Senate C-Band Auction Bill ‘Final’ Version Introduced

Wireless Future Project director Michael Calabrese is quoted in Multichannel News praising bipartisan legislation that would ensure an expeditious FCC public auction of C-Band spectrum, as well as the use of resulting revenue for investments in rural broadband and digital inclusion.

”The bipartisan Senate bill introduced today is needed to ensure the FCC is not held hostage to the demands of foreign satellite companies seeking an unjustified windfall at taxpayer expense,“ Michael Calabrese, director of the Wireless Future Project for New America's Open Technology Institute, said. "The American public owns the airwaves. This bill mandates an early auction and provides a generous incentive payment to satellite incumbents, but it also redirects $15 billion or more in auction revenue to fund major investments in rural broadband, digital inclusion programs and to modernize public safety infrastructure.”