Further Streamlining FCC Rules Governing Satellite Services, 11880-11888 [2020-28907]

Agencies

• FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION

[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 38 (Monday, March 1, 2021)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 11880-11888]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-28907]


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FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION

47 CFR Part 25

[IB Docket No. 18-314; FCC 20-159; FRS 17350]


Further Streamlining FCC Rules Governing Satellite Services

AGENCY: Federal Communications Commission.

ACTION: Final rule.

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SUMMARY: In this document, the Federal Communications Commission 
(Commission or we) streamlines its rules governing satellite services 
by creating an optional framework for the authorization of blanket-
licensed earth stations and space stations in a satellite system 
through a unified license. The Commission also aligns the build-out 
requirements for earth stations and space stations and eliminates 
unnecessary reporting rules.

DATES: Effective March 31, 2021, except instruction 6 adding 47 CFR 
25.136(h) which is delayed. The Commission will publish a document in 
the Federal Register announcing the effective date of 47 CFR 25.136(h).

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Clay DeCell, [email protected], 202-
418-0803, or if concerning the information collections in this 
document, Cathy Williams, [email protected], 202-418-2918.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This is a summary of the Commission's Report 
and Order, FCC 20-159, adopted November 18, 2020, and released November 
19, 2020. The full text of the Report and Order is available at https://docs.fcc.gov/public/attachments/FCC-20-159A1.pdf. To request materials 
in accessible formats for people with disabilities, send an email to 
[email protected] or call the Consumer & Governmental Affairs Bureau at 
202-418-0530 (voice), 202-418-0432 (TTY).

Congressional Review Act

    The Commission has determined, and the Administrator of the Office 
of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Office of Management and Budget, 
concurs that this rule is ``non-major'' under the Congressional Review 
Act, 5 U.S.C. 804(2). The Commission will send a copy of this Second 
Report and Order to Congress and the Government Accountability Office 
pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 801(a)(1)(A).

Synopsis

    In this Report and Order, the Commission streamlines its rules 
governing satellite services by creating an optional framework for 
authorizing both the blanket-licensed earth stations and space stations 
of a satellite system through a unified license. We also align the 
build-out requirements for earth stations and space stations and 
eliminate unnecessary reporting rules. These changes will reduce 
regulatory burdens, simplify the Commission's licensing of satellite 
systems, and provide additional operational flexibility.

A. Unified License for Space Station and Blanket-Licensed Earth Station 
Operations

    On January 31, 2019, the Commission proposed at 84 FR 638 a simple 
framework for an optional unified license. The unified license would 
authorize operations of the satellite network, i.e., the space station 
and the earth stations operating with that space station. The unified 
license would be held by the satellite operator. To receive a unified 
license, the satellite operator would have to file an application with 
the normally required space station application information, plus 
certain certifications and information regarding earth station 
operations. It would not have to provide a Form 312 Schedule B or the 
detailed earth station information that would otherwise be required, 
but which is rendered duplicative or unnecessary by what was already 
submitted for the space station. Accordingly, the unified license would 
offer a more efficient means to authorize the earth stations in a 
satellite network, and one that better reflects the flexibility 
satellite operators exercise over the parameters of their satellite 
networks.
    Scope. After review of the information submitted in the record, we 
conclude that the streamlining benefits of a unified authorization 
could apply to a variety of satellite and earth station

[[Page 11881]]

licensees, and that we need not limit its application initially to 
certain regulatory frameworks. Accordingly, we will broadly make 
available a unified licensing option to all types of satellite and 
blanket-licensed earth station operations in the frequency bands listed 
below, including Earth Station in Motion (ESIM) operations in these 
bands. We will also permit non-U.S.-licensed satellite operators to 
receive a single grant with U.S. market access and blanket-licensed 
earth station operating authority. As proposed, the unified license 
will be held by the satellite operator, including authority for the 
blanket-licensed earth stations. We make the unified licensing 
framework available to operators in the following frequency bands:

    Non-Voice, Non-Geostationary Mobile-Satellite Service (MSS): 
137-138 MHz, 148-150.05 MHz, 399.9-400.05 MHz, and 400.15-401 MHz;
    1.5/1.6 GHz MSS: 1525-1559 MHz and 1626.5-1660.5 MHz;
    1.6/2.4 GHz MSS: 1610-1626.5 MHz and 2483.5-2500 MHz;
    2 GHz MSS: 2000-2020 MHz and 2180-2200 MHz;
    GSO FSS: 10.7-12.2 GHz, 14-14.5 GHz, 18.3-18.8 GHz, 19.7-20.2 
GHz, 28.35-28.6 GHz, 29.25-30 GHz, 40-42 GHz, and 48.2-50.2 GHz;
    NGSO FSS: 10.7-12.7 GHz, 14-14.5 GHz, 17.8-18.6 GHz, 18.8-19.4 
GHz, 19.6-20.2 GHz, 28.35-29.1 GHz, 29.5-30 GHz, 40-42 GHz, and 
48.2-50.2 GHz; and
    GSO and NGSO MSS: 19.7-20.2 GHz and 29.5-30 GHz.

