July 6, 2022 
                                                                  452
The Honorable Jessica Rosenworcel 
Chair 
Federal Communications Commission 
45 L Street NE 
Washington, DC 20554 

Dear Chair Rosenworcel, 

I write to raise concerns with the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) proceeding 
regarding the wireless internet spectrum that could disrupt critical service for millions of 
Americans, including many in my district, should it move forward.  This Notice of Proposed 
Rulemaking for Docket 20-443, “Expanding Flexible Use of the 12.2-12.7 GHz Band,” poses a 
potential threat to Americans in rural and remote areas currently benefitting from high-speed 
wireless internet provided by the band.  The FCC should do everything in its power to ensure 
that a plan does not move forward that could result in interference for existing wireless internet 
customers. 

High-speed internet is a necessary feature and essential service for work, school, healthcare, and 
countless other daily activities. Tens of thousands of Californians are already benefiting from 
high-speed satellite internet, which is especially useful in areas that are hard to reach or have 
been historically underserved.  This is the case in Big Sur, which is difficult to serve with 
terrestrial systems due to the rugged geography of the area.  Next-generation satellite internet 
provides an ideal solution, as it does for many remote and rural communities across the United 
States. 

For a year and a half, the FCC has been considering whether to disrupt the carefully shared 
system currently governing the 12 GHz band by granting new rights for speculative technologies. 
However, the FCC made clear that the petitioners asking for new rights had to submit technical 
parameters for the new technologies they propose to deploy and would have to demonstrate that 
non-interference with current users was possible.  Neither of these requirements has been met. 
As the petitioners’ own filings admit, this coexistence is not possible.1  The record in front of the 
FCC is clear: new high-power rights within the 12 GHz band would cause massive disruptions in 
service for consumers currently benefitting from the band. 

1“[C]oncurrent sharing of spectrum between co-primary 5G and NGSO FSS operations is not viable in the 12 GHz 
Band.” Letter from Alison Minea to Marlene H. Dortch, IBFS File No. SAT-MOD-20180319-00022 and Docket 
No. RM-11768, at 3 (Dec. 2, 2019). 

 
I hope you will consider these potential ramifications as you continue to investigate repurposing 
the 12 GHz band. Thank you for your attention to this matter. 
       
Sincerely, 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Jimmy Panetta 
Member of Congress