Landmark FCC Action: D Block To Public Safety

Within the next month, the most famous radio license callsign in public safety history will be assigned by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), the initial step in creating a first-ever nationwide wireless network for first responders. In a Public Notice issued yesterday, the Commission said it intends to grant the D Block of 700 Hz spectrum to the newly-formed First Responder Network Authority (FirstNet) to create the network, the culmination of years of promises and work to unify and streamline public safety communications in the United States. The FirstNet board met last week and submitted a formal request for the spectrum in a letter to the FCC. Now, 30 days after the FCC publishes its notice of intent in the Federal Register, the Commission will issue the spectrum license to FirstNet, along with the block’s notable radio callsign. There is no word if the traditional format of letters and numbers for a FCC radio callsign will have any special significance for the nationwide license, such as including the numbers “911.” Work on creating a nationwide broadband network began after the 2001 terrorist attacks, but projects to assign exclusive spectrum to public safety pre-dates even that year. The project has weathered various technical and political battles over the last decade. The last piece of the project—funding—seems to have been assured last month when the FCC allocated $7 billion to FirstNet from the proceeds of a broadcast TV spectrum auction. Download (pdf) the short FCC Public Notice that announces the FCC’s intent to allocate the spectrum, and the original Report and Order issued las month that set up the allocation.

The FCC has assigned several radio callsigns that include the significant numbers “911,” including the Arizona Department of Public Safety for its helicopter radios (911AZ) and several other aviation agencies or companies.