    As stated in the proposed rule, we will exclude from unified 
licensing any fixed-satellite service (FSS) operations under 10 GHz in 
light of ongoing Commission rulemakings and the unique, transitional 
status of some FSS operations in these bands. In addition, we will 
allow only blanket-licensed earth station operations to be included in 
a unified license. Thus, unified licensing will not be available in any 
frequency band shared with UMFUS. But in bands adjacent to UMFUS 
operations, FSS operations are authorized on a blanket-licensed basis 
today without any coordination with UMFUS. We reject any suggestion to 
revisit blanket FSS licensing in such bands. Similarly, we find no 
basis in the record to exclude from eligibility ESIM operations in the 
28.35-28.6 GHz band adjacent to the 27.5-28.35 GHz band shared with 
UMFUS. The issue of out-of-band emissions from ESIMs operating in the 
28.35-28.6 GHz band is currently being explored in a separate 
rulemaking and is not affected by the licensing posture of an ESIM in a 
separate earth station authorization or a unified license. In either 
case, ESIMs will have to comply with any revised out-of-band emissions 
requirement adopted in that rulemaking.
    We similarly do not believe that we should increase burdens on 
blanket-licensed earth station deployment pursued through a unified 
license, as opposed to through existing blanket-licensing options, by 
requiring registration or notification of the ubiquitously deployed 
stations. Any such information-gathering for blanket-licensed earth 
station operations, if appropriate, would be more efficiently pursued 
with regard to specific rulemakings and frequency bands. Regarding the 
information omitted from a unified license application because it is 
duplicative or unnecessary, we note that the application will 
constitute a complete proposal for the satellite system, including the 
blanket-licensed earth station operations. If, after review of the 
complete application, a party has outstanding technical concerns, it 
may address them during the comment period.
    In addition, we do not believe that the earth station technical 
showings currently required by 47 CFR 25.115(g)(1) and 25.132 are 
necessary for terrestrial operators to review and should not be 
replaced with a certification requirement. These showings are intended 
to confirm compliance with two-degree spacing limits for GSO FSS 
satellites. Given that satellite operators are currently allowed to 
certify compliance with two-degree spacing limits instead of providing 
technical showings, and the experience of satellite commenters that 
such technical demonstrations are unnecessary to confirm the earth 
station's compliance with two-degree limits, we do not believe that the 
burden of providing these demonstrations is justified by their purpose. 
In any event, adjacent-band terrestrial operators will have an 
opportunity to comment on any unified license application including 
ESIM or other blanket-licensed earth station authority, and they may 
request additional information regarding the earth station operations. 
If an UMFUS operator experienced interference due to adjacent-band 
operations of a unified licensee, it could address its concerns to the 
licensee directly or to the Commission.
    The unified license will not be a separate license that a satellite 
operator has to obtain in addition to its existing satellite license. 
Rather, it will constitute a space station license that also includes 
authority for the operation of earth stations with that particular 
geostationary-satellite orbit (GSO) space station or those (non-
geostationary satellite orbit) NGSO space stations. Whether a satellite 
operator chooses to include such earth station authority or not, the 
space station authority will remain as it is today. The earth station 
authorization may include some or all of the frequency bands authorized 
for the associated space station(s).
    In response to a request for clarification, we affirm that requests 
for modification or renewal, special temporary authority, and 
application amendments related to space station operations, earth 
station operations, or both, can be made in the narrative portion of an 
application in the unified license file. While a unified license 
contains authority for both space station and earth station operations, 
we consider such a license to be an extension of the satellite 
licensing process, to be held by the satellite operator and applied for 
in the International Bureau Filing System (IBFS) using the general 
satellite licensing procedures. Accordingly, for any renewal 
applications, we will apply the deadlines and procedures for renewal of 
the space station authority to the entire unified license, and not 
consider any potentially conflicting requirements for renewal of the 
earth station authority. In addition, since there are no Commission 
licenses for multiple GSO-satellite systems, if a GSO satellite under a 
unified license became inoperable at the assigned orbital location 
(e.g., due to an in-orbit failure or end-of-life deorbiting), the 
unified license would cease, including all earth station authority to 
communicate with that satellite. The earth stations that formerly 
operated with that retired satellite could operate under a separate 
unified license authorizing communication with a replacement satellite, 
under a unified license for a non-replacement satellite, or under a 
separate earth station license. Only the earth stations' authority to 
operate with the retired satellite would cease. For an NGSO system 
license, which is typically a type of blanket license for space 
stations, the loss of a single space station would not usually 
terminate the license.
    We also direct the International Bureau to consider and release, as 
appropriate, further guidance regarding the implementation of a unified 
licensing framework in an explanatory public notice consistent with the 
intent of this rulemaking to simplify and streamline, to the maximum 
extent practicable, the authorization of space stations and earth 
stations through a unified license. We decline to postpone the 
effectiveness of the unified license framework until after an 
explanatory

[[Page 11882]]

