Spectrum Provisions Stripped From Budget Legislation

In the last-minute push to adopt legislation that would extend payroll tax savings for Americans, Congress has removed provisions that would have affected spectrum intended to create a nationwide wireless network. On Saturday the Senate passed a bill to extend a so-called “tax holiday” for 16 million Americans, but only after it was stripped of two sections pertaining to spectrum management. The first section removed was related to TV broadcast spectrum, and the other section would have assigned certain spectrum to public safety for a wireless network. The omission was a disappointing blow to public safety groups, which have lobbied Congress for action since a failed spectrum auction in 2008. However, this morning, the House voted voted down the Senate version of the tax holiday bill, and sent the bill to committee for reconciliation, a process that might result in a final bill within two weeks. It’s not clear if the spectrum provisions would be reinserted into the bill during committee consideration.