STATEMENT OF COMMISSIONER BRENDAN CARR Re: Improving Public Safety Communications in the 800 MHz Band, WT Docket No. 02-55, Order (April 22, 2021) Seventeen years ago, a high-pitched and pesky noise emerged for which there was no easy or quick solution. It was a nuisance that garnered the attention of both Democrats and Republicans in Washington. I am not referring to the interference concerns that motivated the FCC to initiate this rebanding program in 2004, of course, but to the Brood X cicadas that are emerging again this year after a 17-year slumber. Unlike cicadas, the FCC team that has staffed this proceeding since 2004 has not enjoyed a whole lot of rest. The staff of the Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau in particular has worked tirelessly on this important issue to address the interference concerns that plagued public safety operations in the 800 MHz band. I want to congratulate and thank you all for your efforts to move this proceeding across the finish line. And, unlike in 2004, when advocates argued that FCC Commissioners could be put in jail over the agency’s 800 MHz proceeding, I am glad no one at the agency ended up in the pokey over this one. Jokes aside, I want to especially recognize the hard work and devotion of Michael Wilhelm—who is not only Chief of the Policy and Licensing Division of the Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau, but also my next-door neighbor and friend. Michael, as many of you know, first joined the Commission in 1997 as an attorney in the Public Safety & Critical Infrastructure Division of the Wireless Telecommunications Bureau. Since 2004, he has overseen this proceeding and been a guiding force in the rebanding of the 800 MHz band. This rebanding process involved the spectral reconfiguration of tens of thousands of base stations owned by more than 2,000 licensees. It presented a myriad of complex issues but with Michael at the helm, we were able to get it done. Having seen this project through to completion, Michael will be heading off for a much-deserved retirement. So I want to thank you, Michael, for your years of public service at the FCC. The American people have benefited greatly from your service. I wish you the best in your retirement and hope you can devote less time to spectrum and more time to your family and doing the things you enjoy. I approve.