public notice is released as we expect that the practical experience 
the International Bureau would gain in implementing the new framework 
will prove valuable and important in developing further guidance.
    Non-U.S.-Licensed Satellites. We will allow non-U.S.-licensed 
satellite operators to obtain market access through a unified 
authorization. Structurally, the unified authorization will consist of 
an earth station license and a grant of market access for the space 
station. This same formal licensing structure is possible today when a 
satellite operator files its own earth station license application and 
seeks satellite market access through the earth station application. In 
contrast with this current option, the unified authorization may only 
be held by a satellite operator, will exclude individually coordinated 
earth stations, and will be processed in IBFS using the filing options 
and procedures available to space station applications rather than 
earth station applications.
    Blanket-Licensed Earth Stations. Including blanket-licensed earth 
stations within a unified license would streamline the authorization of 
these earth stations without raising potential site-specific concerns, 
because the Commission has already determined that such earth stations 
may be deployed ubiquitously, without other operators knowing their 
precise locations. The unified license will merely capture this 
existing authority in a different type of license, without allowing any 
earth station operations that would be prohibited under the existing 
method of a blanket earth station license. Therefore, no other services 
will be affected by permitting such operations under a blanket license. 
Accordingly, we will allow any type of earth station operation eligible 
for blanket licensing to be included in a unified license.
    Individually Coordinated Earth Stations. Although the Commission 
proposed to include in the unified license conditional authority for 
earth stations that must be individually coordinated and are not 
eligible for blanket licensing, we decline to adopt this proposal. For 
one, we find that many of the benefits of such a proposal (such as 
linking the deployment of those earth stations to the deployment of the 
associated satellite, and thereby allowing the satellite operator to 
secure its gateway earth station locations several years earlier than 
the current licensing process) are better addressed more directly (for 
example, by modifying earth station build out requirements). For 
another, we find that adding such earth stations to a unified license 
would create more complexity than its streamlining benefit. Whether 
included in a unified license or not, a separate earth station filing 
would be required to provide the necessary site-specific information. 
Further, under the earth station certification proposal we adopt below, 
an earth station license applicant could similarly take advantage of 
the information provided in a corresponding space station application 
to omit any data that is duplicative. Therefore, it could be that the 
filings for individually coordinated earth stations--whether as part of 
a unified license or separately licensed using the certification 
procedure--would be similar in terms of the information provided, if 
not identical. At the same time, creating a new category of earth 
station filings would impose burdens on Commission resources. 
Therefore, in light of the possible complication that separate earth 
station filings would bring to a unified license framework, and the 
potentially marginal reduction in application burdens, we decline to 
adopt the proposal for individually coordinated earth stations.
    In short, unified licensing will not be available in any frequency 
bands in which blanket earth station licensing is not permitted. In 
such bands, earth stations will continue to be licensed separately from 
space stations.
    Application Requirements. To add blanket-licensed earth station 
authority to a space station license or market access grant, the 
satellite operator would need to provide only the additional 
information required in an equivalent earth station application, but 
which is not already covered by what was filed for the space station. 
This includes, for example, any certification under 47 CFR 25.115(i) 
that the use of a contention protocol in an earth station network will 
be reasonable, because that certification is not covered by the 
information provided in a space station license application. Submission 
of an earth station Form 312 Schedule B would not be required. As 
stated in the proposed rule, in applications where the satellite 
operator certified compliance with the two-degree spacing power limits 
under 47 CFR 25.140(a)(3)(i)-(iv), for example, the applicant would not 
need to provide any additional information on earth station antenna 
performance or verified performance currently required by 47 CFR 
25.115(g)(1) or 25.132 because the certification already attests to 
compliance with the power limits involved in those additional showings. 
Further instances of redundancy will necessarily be reviewed by 
Commission staff on a case-by-case basis initially, given that, at the 
urging of commenters, we are making the unified license option widely 
available across several different services and types of operation, 
each with distinct earth station and space station information 
requirements. The goal of this review will be to streamline, as far as 
possible within current rules, the earth station information required. 
We also note that a unified license may be granted in the absence of 
default power limits, based on the technical showings provided, and 
that nothing about the unified license would change the application of 
section 25.140(d) to space stations authorized in, or outside of, a 
unified license.
    Control of Earth Stations. Terrestrial operators may address 
questions or concerns to the satellite operator directly, as holder of 
the unified license, or to the Commission. Today, many satellite 
licensees are already held responsible for compliance with earth 
station power limits for their satellite networks. Further, it is 
common practice in satellite service contracts for the satellite 
operator to specify and require third party earth station operators to 
adhere to technical parameters consistent with its license, 
coordination agreements and the efficient technical use of its network. 
We continue to believe that contractual provisions are sufficient to 
hold the unified licensee as the responsible entity. Therefore, we do 
not find any basis in the record to modify our rules regarding the 
control of earth stations.
    Fees. As an initial matter, we note that there is an ongoing, 
comprehensive Commission rulemaking involving updates and additions to 
the application fee schedules. The interim fee decisions taken in this 
Report and Order will be considered in the larger application fee 
rulemaking, and may change significantly based on the analyses 
conducted there. In adopting a unified license framework, however, we 
must determine an initial treatment with respect to our application-fee 
requirements.
    A unified license application will contain all the information 
necessary to assess the proposed operation of the space station(s) and 
blanket-licensed earth stations in the satellite system, consistent 
with our rules. Commission staff will review both the space and ground 
components of the satellite system, and commenters may raise issues 
regarding either component to be resolved in the licensing decision. 
Because we anticipate that processing a unified license application 
will involve similar Commission resources to the

[[Page 11883]]

processing of individual space station applications and earth station 
applications making use of the new certification option we adopt below, 
we will assess a fee for unified license applications that is equal to 
the combined fees of the relevant space station license application and 
earth station blanket-license application. This treatment is intended 
to provide a simple, clear solution until the comprehensive Commission 
application fee rulemaking is completed. Because there are currently no 
fee codes in IBFS for such combined fees, unified license applicants 
will need to pay the application fee manually.
    In the case of a non-U.S.-licensed space station operator seeking a 
U.S. earth station license in combination with its petition for market 
access, we will--for now--assess the earth station application fee 
schedule to such requests. This provides equal treatment with the 
similar, existing procedure of market access through an earth station 
application. However, we note the inconsistency and potential 
unfairness of assessing substantially lower fees to such market access 
requests than to U.S. licensees, and intend to fully consider this and 
all application fee matters in the rulemaking dedicated to revising the 
Commission's application fees broadly.
    In addition to application fees, the Commission also charges annual 
regulatory fees. These fees are based on licenses held at the end of 
the relevant fiscal year. The Commission recently concluded its fiscal 
year 2019 regulatory fee rulemaking, and sought comment on additional 
changes for future years. We note that the fiscal year 2019 report and 
order for the first time assessed the same regulatory fees against non-
U.S.-licensed satellite operators granted U.S. market access as the 
Commission assesses to satellite operators holding a Commission space 
station license. We defer to a future regulatory fee proceeding the 
question of how to assess such fees to the new category of unified 
licenses.

