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 NEWS  News  media  Information  202  /  418-  0500  Fax-  On-  Demand  202  /  418-  2830  TTY  202/  418-  2555  Internet:  http://  www.  fcc.  gov  ftp.  fcc.  gov  Federal  Communications  Commission  445  12  th  Street,  S.  W.  Washington,  D.  C.  20554  This  is  an  unofficial  announcement  of  Commission  action.  Release  of  the  full  text  of  a  Commission  order  constitutes  official  action.  See  MCI  v.  FCC.  515  F  2d  385  (D.  C.  Circ  1974). 
 FOR  IMMEDIATE  RELEASE  Contact:  David  Fiske 
 November  27,  2001  (202)  418-  0513 


 STATEMENT  OF  FCC  CHAIRMAN  MICHAEL  POWELL  ON  SIGNING  OF  NEXTWAVE  SETTLEMENT  AGREEMENT 
 Today  the  Justice  Department  has  ratified  a  settlement  of  our  litigation  with  NextWave. 
 This  begins  to  bring  to  a  close  a  long  and  torturous  event. 


 Regrettably,  last  summer  the  U.  S.  Court  of  Appeals  for  the  D.  C.  Circuit  interpreted 
 federal  law  as  forbidding  the  Commission  from  reclaiming  and  reauctioning  its  property,  as  we 
 had  done  in  auction  35.  The  consequence  was  that  we  would  have  had  to  issue  NextWave  its 
 licenses,  and  continue  to  try  and  collect  in  bankruptcy  the  $4.7  billion  that  NextWave  owed  the 
 United  States. 


 This  settlement  offered  a  better  alternative.  It  reclaims  the  NextWave  licenses  and  puts 
 them  in  the  hands  of  companies  that  can  put  them  to  use  quickly  for  consumers.  Additionally,  it 
 allows  the  American  taxpayer  to  receive  nearly  double  what  it  was  legally  entitled  to  collect 
 under  the  Court  of  Appeals  ruling--  rather  than  $5  billion,  the  American  people  will  receive  $10 
 billion.  While  it  surely  would  have  been  preferable  to  have  carried  through  on  the  reauction  and 
 collect  the  $16  billion  that  was  bid,  that  option  was  extinguished  by  the  Court  and  I  believe  this 
 settlement  is  the  best  outcome  under  the  circumstances. 


 This  settlement  requires  Congressional  approval  in  the  form  of  implementing  legislation. 
 I  hope  Congress  turns  to  the  matter  promptly  in  order  to  put  this  matter  behind  us  and  to  ensure  a 
 resolution  that  maximizes  the  public  interest. 


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