What This Bill Does
This bill amends federal telecommunications law to require the Department of Commerce to create a system that helps manage radio frequency spectrum (the invisible signals that carry wireless communications) when both government agencies and private companies want to use the same frequencies. The system must prevent harmful interference between different users sharing the same spectrum bands.
Who It Affects
Federal agencies that use radio frequency spectrum, private companies and non-federal users authorized to use shared spectrum, the Department of Commerce, the Federal Communications Commission, and the Office of Management and Budget.
Key Provisions
• The Assistant Secretary of Commerce must begin updating the Department's spectrum management manual within 120 days to include an "incumbent informing capability" (a system for sharing spectrum) and must implement this capability once funding is provided (Sec. 120(a))
• The system must allow non-federal users to use shared spectrum through one or more mechanisms, as allowed by federal communications rules (Sec. 120(b)(2)(A))
• The system must include functions to prevent, eliminate or reduce harmful interference, including sensing, identification, reporting, analysis and resolution capabilities (Sec. 120(b)(2)(C))
• Each federal agency using shared spectrum must input information into the system, including the frequency, time and location of their spectrum use, preferably in an automated way (Sec. 120(b)(4)(A))
• The Assistant Secretary must brief Congress within one year on how this system has been implemented (Sec. 120(c))
What Changes
If this bill becomes law, the Department of Commerce must create and implement a new system to manage shared radio frequency spectrum. Federal agencies will need to provide detailed information about when and where they use their spectrum. The system will help prevent interference problems when private companies and government agencies share the same frequencies.
Important Definitions
• "Covered spectrum" means radio frequencies that are licensed to private users for shared use with federal agencies, or radio frequencies allocated for federal use that multiple federal agencies share (Sec. 120(d)(1))
• "Incumbent informing capability" means a system designed to help manage the sharing of covered spectrum (Sec. 120(d)(3))
• "Federal entity" is defined elsewhere in existing law (referenced in Sec. 120(d)(2))
Effective Date
Not specified in bill text
I
118TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION H. R. 1677
To amend the National Telecommunications and Information Administration
Organization Act to provide for an incumbent informing capability, and
for other purposes.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
MARCH 21, 2023
Mr. GUTHRIE (for himself and Ms. MATSUI) introduced the following bill;
which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce
A BILL
To amend the National Telecommunications and Information
Administration Organization Act to provide for an in-
cumbent informing capability, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
1
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
2
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
3
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Simplifying Manage-
4
ment, Access, Reallocation, and Transfer of Spectrum
5
Act’’ or the ‘‘SMART Spectrum Act’’.
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SEC. 2. INCUMBENT INFORMING CAPABILITY.
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Part B of the National Telecommunications and In-
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formation Administration Organization Act (47 U.S.C.
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•HR 1677 IH
921 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the fol-
1
lowing:
2
‘‘SEC. 120. INCUMBENT INFORMING CAPABILITY.
3
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Assistant Secretary shall—
4
‘‘(1) not later than 120 days after the date of
5
the enactment of this section, begin to amend the
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Department of Commerce spectrum management
7
document entitled ‘Manual of Regulations and Pro-
8
cedures for Federal Radio Frequency Management’
9
so as to incorporate an incumbent informing capa-
10
bility; and
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‘‘(2) not later than the date on which amounts
12
appropriated to carry out this section are first made
13
available, begin to implement such capability, includ-
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ing the development and testing of such capability.
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‘‘(b) ESTABLISHMENT OF THE INCUMBENT INFORM-
16
ING CAPABILITY.—
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‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The incumbent informing
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capability required by subsection (a) shall include a
19
system to enable sharing, including time-based shar-
20
ing, to securely manage harmful interference be-
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tween non-Federal users and incumbent Federal en-
22
tities sharing a band of covered spectrum and be-
23
tween Federal entities sharing a band of covered
24
spectrum.