B. Earth Station Certifications

    As an alternative or addition to the unified license proposal in 
the proposed rule, the Commission also asked whether it should permit 
applicants for GSO FSS earth station licenses to submit certifications 
of compliance with the terms and conditions of the communicating space 
station network as a substitute for filing the technical information 
required by Form 312, Schedule B. Such certifications would allow 
independent earth station operators to benefit from streamlined 
information requirements in a similar way as earth stations authorized 
through a unified license held by the satellite operator, while 
remaining responsible for compliance with its certification.
    We believe that there is no general need for GSO FSS earth station 
applicants to submit technical information that is duplicative (or 
unnecessary) due to the information already provided for the satellite 
with which they will communicate. Furthermore, and consistent with our 
decision above to expand the streamlining benefits of the unified 
license to additional services and types of operation, we see no 
general need to require such duplicative or unnecessary information for 
any earth station in any service when an appropriate certification of 
compliance with the satellite authorization is made.
    With respect to the frequency bands to which this option will 
apply, we take an approach consistent with our decisions above 
regarding the unified license framework. Consistent treatment is 
appropriate because the same types of duplicative or unnecessary 
information may be omitted either through an earth station 
certification of compliance with the relevant satellite authorization 
or through a unified license application. Accordingly, we will exclude 
from the earth station certification option FSS operations under 10 GHz 
and operations subject to 47 CFR 25.136. We will include ESIM 
operations in the 28.35-28.6 GHz band because doing so will have no 
impact on the applicable out-of-band emissions limits that affect UMFUS 
operations in the adjacent 27.5-28.35 GHz band.
    Therefore, to conserve applicant and Commission resources while 
ensuring the necessary information remains on file with the Commission, 
we conclude it will serve the public interest to adopt a general 
provision for earth station licensing that an earth station applicant 
certifying that it will comply with the applicable terms and conditions 
of any space station's authorization with which it communicates need 
not provide technical demonstrations or other information made 
duplicative or unnecessary by the certification, with the exceptions 
just noted. This necessarily applies to many frequency bands because 
the requirement to submit technical data in Schedule B, specifically 
identified as a source of potentially unnecessary information in the 
proposed rule, is applicable by default to all applications for 
transmitting earth stations.
    Applicants taking advantage of the certification option need not 
identify the information that is duplicative or unnecessary at this 
time. Given that we are excluding FSS bands below 10 GHz and bands 
shared with UMFUS, and that the vast majority of earth station 
applications are non-controversial and unopposed, such a requirement 
would lessen the streamlining benefits of the certification option 
without providing a compensating benefit. As under the unified license 
approach above, parties may raise questions on specific applications 
during the comment period. Finally, we believe that guidance the 
International Bureau may provide on the new earth station 
certifications, like on the unified license applications, would benefit 
from practical experience implementing the rules. We therefore decline 
to delay the effectiveness of the new rule.

C. Earth Station Build-Out Requirements

    In the proposed rule, the Commission identified a regulatory 
disconnect between the five-year deployment requirement for a GSO space 
station authorized in frequency bands subject to 47 CFR 25.136 and the 
one-year deployment requirement for earth stations communicating with 
such a satellite. The Commission proposed to align these build-out 
requirements. As proposed, an earth station authorized through 47 CFR 
25.136 would have a build-out term defined as either the date the 
associated satellite becomes operational or one year, whichever is 
longer.
    Scope. Considering the benefits of streamlining, regulatory 
certainty, and parity among different types of earth station licensees, 
we expand on the build-out term proposal in the proposed rule for earth 
stations licensed under 47 CFR 25.136 to include all blanket-licensed 
earth station operations eligible to be included in a unified license 
(i.e., other than FSS below 10 GHz), and further to allow the same 
treatment for blanket earth station licenses and individual earth 
station licenses, which are not part of a unified license, with the 
same exception for FSS below 10 GHz where new earth station deployments 
have been significantly limited pursuant to the Commission's decisions 
to significantly increase development of terrestrial services in some 
of these bands. Although we excluded from the unified licensing option 
earth station operations that must be individually coordinated, these 
operations will benefit the most from extended build-out periods to 
ensure that the necessary siting locations remain available once the 
satellite is ultimately launched.
    Bands Shared with UMFUS. Applying an extended build-out period to 
earth

[[Page 11884]]

