STATEMENT OF 
COMMISSIONER BRENDAN CARR
Re: Promoting Investment in the 3550-3700 MHz Band, GN Docket No. 17-258; Petitions for 
Rulemaking Regarding the Citizens Broadband Radio Service, RM-11788 (Terminated), RM-
11789 (Terminated)
We have come a long way since 2012 when the Commission first sought comment on creative 
ways to open up the 3.5 GHz band. A broad cross-section of stakeholders now view this 150 MHz block
as playing a key role in 5G and other next-generation deployments.
From my perspective, the 3.5 GHz band is about creating something different. We have licensing 
regimes that favor traditional, exclusive use deployments. And we have unlicensed bands where Wi-Fi 
and other technologies have flourished. We need a new tool in the spectrum tool kit, and the 3.5 GHz 
band presents us with that opportunity. So it is incumbent on the Commission to ensure that our rules are 
going to support and incentivize a wide variety of use cases and deployments. Today’s Notice of 
Proposed Rulemaking does that by asking whether our licensing, auction, and technical rules have struck 
the right balance or whether we need to adopt some targeted changes. The Notice has my support, and I 
look forward to reviewing the record as it develops.
I also want to recognize and thank the staffs of the Wireless Telecommunications Bureau and the 
Office of Engineering and Technology that have worked for years with the goal of making this 3.5 GHz 
theory a reality.