Advanced, Local Emergency Response Telecommunications Parity Act
What changed between versions
Section (b) was retitled from 'Certifications' to 'Demonstrations,' and the language requiring applicants to 'certify' was changed to 'demonstrate.' The evidentiary language in subsection (1) was also simplified, removing the requirement that evidence be 'included in the application.'
Section (d)(1) now requires spectrum consent to be 'voluntary' and adds a new obligation: any entity receiving a consent request must 'reasonably engage' with the requesting provider and make a determination 'in a timely manner.' This creates an affirmative duty on spectrum holders to respond rather than simply allowing them to ignore requests.
Section (d)(2) expanded interference protection from covering only 'such area' to covering 'such area or an adjacent geographic area,' broadening the scope of protected spectrum users.
A new rules-of-construction provision (now subsection (h)(1)) explicitly states that nothing in the section gives the FCC authority to regulate the terms, conditions, or rates of private agreements between parties to facilitate emergency connectivity service. This carves out a significant limitation on FCC regulatory power over spectrum-sharing deals.
A new section (g) requires the FCC to submit annual reports to the House Energy and Commerce Committee and Senate Commerce Committee detailing every instance emergency connectivity service was provided and every instance a spectrum holder declined to grant consent.
Multiple cross-references were updated from 'subsection (h)(5)(B)' to 'subsection (i)(5)(B)' to reflect the renumbering of the definitions section caused by the insertion of the new reporting requirement as subsection (g).
Various heading capitalization changes were made throughout (e.g., 'Rulemaking Required' to 'Rulemaking required,' 'Publication of List of Providers' to 'Publication of list of providers'). These are formatting-only changes.