station licenses subject to 47 CFR 25.136 will provide greater 
regulatory certainty to satellite operators planning newer-generation 
GSO or NGSO satellites with narrow spot-beams and therefore more 
limited earth station siting options. We do not believe that doing so 
will fundamentally alter the sharing regime with UMFUS or the rights of 
UMFUS operators. However, we believe that the earth station 
coordination reached with UMFUS licensees should be brought up to date 
once the earth station is actually constructed and operating. This will 
ensure that the UMFUS licensees have accurate information on the earth 
station operations notwithstanding the substantially longer earth 
station build-out period we are allowing. Providing UMFUS licensees 
with the certainty of an updated coordination will counterbalance the 
potential chilling of some UMFUS developments that might result from 
the extended earth station build-out periods. As such, the re-
coordination requirement serves as an important check on potential 
warehousing. Requiring earth station operators to simply notify changes 
to UMFUS licensees would instead place the burden of those changes, and 
the risk of non-deployment of the earth station, on UMFUS operators. We 
decline to shift this risk onto UMFUS operators, given that the one-
year build-out requirement provided underlying support for the earth 
station siting rules adopted in 47 CFR 25.136. We believe that a re-
coordination requirement for earth station licensees deploying in UMFUS 
bands is a reasonable tradeoff for the added flexibility longer build-
out period provide these licensees. Nonetheless, we note that earth 
station applicants in shared UMFUS bands will have several options. 
They may: (1) Construct and bring the earth station into operation 
within one year of licensing; (2) re-coordinate; or (3) deploy the 
earth station on an unprotected basis.
    We find no basis for treating NGSO FSS earth stations differently 
than GSO FSS or other earth stations included in the scope of our 
proposal. Moreover, the record is not fully developed for the 
Commission to decide whether it would serve the public interest to 
establish a limit on the eligible number of NGSO FSS earth stations or 
rely solely on the waiver process. We will consider the need for a 
future rulemaking on the issue of extended build-out periods after 
monitoring their implementation.
    Accordingly, we will require earth station operators that take 
advantage of the extended build-out period associated with deployment 
of a communicating satellite to re-coordinate with the UMFUS licensees 
within one year before actually operating the earth station. Such re-
coordination should account for changes to the earth station equipment 
or configuration in the intervening years, as well as to geographic and 
demographic changes in the surrounding area. In order to ensure that 
the required re-coordination has taken place, notice of the completed 
re-coordination must be filed in IBFS prior to commencement of earth 
station operations. For earth stations that are constructed and brought 
into operation within one year of licensing, as currently required, 
such re-coordination will not be necessary.
    Build-out Period. We also acknowledge that it may be difficult to 
complete construction of all licensed earth stations and operate them 
on the first day that the satellite is certified as brought into 
operation, as proposed in the proposed rule. In addition, the next 
generation of high-throughput satellites may deploy large numbers of 
gateway earth stations that are not all needed to operate upon the 
initial deployment of the satellite, given the likely period of ramp-up 
in traffic over the satellite system. To address the practical 
realities of potentially testing all earth stations in a satellite 
system in a single day, and to allow some flexibility during the 
initial period of increase in satellite traffic, we will extend the 
earth station construction requirement to be six months after the 
associated space station is certified as brought into operation.
    Warehousing Concerns and a Performance Bond. We note that 
individually licensed earth stations will operate in frequency bands 
already included in a space station license. The space station license 
requires posting of an escalating $3 million bond for GSO networks or 
an escalating $5 million bond for NGSO systems. The bond is payable if 
the satellite system is not deployed within the required milestones 
included in the license. This existing bond requirement acts as a 
deterrent to satellite operators without a firm intent to deploy their 
licensed systems in the particular frequency bands. Further, each 
individual earth station license application carries a separate 
application fee. With these existing disincentives to warehousing, the 
scant record on a bond alternative, and the potential burdens 
associated with administering and enforcing a bond for many 
individually licensed earth stations that could communicate with a 
number of space stations, we decline to adopt an earth station bond at 
this time.
    Nonetheless, we intend to closely follow this issue in the future 
and to pursue measures, including possible earth stations bonds, based 
on further experience. In particular, we do not expect many cases in 
which a single operator files, under 47 CFR 25.136, for more than one 
earth station license within a given county or PEA, or for an earth 
station that covers the maximum permitted aggregate population within 
the relevant UMFUS licensing area. Such filings may encourage further 
rulemaking on the issue of anti-warehousing measures. While we defer 
the question of addressing warehousing incentives until we develop more 
experience with the implementation of extended earth-station build-out 
periods, we will consider in addressing the need for any such measures 
whether to apply them to previously granted earth station licenses with 
extended build-out periods.

D. Annual Reporting Requirements for Satellite Operators

    In the proposed rule, the Commission proposed to repeal the 
majority of the satellite annual reporting requirements in 47 CFR 
25.170 because the reports are not regularly used by Commission staff. 
The Commission proposed to retain only the requirement for an annual 
confirmation of the accuracy of the contact information on file and to 
move this requirement to 47 CFR 25.171. We adopt the proposal in the 
proposed rule. The majority of the annual reporting requirements in 47 
CFR 25.170 have proven unnecessary for the typical work of Commission 
staff particular to satellite licenses. In contrast, failures in 
internal communication or other issues can cause updates in point of 
contact information not to be reported to the Commission in compliance 
with 47 CFR 25.171. In these cases, including the up-to-date contact 
information has proven important to ensure such information does not 
remain inaccurate indefinitely. We also update the cross-reference in 
47 CFR 25.172(a)(1) to reflect this change.

E. Out-of-Band Emissions

    In the proposed rule, the Commission observed that the default out-
of-band emissions rule in 47 CFR 25.202(f) dates from the 1970s, and 
that its wording has created confusion among some operators. The 
Commission proposed to replace this rule with a requirement to comply 
with an international out-of-band emissions standard, ITU-R SM.1541-6, 
``Unwanted emissions in the out-of-band domain,'' August 2015. However, 
given concerns expressed on the record regarding this proposal and the 
importance of out-of-band-emission

[[Page 11885]]

limits for the protection of adjacent services and the implementation 
of Commission band segmentation decisions, we decline to modify 47 CFR 
25.202(f). We recognize that replacing 47 CFR 25.202(f) with the limits 
contained in the ITU Recommendation would relax some out-of-band 
emission requirements immediately at the band edge. The current record 
has not considered the specific impact of this relaxation on adjacent 
terrestrial services. We are therefore not in a position to conclude 
terrestrial services would be unaffected, or that the relaxation would 
otherwise serve the public interest. However, we may seek in the future 
to develop a full record on this issue and reconsider adoption of an 
internationally standardized, default out-of-band emissions limit for 
satellite services.

F. Dismissal of Applications

    The proposed rule invited comment on whether to modify the 
acceptability standard for applications under 47 CFR part 25 to 
explicitly state that an applicant may correct any errors or omissions 
within 60 days of a Commission request, and that applications will be 
accepted for filing automatically within 30 days of filing, unless the 
Commission determines otherwise. After review of the split record on 
this issue and consideration of long-standing staff practices, we are 
not convinced that an explicit, one-sized-fits-all acceptability 
approach is desirable across the variety of satellite and earth station 
applications presented under 47 CFR part 25. Rather, we believe that 
the current framework has proven flexible to enable Commission staff to 
address errors without undue disruptions to applicants or other 
operators. We therefore decline to modify the acceptability for filing 
rules.

