JENNIFFER GONZALEZ-COLON PUERm RICO WASHINGTON OFFICE' 1529 LONGWORTH HOUSE 0FFJCE 8UllDING [202) 225--2615 FAX: (202) 225-2154 SAN JUAN OFFICE' 157 AvENtDA DE LA CoNSTtTUctON ANTIGUO EOIFICIO DE MEDICINA TROPICAL SEGUNDO P1so SAN JUAN, PUERTO Rico 00901 [787) 723- 6333 FAX: [787) 729-7738 December 22, 2017 Chairman Ajit Pai 'leongrc£)£) of tbc mlnftcb ~tatc£) 1!>oust of l\tpresentatibt~ Ua:~btnghm, ::iD'lt 20515-5400 Federal Communications Commission 445 12th Street, S. W. Washington, DC 20554 COMMITTEES' NATURAL RESOURCES SMALL BUSINESS VETERANS' AFFAIRS Re: Request for Early Puerto Rico and USVI Post~Auction Transition, GN Docket No. 12-268; MB Docket No. 16-306 Dear Chairman Pai: Hurricane Maria wreaked havoc on Puerto Rico in September 2017 and the island remains devastated. The storm disabled power to 3.4 million Americans that live on the island,1 destroyed 91% of cellphone coverage,2 and devastated the water supply. 3 Beyond these most basic needs, many households and businesses also now Lack broadcast television services. You committed to "get creative" to advance the nationwide effort to assist the recovery efforts in Puerto Rico.4 I welcome your enthusiasm to help our restoration efforts and urge you to permit broadcast television stations to relocate their operations below Channel 37 as quickly as possible. I recently met with different local telecommunications industry executives and they explained to me that accelerating the post-auction relocation of broadcast television Licensees in Puerto Rico will also allow 1 See, e.g., Patricia Mazzei, Puerto Rico Orders Review and Recount of Hurricane Deaths, The New York Times (Dec. 18, 2017), https:/ /www.nytimes.com/2017 /12118/us/puerto-rico-hurricane-maria-death­ toll-review.html; Arelis R. Hernandez et al., Sin Luz: Life Without Power, The Washington Post (Dec. 14, 2017) ("Sin Luz"), https: I /www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/2017 /national/puerto-rico-life-without­ power/?utm_term=.1 edca00f76e5. 2 See Elizabeth Weise, Puerto Rico is Nearly Entirely Cut Off from Cellphone Service, Leading to Low Tech Solutions, USA Today (Sept. 28, 2017), https: I /www.usatoday.com/storv/tech/2017 /09/28/ puerto-rico-cell-phone-service-tmobile-att-hurricane /710775001 I. 3 See, e.g., Karl Vick, A Land They No Longer Recognize: Desparation and Resilience in Hurricane­ Battered Puerto Rico, TIME, http: I /time.com/a-land-they-no-longer-recognize/ (last visited Dec. 19, 2017). 4 John Eggerton, Pai: More USF Money Needed to Help Puerto Rican Communications, Broadcasting and Gable, Nov. 7, 2017, http:/ /www.broadcastingcable.com/news/washington/pai-more-usf-money­ needed-help-puertorican-com municati ons/ 1699 28. PRINTED ON RECYCLED PAPER 1136 Chairman Ajit Pai December 22, 2017 Page 2 them to expedite the deployment of 600 MHz spectrum, which will greatly enhance wireless coverage and availability on the island. Earlier this year, the FCC auctioned broadcast television spectrum above Channel 37. After the auction ended, the FCC commenced a ten-phase, 39-month relocation plan to clear the newly auctioned spectrum by relocating numerous broadcast television stations to different channels. Most Puerto Rican broadcast television stations are not scheduled to relocate until 2019 or later. At this point, however, Puerto Rico has little functioning broadcast television infrastructure. Absent regulatory relief, broadcast television licensees face the prospect of having to spend resources to restore television service on pre-auction channels in 2018 only to have to spend more resources to move to post-auction channels in 2019. Rigid adherence to the current broadcast television relocation plan in Puerto Rico and other areas affected by Hurricane Maria will waste time and money. Most of t he broadcast television stations in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands have already asked the FCC to accelerate the transition so that stations may use relocation funds to restore broadcast television service to Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. 5 I support these common-sense requests for relief and urge you to permit these stations to relocate to their final post-auction channels as soon as possible. The last thing we in Puerto Rico need is duplicative, government-mandated spending on a two-step move when only one step is required. Accelerating the post-auction relocation of broadcast television licensees avoids squandering taxpayer resources and will help restore a critical piece of Puerto Rico's communications infrastructure. · Puerto Rico is home to 3.4 million Americans, who need your help. Acting now to accelerate the post-auction transition in storm-ravaged areas promises to save money and lives. Jennifer Gonzalez-Colon Member of Congress 5 See Letter from Davina Sashkin et al., Counsel for Eastern Television Corporation R & F Broadcasting, Inc., to Marlene H. Dortch, FCC, GN Docket No. 12-268, MB Docket No. 16-306 (Nov. 14, 2017); see also Letter from Melodie A. Virtue, CMCG Puerto Rico, LLC, to Marlene H. Dortch, FCC, GN Docket No. 12- 268, MB Docket No. 16-306 (Dec. 18, 2017); Letter from Todd D. Gray, Counsel for SUAGM, to Marlene H. Dortch, FCC, GN Docket No. 12-268, MB Docket No. 16-306 (Dec. 1, 2017); Letter from Steve B. Sharkey, T-Mobile USA, Inc. , to Marlene H. Dortch, FCC, GN Docket No. 12-268, MB Docket No. 16-306 (Nov. 21, 2017).