You are using an unsupported browser. This web site is designed for the current versions of Microsoft Edge, Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, or Safari.
The Office of the Federal Register publishes documents on behalf of Federal agencies but does not have any authority over their programs. We recommend you directly contact the agency associated with the content in question.
If you have comments or suggestions on how to improve the www.ecfr.gov website or have questions about using www.ecfr.gov, please choose the 'Website Feedback' button below.
If you would like to comment on the current content, please use the 'Content Feedback' button below for instructions on contacting the issuing agency
Enhanced content is provided to the user to provide additional context.
This content is from the eCFR and is authoritative but unofficial.
Navigate by entering citations or phrases (eg: 1 CFR 1.1 49 CFR 172.101 Organization and Purpose 1/1.1 Regulation Y FAR).
Choosing an item from citations and headings will bring you directly to the content. Choosing an item from full text search results will bring you to those results. Pressing enter in the search box will also bring you to search results.
Background and more details are available in the Search & Navigation guide.
43 FR 54791, Nov. 22, 1978, unless otherwise noted.
This content is from the eCFR and may include recent changes applied to the CFR. The official, published CFR, is updated annually and available below under "Published Edition". You can learn more about the process here.
Subscribe to: 47 CFR Part 90 Subpart S - Policies Governing the Licensing and Use of MTA-Based SMR Systems in the 896-901/935-940 MHz Band
No changes found for this content after 1/03/2017.
View the most recent official publication:
These links go to the official, published CFR, which is updated annually. As a result, it may not include the most recent changes applied to the CFR. Learn more.
Information and documentation can be found in our developer resources.
The Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) is the official legal print publication containing the codification of the general and permanent rules published in the Federal Register by the departments and agencies of the Federal Government. The Electronic Code of Federal Regulations (eCFR) is a continuously updated online version of the CFR. It is not an official legal edition of the CFR.
Learn more about the eCFR, its status, and the editorial process.
MTA licenses for SMR spectrum blocks in the 896-901/935-940 MHz band listed in table 4B of § 90.617(d) are available in 51 Major Trading Areas (MTAs) as defined in § 90.7. Within these MTAs, licenses will be authorized in ten channel blocks as specified in table 4B of § 90.617(d) through the competitive bidding procedures described in subpart U of this part.
[60 FR 21991, May 4, 1995]
(a) MTA-based licensees authorized in the 896-901/935-940 MHz band pursuant to § 90.661 may construct and operate base stations using any frequency identified in their spectrum block anywhere within their authorized MTA, provided that:
(1) The MTA licensee affords protection, in accordance with § 90.621(b), to all sites for which applications were filed on or prior to August 9, 1994.
(2) The MTA licensee complies with any rules and international agreements that restrict use of frequencies identified in their spectrum block, including the provisions of § 90.619 relating to U.S./Canadian and U.S./Mexican border areas.
(b) In the event that the authorization for a previously authorized co-channel station within the MTA licensee's authorized spectrum block is terminated or revoked, the MTA licensee's co-channel obligations to such station will cease upon deletion of the facility from the Commission's licensing record. The MTA licensee then will be able to construct and operate base stations using such frequency.
[60 FR 21991, May 4, 1995]
(a) MTA licenses in the 896-901/935-940 MHz band will be issued for a term not to exceed ten years.
(b) MTA licensees in the 896-901/935-940 MHz band will be permitted five years to construct their stations. This five-year period will commence with the issuance of the MTA-wide authorization and will apply to all of the licensee's stations within the MTA spectrum block, including any stations that may have been subject to an earlier construction deadline arising from a pre-existing authorization.
(c) Each MTA licensee in the 896-901/935-940 MHz band must, three years from the date of license grant, construct and place into operation a sufficient number of base stations to provide coverage to at least one-third of the population of the MTA; further, each MTA licensee must provide coverage to at least two-thirds of the population of the MTA five years from the date of license grant. Alternatively, an MTA licensee must demonstrate, through a showing to the Commission five years from the date of license grant, that it is providing substantial service. An MTA licensee must, three years from license grant, either show that the 1⁄3 population coverage standard has been satisfied, or provide written notification that it has elected to show substantial service to the MTA five years from license grant. In addition, as part of the election to provide a substantial service showing, each MTA licensee must, three years from license grant, indicate how it expects to demonstrate substantial service at five years. The MTA licensee must meet the population coverage benchmarks regardless of the extent to which incumbent licensees are present within the MTA block.
(d) MTA licensees who fail to meet the coverage requirements imposed at either the third or fifth years of their license term, or to make a convincing showing of substantial service, will forfeit the portion of the MTA license that exceeds licensed facilities constructed and operating on the date of the MTA license grant.
[60 FR 21991, May 4, 1995, as amended at 60 FR 48918, Sept. 21, 1995; 60 FR 61487, Nov. 30, 1995; 64 FR 39942, July 23, 1999]
(a) These provisions apply to all 900 MHz SMR licensees who obtained licenses or filed applications for secondary sites on or before August 9, 1994 (“incumbent licensees”), as well as to all 900 MHz SMR licensees who obtained authorizations pursuant to § 90.173(k). An incumbent licensee's service area shall be defined by its originally-licensed 40 dBu field strength contour. Incumbent licensees are permitted to add new or modify transmit sites in this existing service area without prior notification to the Commission so long as their original 40 dBu field strength contour is not expanded.
(b) Incumbent licensees operating at multiple sites may, after grant of MTA licenses has been completed, exchange multiple site licenses for a single license, authorizing operations throughout the contiguous and overlapping 40 dBu field strength contours of the multiple sites. Incumbents exercising this license exchange option must submit specific information for each of their external base sites after the close of the 900 MHz SMR auction.
(c) Applications in the 900 MHz SMR service for secondary sites filed after August 9, 1994 shall be authorized on a secondary, non-interference basis to MTA licensee operations. No secondary sites shall be granted on this basis in an MTA once the MTA licensee has been selected.
[60 FR 48918, Sept. 21, 1995]
(a) On any frequency in an MTA licensee's spectrum block that is adjacent to a non-MTA frequency, the power of any emission shall be attenuated below the transmitter power (P) by at least 43 plus 10 log10(P) decibels or 80 decibels, whichever is the lesser attenuation.
The measurements of emission power can be expressed in peak or average values, provided they are expressed in the same parameters as the transmitter power.
(b) When an emission outside of the authorized bandwidth causes harmful interference, the Commission may, at its discretion, require greater attenuation than specified in this section.
[60 FR 21992, May 4, 1995]
The predicted or measured field strength at any location on the border of the MTA service area for MTA licensees shall not exceed 40 dBuV/m unless all bordering MTA licensees agree to a higher field strength. MTA licensees are also required to coordinate their frequency usage with so-channel adjacent MTA licensees and all other affected parties. To the extent that a single entity obtains licenses for adjacent MTAs on the same channel block, it will not be required to coordinate its operations in this manner. In the event that this standard conflicts with the MTA licensee's obligation to provide co-channel protection to incumbent licensees under § 90.621(b), the requirements of § 90.621(b) shall prevail.
[60 FR 21992, May 4, 1995]