G. Notification of Minor Earth Station Modifications

    In the proposed rule, the Commission proposed to reduce filing 
burdens on some earth station licensees by repealing the requirement to 
notify the Commission of the types of minor changes to authorized earth 
stations listed in 47 CFR 25.118(a)(4)--i.e., those that the Commission 
does not expect to worsen the interference environment for other 
operators.
    After review of the record, we adopt the proposed streamlining 
measure by moving the enumerated types of modifications from 47 CFR 
25.118(a)(4) to 47 CFR 25.118(b), which lists earth station 
modifications that do not require notification and include two 
additional modifications that require Commission notification. Namely, 
decreases in antenna height and any change that increases or decreases 
the earth station's power flux-density (PFD) contour. The PFD contour 
is an essential part of the initial application under 47 CFR 25.136 in 
bands shared with UMFUS and any modification such as to antenna height, 
power, orientation, etc. that changes the PFD contour will trigger the 
notification requirement. We also clarify that the addition of new 
transceiver and antenna combinations to an existing blanket earth 
station license does not require prior Commission notification when 
they meet the requirements currently listed in 47 CFR 25.118(a)(4).
    We do not believe that a change in earth station antenna pattern 
under 47 CFR 25.118(a)(4)(i) will negatively impact terrestrial 
operators because it must not, in accordance with the rule, exceed the 
previously filed EIRP or EIRP density envelope. As such, we do not 
believe these notices are necessary for operators in other services 
because the ``worst case'' interference scenario will not be affected. 
We also do not believe that an earth station operating in a band shared 
with UMFUS at a power level below its maximum authorized power level 
should be required to notify the Commission of its lower operating 
power level. No such requirement currently exists--earth stations may 
be operated at different power levels based on varying requirements and 
conditions, provided they do not exceed their authorized power 
envelopes--and we find no basis to adopt such a new reporting 
requirement.
    However, we do believe that the Commission should require earth 
station operators to provide notice of a decrease in antenna height 
pursuant to this provision. Although in many cases a decrease in earth 
station antenna height would improve, not worsen, the interference 
environment for terrestrial operators as ground clutter would play a 
larger role in suppressing emissions in unwanted directions, that is 
not always the case. For example, a lowered antenna may be more likely 
to radiate higher side lobes into an UMFUS station or may bring the 
antenna closer to some local metallic object, creating induced spurious 
effects on the resultant radiation pattern that create higher 
interference levels in certain directions. And a decrease in antenna 
height may result in decreased PFD contours which provide an UMFUS 
operator the opportunity to serve an area that was previously excluded, 
but now no longer is. Therefore, we will require notification of 
decreases in antenna height.

H. Additional Proposals in Comments

    In addition to the proposals and questions in the proposed rule, 
some additional proposals were made in the comments of this proceeding 
to streamline other aspects of the Commission's satellite licensing 
rules. SES additionally reiterated one issue contained in its Petition 
for Reconsideration of a 2015 satellite streamlining order, which will 
be addressed in that rulemaking. We have reviewed these proposals and 
conclude that, while they are outside the scope of the proposed rule, 
we may revisit some of these proposals in the future.

Final Regulatory Flexibility Analysis

    As required by the Regulatory Flexibility Act of 1980, as amended 
(RFA), an Initial Regulatory Flexibility Analysis (IRFA) was 
incorporated in Further Streamlining Part 25 Rules Governing Satellite 
Services, Notice of Proposed Rulemaking. The Commission sought written 
public comment on the proposals in the proposed rule, including comment 
on the IRFA. No comments were received on the IRFA. This present Final 
Regulatory Flexibility Analysis (FRFA) conforms to the RFA.

A. Need for, and Objectives of, the Order

    The Order creates a new, streamlined license for both space 
stations and earth stations and adopts other streamlining measures for 
the authorization of earth stations. It also removes the annual 
reporting requirements for satellite operators and makes other 
corrections in 47 CFR part 25.

B. Summary of Significant Issues Raised by Public Comments in Response 
to the IRFA

    There were no comments filed that specifically addressed the rules 
and policies proposed in the IRFA.

C. Response to Comments by the Chief Counsel for Advocacy of the Small 
Business Administration

    Pursuant to the Small Business Jobs Act of 2010, which amended the 
RFA, the Commission is required to respond to any comments filed by the 
Chief Counsel for Advocacy of the Small Business Administration (SBA), 
and to provide a detailed statement of any change made to the proposed 
rules as a result of those comments. The Chief Counsel did not file any 
comments in response to the proposed rules in this proceeding.

[[Page 11886]]

D. Description and Estimate of the Number of Small Entities to Which 
Rules Will Apply

    The RFA directs agencies to provide a description of, and, where 
feasible, an estimate of, the number of small entities that may be 
affected by the rules adopted herein. The RFA generally defines the 
term ``small entity'' as having the same meaning as the terms ``small 
business,'' ``small organization,'' and ``small governmental 
jurisdiction.'' In addition, the term ``small business'' has the same 
meaning as the term ``small business concern'' under the Small Business 
Act. A ``small business concern'' is one which: (1) Is independently 
owned and operated; (2) is not dominant in its field of operation; and 
(3) satisfies any additional criteria established by the Small Business 
Administration (SBA). Below, we describe and estimate the number of 
small entities that may be affected by adoption of the final rules.
Satellite Telecommunications
    This category comprises firms ``primarily engaged in providing 
telecommunications services to other establishments in the 
telecommunications and broadcasting industries by forwarding and 
receiving communications signals via a system of satellites or 
reselling satellite telecommunications.'' Satellite telecommunications 
service providers include satellite and earth station operators. The 
category has a small business size standard of $35 million or less in 
average annual receipts, under SBA rules. For this category, U.S. 
Census Bureau data for 2012 show that there were a total of 333 firms 
that operated for the entire year. Of this total, 299 firms had annual 
receipts of less than $25 million. Consequently, we estimate that the 
majority of satellite telecommunications providers are small entities.

E. Description of Projected Reporting, Recordkeeping and Other 
Compliance Requirements for Small Entities

    The Order adopts several rule changes that would affect compliance 
requirements for space station and earth station operators. For 
example, the Order creates a new, optional, streamlined licensing 
procedure for both space stations and earth stations in a satellite 
system. It also eliminates some reporting requirements for space 
station and earth station licensees. In total, the actions in this 
Order are designed to achieve the Commission's mandate to regulate in 
the public interest while imposing the lowest necessary burden on all 
affected parties, including small entities.

