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 PUBLIC  NOTICE  Federal  Communications  Commission  445  12  th  St.,  S.  W.  Washington,  D.  C.  20554  News  Media  Information  202  /  418-  0500  Internet:  http://  www.  fcc.  gov  TTY:  1-  888-  835-  5322 
 DA  06-  99 
 Released:  January  26,  2006 


 WIRELESS  TELECOMMUNICATIONS  BUREAU  SEEKS  COMMENT  ON  REQUEST  FOR  WAIVER  OF  TELEVISION  INTERFERENCE  RULES  BY  THE  STATE  OF  NEW  YORK  TO 
 IMPLEMENT  A  700  MHz  PUBLIC  SAFETY  COMMUNICATIONS  SYSTEM 


 WT  Docket  No.  06-  18 
 Comment  Date:  March  13,  2006 
 Reply  Comment  Date:  March  28,  2006 


 On  November  1,  2005,  the  State  of  New  York  (New  York)  filed  a  request  for  waiver  1  of  Section  90.545  of  the  Commission’s  Rules,  47  C.  F.  R.  §  90.  545,  to  permit  implementation  of  a  new  700  MHz 
 public  safety  radio  communications  system  within  specified  counties  in  the  greater  New  York  City  metropolitan  area  (Downstate  New  York)  2  prior  to  the  end  of  the  transition  from  analog  television  (TV)  to 
 digital  television  (DTV).  New  York  holds  a  statewide,  public  safety  license,  Station  WPTZ779,  authorizing  the  use  of  certain  frequencies  within  the  764-  776  MHz  and  794-  806  MHz  frequency  bands. 
 Section  90.545  requires  that  public  safety  licensees  operating  in  these  bands  protect  the  reception  of  co-channel  and  adjacent  channel  TV/  DTV  signals  until  the  end  of  the  DTV  transition.  New  York  requests  a 
 waiver  to  permit  it  to  operate  with  less  distance  separation  from  TV/  DTV  stations  in  the  region  than  is  required  by  Section  90.545. 


 New  York  states  that  many  public  safety  agencies  throughout  the  state  currently  operate  obsolete  facilities  on  various  incompatible  frequency  bands.  3  Many  radio  systems  lack  sufficient  in-  building  or 
 wide-  area  coverage  necessary  to  provide  adequate  response  during  emergencies.  In  particular,  New  York  states  that  the  Metropolitan  Transportation  Authority  Police  Department’s  communications  suffer  from 
 lack  of  interoperability  with  local  police  departments  and  insufficient  coverage  in  rail  stations  and  tunnels.  New  York  is  in  the  process  of  implementing  an  integrated  Statewide  Wireless  Network  (SWN) 
 to  enhance  interoperability  for  state  and  local  public  safety  and  public  service  agencies.  New  York  states  that  there  is  a  critical  and  immediate  need  for  deployment  in  Downstate  New  York,  and  the  SWN  will 


 1  See  Request  for  Waiver  and  90.  545  Engineering  Study,  dated  Oct.  19,  2005,  filed  by  the  State  of  New  York  on 
 Nov.  1,  2005  (Waiver  Request). 
 2  “Downstate  New  York”  consists  of  Dutchess,  Orange,  Putnam,  Rockland,  Westchester,  Bronx,  New  York, 
 Richmond,  Kings,  Queens,  Nassau,  and  Suffolk  Counties. 
 3  Waiver  Request  at  2-  3. 
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