204(  a)(  3).  1  Accordingly,  pursuant  to  Section  1.1204(  a)(  3)  and  1.1200(  a)  of  the 
 1  Section  1.1204(  a)(  3)  provides,  in  pertitinent  part,  that  the  following  types  of  presentations  are  exempt  from  the 
 prohibitions  in  restricted  proceedings:  “The  presentation  directly  relates  to  an  emergency  in  which  safety  of  life  is  endangered  or  substantial  loss  of  property  is  threatened…”  See  47  C.  F.  R.  §  1.1204(  a)(  3).  Section  1.1200(  a)  of  the 
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