STATEMENT OF 
COMMISSIONER GEOFFREY STARKS

Re:	Review of the Commission’s Rules Governing the 896-901/935-940 MHz Band, WT Docket No. 17-200

Americans rely on affordable, reliable power.  According to one estimate, global energy consumption will increase by 37 percent over the next 20 years.  We must expand our energy production to meet this growing demand, while at the same time reducing our emissions to address the challenge of climate change.  The item we adopt today will help us square these potentially competing policy goals.  

Broadband systems in the 900 MHz band will allow utilities to develop LTE networks to perform real-time monitoring and active control of their energy distribution systems.  Smart Grid systems will smooth out spikes in usage before they happen, respond instantaneously to outages, and route power to customers in the most efficient manner, reducing consumption and emissions.  In addition, the private nature of these networks will provide an added level of security against the increasing threat of attacks on our critical infrastructure. 

Given the importance of the incumbent operations in the 900 MHz band, I’m glad that we’ve adopted a negotiation-based framework for the band’s transition, while retaining a portion of the spectrum for continued narrowband operations.  And while I’m optimistic that our approach will successfully transition the band, I also look forward to learning next year how our approach is working.  

Thank you to the staff of the Wireless Telecommunications Bureau for their work on this item.