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‘‘(2) REQUIREMENTS.—The system required by
1
paragraph (1) shall contain, at a minimum, the fol-
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lowing:
3
‘‘(A) One or more mechanisms to allow
4
non-Federal use in covered spectrum, as au-
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thorized by the rules of the Commission. Such
6
mechanism or mechanisms shall include inter-
7
faces to commercial sharing systems, as appro-
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priate.
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‘‘(B) One or more mechanisms to facilitate
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Federal-to-Federal sharing, as authorized by
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the NTIA.
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‘‘(C) One or more mechanisms to prevent,
13
eliminate, or mitigate harmful interference to
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incumbent Federal entities, including one or
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more of the following functions:
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‘‘(i) Sensing.
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‘‘(ii) Identification.
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‘‘(iii) Reporting.
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‘‘(iv) Analysis.
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‘‘(v) Resolution.
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‘‘(D) Dynamic coordination area analysis,
22
definition, and control, if appropriate for a
23
band.
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‘‘(3) COMPLIANCE WITH COMMISSION RULES.—
1
The incumbent informing capability required by sub-
2
section (a) shall ensure that use of covered spectrum
3
is in accordance with the applicable rules of the
4
Commission.
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‘‘(4) INPUT OF INFORMATION.—
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‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Each incumbent Fed-
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eral entity sharing a band of covered spectrum
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shall—
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‘‘(i) input into the system required by
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paragraph (1) such information as the As-
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sistant Secretary may require, including
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the frequency, time, and location of the use
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of the band by such Federal entity; and
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‘‘(ii) to the extent practicable, input
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such information into such system on an
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automated basis.
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‘‘(B)
PAYMENT
OF
COSTS.—Notwith-
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standing subsections (c) through (e) of section
19
118 and subparagraphs (C) through (E) of sub-
20
section (g)(2) of such section, the Director of
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the Office of Management and Budget, in con-
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sultation with the Assistant Secretary, may use
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amounts available in the Spectrum Relocation
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Fund to pay the costs incurred by Federal enti-
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•HR 1677 IH
ties to input information as required by sub-
1
paragraph (A).
2
‘‘(5) PROTECTION
OF
CLASSIFIED
INFORMA-
3
TION
AND
CONTROLLED
UNCLASSIFIED
INFORMA-
4
TION.—The system required by paragraph (1) shall
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contain appropriate measures to protect classified
6
information and controlled unclassified information,
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including any such classified information or con-
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trolled unclassified information that relates to mili-
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tary operations.
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‘‘(c) BRIEFING.—Not later than 1 year after the date
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on which amounts appropriated to carry out this section
12
are first made available, the Assistant Secretary shall pro-
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vide a briefing on the implementation of this section to
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the Committee on Energy and Commerce of the House
15
of Representatives and the Committee on Commerce,
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Science, and Transportation of the Senate.
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‘‘(d) DEFINITIONS.—In this section:
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‘‘(1) COVERED SPECTRUM.—The term ‘covered
19
spectrum’ means—
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‘‘(A) electromagnetic spectrum for which
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usage rights are assigned to or authorized for
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(including before the date on which the incum-
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bent informing capability required by subsection
24
(a) is implemented) a non-Federal user or class
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•HR 1677 IH
of non-Federal users for use on a shared basis
1
with an incumbent Federal entity in accordance
2
with the rules of the Commission; and
3
‘‘(B) electromagnetic spectrum allocated
4
on a primary or co-primary basis for Federal
5
use that is shared among Federal entities.
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‘‘(2) FEDERAL ENTITY.—The term ‘Federal en-
7
tity’ has the meaning given such term in section
8
113(l).
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‘‘(3) INCUMBENT
INFORMING
CAPABILITY.—
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The term ‘incumbent informing capability’ means a
11
capability to facilitate the sharing of covered spec-
12
trum.
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‘‘(e) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this sec-
14
tion shall be construed to alter or expand the authority
15
of the NTIA as described in section 113(j)(1).’’.
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Æ
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