The public safety community, Nextel Communications, Inc. and the Private Wireless Coalition have adopted an important consensus strategy for mitigating the interference in the 800 MHz band, according to joint reply comments filed August 7 at the Federal Communications Commission.

The IAFC agrees with all of the findings in the strategy document and believes that it should be shared with fire departments that have radio communications systems operating in the 800 MHz band. The full text of the filed document has been released and is located on the FCC Web site at www.fcc.gov under WT Docket No. 02-55.

The result of exhaustive meetings between private wireless groups, public safety associations and Nextel, the plan would split the 800 MHz band into two contiguous blocks of spectrum: a non-cellularized block and a cellularized block. Public safety, Business and Industrial Land Transportation and traditional high-site Specialized Mobile Radio licensees would remain in a 20 MHz non-cellularized block, and Nextel would relocate to a 16 MHz cellularized block. In the non-cellularized block, a guard band will be created at 814-816/859-861 MHz for low-power campus-type systems and other B/ILT licensees.

The proposal would also provide a five-year period during which public safety entities could acquire the remaining channels vacated by Nextel in the non-cellularized block. This would provide significant additional channel capacity for state and local public safety agencies across the nation.

The compromise proposal mitigates the interference problem with minimal disruption to existing services, offers additional public safety spectrum, keeps B/ILT at 800 MHz, separates incompatible technologies, offers additional B/ILT and traditional SMR spectrum if public safety does not acquire all vacated channels in the 800 MHz band and satisfies the immediate needs of all affected parties.

The only required movement, other than that of Nextel, will be the existing licensees out of the 806-809/851-854 MHz band and the National Public Safety Planning Advisory Committee licensees into that same band. Voluntary movement of current public safety licensees in the “guard band” to other portions of the non-cellularized block would also be accommodated.

The Land Mobile Communications Council, Nextel and the public safety coordinators, including regional planning committees, would work together to develop a comprehensive band plan for the newly created public safety/B/ILT/SMR pool. Nextel has pledged $500 million for funding public safety relocation costs.

Nextel would return its 700 and 900 MHz spectrum to the commission, contribute 2.5 MHz of spectrum at 800 MHz to the newly created public safety/B/ILT pool and receive, in exchange, 10 MHz of spectrum at 1910-1915/1990-1995 MHz. Nextel’s 700 MHz spectrum would be designated for public safety use and the 900 MHz spectrum for B/ILT use.

The public safety organizations that signed the consensus agreement include: the International Association of Fire Chiefs , the International Municipal Signal Association, the Association of Public Safety Communications Officials International, Inc., the International Association of Chiefs of Police, the Major Cities Chiefs Association, the Major County Sheriffs’ Association and the National Sheriffs’ Association.

The Private Wireless Coalition is made up of Aeronautical Radio, Inc.; the American Mobile Telecommunications Association; the American Petroleum Institute; Association of American Railroads; the Forest Industries Telecommunications; the Industrial Telecommunications Association, Inc.; the Personal Communications Industry Association and the Taxicab, Limousine and Paratransit Association. Nextel Communications, Inc., is a signatory.