F. Steps Taken To Minimize the Significant Economic Impact on Small 
Entities and Significant Alternatives Considered

    The RFA requires an agency to describe any significant alternatives 
that it has considered in developing its approach, which may include 
the following four alternatives (among others): ``(1) the establishment 
of differing compliance or reporting requirements or timetables that 
take into account the resources available to small entities; (2) the 
clarification, consolidation, or simplification of compliance and 
reporting requirements under the rule for such small entities; (3) the 
use of performance rather than design standards; and (4) an exemption 
from coverage of the rule, or any part thereof, for such small 
entities.''
    In this Order, the Commission creates a new, optional, streamlined 
licensing procedure for both space stations and earth stations in a 
satellite system specifically designed to eliminate redundancies and 
reduce regulatory burdens. The Commission also adopts a certification 
option for earth station applicants to eliminate duplicative or 
unnecessary information filed with the Commission. In addition, the 
Commission repeals certain other requirements with the aim of 
streamlining its requirements. Overall, the actions in this document 
will reduce burdens on the affected licensees, including small 
entities.
    Report to Congress: The Commission will send a copy of the Report 
and Order, including this FRFA, in a report to be sent to Congress 
pursuant to the Congressional Review Act. In addition, the Commission 
will send a copy of the Report and Order, including this FRFA, to the 
Chief Counsel for Advocacy of the SBA. A copy of the Report and Order 
and FRFA (or summaries thereof) will also be published in the Federal 
Register.

Paperwork Reduction Act

    This document contains new or modified information collection 
requirements. The Commission, as part of its continuing effort to 
reduce paperwork burdens, invites the general public to comment on the 
information collection requirements contained in this Report and Order 
as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, Public Law 104-13. 
In addition, the Commission notes that pursuant to the Small Business 
Paperwork Relief Act of 2002, Public Law 107-198, see 44 U.S.C. 
3506(c)(4), we previously sought specific comment on how the Commission 
might further reduce the information collection burden for small 
business concerns with fewer than 25 employees.
    In this present document, we have assessed the effects of requiring 
some earth station licensees to re-coordinate with Upper Microwave 
Flexible Use Service licensees under 47 CFR 25.136, and find that it 
may increase coordination costs for some businesses with fewer than 25 
employees.

Congressional Review Act

    The Commission has determined, and the Administrator of the Office 
of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Office of Management and Budget, 
concurs that this rule is ``non-major'' under the Congressional Review 
Act, 5 U.S.C. 804(2). The Commission will send a copy of this Second 
Report and Order to Congress and the Government Accountability Office 
pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 801(a)(1)(A).

Ordering Clauses

    It is ordered, pursuant to sections 4(i), 7(a), 10, 303, 308(b), 
and 316 of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended, 47 U.S.C. 
154(i), 157(a), 160, 303, 308(b), 316, that this Report and Order is 
adopted, the policies, rules, and requirements discussed herein are 
adopted, and part 25 of the Commission's rules is amended as set forth 
below.
    It is further ordered that the rule amendments in this Report and 
Order will become effective 30 days from the date of publication in the 
Federal Register, except for those amendments which contain new or 
modified information collection requirements that require approval by 
the Office of Management and Budget under the Paperwork Reduction Act 
which will become effective after the Commission publishes a document 
in the Federal Register announcing such approval and the relevant 
effective date.
    It is further ordered that the Commission's Consumer and 
Governmental Affairs Bureau, Reference Information Center, shall send a 
copy of this Report and Order, including the Final Regulatory 
Flexibility Analyses, to the Chief Counsel for Advocacy of the Small 
Business Administration.
    It is further ordered that the Commission shall send a copy of this 
Report and Order in a report to be sent to Congress and the Government 
Accountability Office pursuant to the Congressional Review Act, see 5 
U.S.C. 801(a)(1)(A).

[[Page 11887]]

List of Subjects in 47 CFR Part 25

    Administrative practice and procedure, Satellites.

Federal Communications Commission.
Marlene Dortch,
Secretary.

Final Rules

    For the reasons discussed in the preamble, the Federal 
Communications Commission amends 47 CFR part 25 as follows:

PART 25--SATELLITE COMMUNICATIONS

0
1. The authority citation for part 25 continues to read as follows:

    Authority:  47 U.S.C. 154, 301, 302, 303, 307, 309, 310, 319, 
332, 605, and 721, unless otherwise noted.

0
2. Amend Sec.  25.115 by revising paragraph (a)(1) to read as follows:


Sec.  25.115  Applications for earth station authorizations.

    (a)(1)(i) Transmitting earth stations. Commission authorization 
must be obtained for authority to operate a transmitting earth station. 
Applications must be filed electronically on FCC Form 312, Main Form 
and Schedule B, and include the information specified in this section, 
except as set forth in paragraphs (a)(1)(ii) and (a)(2) of this 
section.
    (ii) Certification of compliance with space station authorization. 
An earth station applicant certifying that it will comply with the 
applicable terms and conditions of the authorization of any space 
station with which it communicates need not provide technical 
demonstrations or other information that is duplicative or unnecessary 
due to the certification. This provision does not apply to FSS 
operation in bands below 10 GHz or in bands subject to Sec.  25.136.
* * * * *

0
3. Amend Sec.  25.118 by revising paragraphs (a)(4) and (b) to read as 
follows:


Sec.  25.118  Modifications not requiring prior authorization.

