Federal Communications Commission DA 20-741 DA 20-741 Released: July 15, 2020 WIRELESS TELECOMMUNICATIONS BUREAU AND OFFICE OF ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY ANNOUNCE MODIFIED PROTECTION CRITERIA FOR ELEVEN PORT FACILITIES OPERATING AT OR BELOW 3550 MHZ GN Docket Nos. 17-258 and 15-319 With this Public Notice, the Wireless Telecommunications Bureau (WTB) and the Office of Engineering and Technology (OET) (collectively WTB/OET) of the Federal Communications Commission (Commission or FCC) announce modified protection criteria in the Citizens Broadband Radio Service for radar systems that operate in or near 11 naval port locations The relevant naval port facilities are: Alameda, CA; Bremerton, WA; Everett, WA; Long Beach, CA; Mayport, FL; Jacksonville, FL; Norfolk, VA; Pascagoula, MS; Pensacola, FL; San Diego, CA; and Webster Field, MD. in frequencies at or below the 3.55 GHz band edge. Consistent with the methodology described in a June 23, 2020 letter from the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) to the FCC, out-of-band emissions (OOBE) protections for these sites will be suspended until at least March 30, 2022. Letter from Charles Cooper, Associate Administrator, Office of Spectrum Management, NTIA, to Ronald T. Repasi, Acting Chief, OET, FCC, and Donald K. Stockdale, Jr., Chief, Wireless Telecommunications Bureau, FCC at 1 (June 23, 2020) (on file in GN Docket No. 17-258) (NTIA Port Protection Letter). To implement the revised inland DPA protection criteria, Spectrum Access System administrators must follow the procedures described in the NTIA Port Protection Letter. Id.at 2. This provisional suspension should allow SASs to authorize commercial deployments in the band in areas near the affected port locations without adverse effects on federal operations. As described in the NTIA Port Protection Letter, these radar systems previously were protected from Citizens Broadband Radio Service operations by “always on” dynamic protection areas (DPAs) DPAs are pre-defined protection areas that extend beyond the coastline or that enclose a protected terrestrial radar facility, which may be activated or deactivated as necessary to protect DoD radar systems. Promoting Investment in the 3550-3700 MHz Band, GN Docket No. 17-258, Order, 33 FCC Rcd 4987 (WTB/OET 2018). NTIA depicts the DPAs in Attachment A of a letter sent by Paige R. Atkins, NTIA, to Julius P. Knapp and Donald K. Stockdale, Jr. of the FCC on May 17, 2018. This letter and the specific coordinates for the DPAs are available at https://www.ntia.doc.gov/fcc-filing/2015/ntia-letter-fcc-commercial-operations-3550-3650-mhz-band. that extended 25 kilometers inland from the port facilities. NTIA and the Department of Defense (DoD), in consultation with WTB/OET, worked with the Spectrum Access System (SAS) administrators to review and modify the protection criteria at these port locations to improve commercial access to the band while continuing to protect critical federal operations. Specifically, the DoD and NTIA agreed provisionally to suspend DPA-based OOBE protection requirements for the affected port locations until March 30, 2022. NTIA Port Protection Letter at 2. Following that date, the DoD will perform an annual review to determine whether to support a continuation of the provisional suspension for up to five years. Id. at 2. After that time, a final decision will be made on the permanent protection criteria based on observations and data gathered during the preceding five-years. Id. By the Chief, Wireless Telecommunications Bureau, and the Acting Chief, Office of Engineering and Technology. - FCC - 3