    (a) * * *
    (4) An earth station licensee may additionally:
    (i) Decrease antenna height; or
    (ii) Increase or decrease the earth station's PFD contour, provided 
the modification does not involve a change listed in paragraph (b)(2) 
of this section.
    (b) Earth station modifications, notification not required. 
Notwithstanding paragraph (a) of this section:
    (1) Equipment in an authorized earth station may be replaced 
without prior authorization and without notifying the Commission if the 
new equipment is electrically identical to the existing equipment.
    (2) Licensees may make other changes to their authorized earth 
stations, including the addition of new transceiver/antenna 
combinations, without notifying the Commission, provided the 
modification does not involve:
    (i) An increase in EIRP or EIRP density (either main lobe or off-
axis);
    (ii) Additional operating frequencies;
    (iii) A change in polarization;
    (iv) An increase in antenna height;
    (v) Antenna repointing beyond any coordinated range; or
    (vi) A change from the originally authorized coordinates of more 
than 1 second of latitude or longitude for stations operating in 
frequency bands shared with terrestrial systems or more than 10 seconds 
of latitude or longitude for stations operating in frequency bands not 
shared with terrestrial systems.
* * * * *

0
4. Add Sec.  25.124 to read as follows:


Sec.  25.124  Unified space station and earth station authorization.

    (a) A single authorization may be issued for the operations of a 
GSO space station or NGSO space station(s) and the blanket-licensed 
earth stations that will operate within that satellite system, 
excluding GSO FSS and NGSO FSS satellite systems operating in bands 
below 10 GHz and bands subject to Sec.  25.136. The available frequency 
bands are:
    (1) Non-Voice, Non-Geostationary MSS: 137-138 MHz, 148-150.05 MHz, 
399.9-400.05 MHz, and 400.15-401 MHz;
    (2) 1.5/1.6 GHz MSS: 1525-1559 MHz and 1626.5-1660.5 MHz;
    (3) 1.6/2.4 GHz MSS: 1610-1626.5 MHz and 2483.5-2500 MHz;
    (4) 2 GHz MSS: 2000-2020 MHz and 2180-2200 MHz;
    (5) GSO FSS: 10.7-12.2 GHz, 14-14.5 GHz, 18.3-18.8 GHz, 19.7-20.2 
GHz, 28.35-28.6 GHz, 29.25-30 GHz, 40-42 GHz, and 48.2-50.2 GHz;
    (6) NGSO FSS: 10.7-12.7 GHz, 14-14.5 GHz, 17.8-18.6 GHz, 18.8-19.4 
GHz, 19.6-20.2 GHz, 28.35-29.1 GHz, 29.5-30 GHz, 40-42 GHz, and 48.2-
50.2 GHz; and
    (7) GSO and NGSO MSS: 19.7-20.2 GHz and 29.5-30 GHz.
    (b) An application for a satellite system license described in 
paragraph (a) must contain:
    (1) The information required by Sec.  25.114 or, for a non-U.S.-
licensed space station, Sec.  25.137;
    (2) A certification that earth station operations under the 
satellite system license will comply with part 1, subpart I and part 17 
of this chapter; and
    (3) Any additional information required under this part, including 
under Sec.  25.115, for operation of the blanket-licensed earth 
stations that is not duplicative or unnecessary due to the information 
provided for the space station operation.

0
5. Amend Sec.  25.133 by revising paragraph (a) to read as follows:


Sec.  25.133  Period of construction; certification of commencement of 
operation.

    (a) An earth station, or network of blanket-licensed earth 
stations, must be brought into operation within the longest of the time 
periods below, unless the Commission determines otherwise:
    (1) For an earth station authorized to communicate with a GSO FSS 
space station in the 3600-4200 MHz band (space-to-Earth) operating 
outside of CONUS, or in the 5850-6725 MHz band (Earth-to-space), within 
one year from the date of the license grant;
    (2) For any other earth station or network of earth stations, 
within one year from the date of the license grant or six months after 
the bringing into operation of a GSO space station, or NGSO system 
under Sec.  25.164(b)(1), with which the earth station or earth station 
network was authorized to communicate when it was licensed, as notified 
under Sec.  25.173(b).
* * * * *

0
6. Delayed indefinitely, amend Sec.  25.136 by adding paragraph (h) to 
read as follows:


Sec.  25.136  Earth Stations in the 24.75-25.25 GHz, 27.5-28.35 GHz, 
37.5-40 GHz, 47.2-48.2, GHz and 50.4-51.4 GHz bands.

* * * * *
    (h) Re-coordination. An earth station licensed under this section 
that is brought into operation later than one year after the date of 
the license grant must be re-coordinated with UMFUS stations using the 
applicable processes in Sec.  101.103(d) of this chapter. The earth 
station licensee must complete re-coordination within one year before 
its commencement of operation. The re-coordination should account for 
any demographic or geographic changes as well as changes to the earth 
station equipment or configuration. A re-coordination notice must be 
filed in IBFS before commencement of earth station operations.

[[Page 11888]]

Sec.  25.170  [Removed]

0
7. Remove Sec.  25.170.

0
8. Revise Sec.  25.171 to read as follows:


Sec.  25.171  Space station point of contact reporting requirements.

    (a) Annual report. On June 30 of each year, a space station 
licensee or market access recipient must provide a current listing of 
the names, titles, addresses, email addresses, and telephone numbers of 
the points of contact for resolution of interference problems and for 
emergency response. Contact personnel should include those responsible 
for resolution of short-term, immediate interference problems at the 
system control center, and those responsible for long-term engineering 
and technical design issues.
    (b) Updated information. If a space station licensee or market 
access recipient point of contact information changes, the space 
station licensee or market access recipient must file the updated 
information within 10 days of the change.
    (c) Electronic filing. Filings under paragraphs (a) or (b) of this 
section must be made electronically in the Commission's International 
Bureau Filing System (IBFS) in the ``Other Filings'' tab of the 
station's current authorization file.

0
9. Amend Sec.  25.172 by revising paragraph (a)(1) to read as follows:


Sec.  25.172  Requirements for reporting space station control 
arrangements.

    (a) * * *
    (1) The information required by Sec.  25.171(a).
* * * * *

    Editorial Note:  The Office of the Federal Register received 
this document on December 23, 2020.

[FR Doc. 2020-28907 Filed 2-26-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6712-01-P