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Bill introduced in Congress Could Danger Self-Driving and Smart Car Technology

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Washington D.C. – A Bill introduced in Congress seeks to opening up Wi-Fi space for commercial use, using the Wi-Fi spectrum in the 5850-5925 megahertz band. This band spectrum was set aside for development V2V technology.

The technology called vehicle-to-vehicle commutation (V2V) that auto makers use to develop “Self-Driving and Smart Vehicles. After years in development, the technology aimed at making roads safer and saving lives and accidents every year may now be sidelined to make room for Wi-Fi.

“It’s an opportunity for people to get on to the internet. It’s an advantage for disadvantaged people who don’t have access to the internet to get public Wi-Fi,” Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ) said. He and potential GOP presidential hopeful Marco Rubio introduced the Wi-Fi Innovation Act seeking to open up the radio frequency reserved for V2V.

“We’re making sure, first and foremost, the safety needs of the auto industry will be met, while also giving more opportunities for more innovation, more job creation, more economic expansion and more fairness in terms of accessing the internet,” Booker said.

The bill has bipartisan supporters in Congress and would require the FCC to evaluate whether Wi-Fi and V2V can co-exist.

“We want to get to the point where traffic moves like two schools of fish seamlessly moving together,” Dr. Peter Sweatman said.

He has been working on the technology for five years and is now asking Congress not to pass the bill, fearing it would mark open season on V2V’s bandwidth.

“Our concern is that any other traffic within that spectrum could potentially block one of these important signals,” Sweatman said. “We don’t want to be in a position where some other use of the spectrum for transmitting a movie or something, is going to have to be stopped so that our signal can get through.”

“Spectrum sharing could put the frequencies at risk of dangerous interference,” warned the NTSB. “The opportunity to improve transportation safety must not be delayed by issues associated with interference.”

NHTSA administrator Mark Rosekind said the issue is not about convenience or access to the web.

“This is about saving lives. We already made that decision,” Rosekind said. He doesn’t necessarily oppose spectrum sharing, but said it was the FCC who set aside the bandwidth 15 years ago.

The auto industry itself has invested billions in V2V in the technology developed

 

 


 

Vehicle-to-Vehicle (V2V) Communications for Safety

Research Overview

Vehicle-to-Vehicle Communications for Safety is the dynamic wireless exchange of data between nearby vehicles that offers the opportunity for significant safety improvements.  By exchanging anonymous, vehicle-based data regarding position, speed, and location (at a minimum), V2V communications enables a vehicle to: sense threats and hazards with a 360 degree awareness of the position of other vehicles and the threat or hazard they present; calculate risk; issue driver advisories or warnings; or take pre-emptive actions to avoid and mitigate crashes. At the heart of V2V communications is a basic application known as the Here I Am data message.  This message can be derived using non-vehicle-based technologies such as GPS to identify location and speed of a vehicle, or vehicle-based sensor data wherein the location and speed data is derived from the vehicle’s computer and is combined with other data such as latitude, longitude, or angle to produce a richer, more detailed situational awareness of the position of other vehicles.  Because the Here I Am data message can be derived from non-vehicle-based technologies that are ubiquitous within the marketplace, the ITS Program may leverage an opportunity to accelerate V2V capability and deployment in the near-term and produce safety benefits through reduced crashes sooner than through Original Equipment Manufacturer(OEM) embedded systems only.

The vision for V2V is that eventually, each vehicle on the roadway (inclusive of automobiles, trucks, buses, motor coaches, and motorcycles) will be able to communicate with other vehicles and that this rich set of data and communications will support a new generation of active safety applications and safety systems.  V2V communications will enable active safety systems that can assist drivers in preventing 76 percent of the crashes on the roadway, thereby reducing fatalities and injuries that occur each year.

V2V Communications for Safety is a key component in the USDOT’s Vehicle to Vehicle Communications program, and is complemented by research programs that support connectivity among vehicles and infrastructure (V2I – ) and among vehicles and consumer devices (V2D) to deliver safety and mobility benefits.

Research Questions

The following research questions will be answered by the V2V Communications for Safety Program

  • Are applications effective and are benefits validated?
  • What infrastructure is needed? How much, where, when, and what type?
  • What is the degree of market penetration needed and what is the required timing for effectiveness?
  • What existing technologies can be leveraged to accelerate in-vehicle equipment?
  • What are the special needs and applications for truck and transit vehicles?
  • What is the business case for implementation?

Research Approach

Overview

Since 2002, the USDOT has been conducting research with automotive manufacturers in order to assess the feasibility of developing effective crash avoidance systems that utilize vehicle-to-vehicle communications.  Engineering prototypes have been developed and demonstrated with applications that address the most critical crash scenarios which are:

  • Emergency Brake Light Warning
  • Forward Collision Warning
  • Intersection Movement Assist
  • Blind Spot and Lane Change Warning
  • Do not pass Warning
  • Control Loss Warning

The development of these applications was critical to understanding the functional and performance requirements for the underlying technologies such as positioning and communications.  However, additional work needs to be done to address more complex crash scenarios for head-on collision avoidance, intersection collision avoidance, pedestrian crash warning and extending the capabilities to prevent motorcycle crashes.  It is important to note that these capabilities could be achieved by providing V2V communication capabilities that complement other vehicle-based safety technologies.

This research plan consists of eight tracks that have been identified to represent the major research activities that are required to attain accelerated deployment of V2V based safety systems.  The work program for the V2V Communications for Safety will continue the work started in 2002 to assess the feasibility of developing effective crash avoidance systems that utilize vehicle-to-vehicle communications.  This research program will result in V2V communications capabilities that complement vehicle-based safety technologies that are currently available or under development throughout the automotive industry.

The work program will deliver:

  • Sponsor collaborative research
  • Guidelines and standards in collaboration with stakeholders
  • Voluntary standards and regulations
  • Compliance and longer term safety impact
  • Infrastructure and implementation governance mechanism
  • Supporting data for regulatory decisions
  • Inputs to industry standards for promoting interoperability
  • Human Factors guidelines
  • Governance

A measure of success for the V2V Communications for Safety Program is the ability to answer critical research questions.  The V2V Roadmap has been designed to provide the research, information, and demonstrated capabilities to answer these research questions.

Program Tracks

Track 1 – Crash Scenario Framework
The key objective of this track is to connect pre-crash scenarios to crash avoidance safety applications providing information that will enable the identification of safety application function, performance, and initial effectiveness benchmarks.  This will establish a framework by which the crash scenarios are defined and new crash avoidance capabilities identified and described; ultimately leading to the selection of prototype applications that will be developed under the V2V Communications Program.

Track 2 – Interoperability
The key objective of the interoperability track is to resolve interoperability issues to ensure that safety applications work across all equipped vehicles and devices, regardless of make or model and original equipment or retrofit.  Interoperability is critical to the effectiveness of V2V safety systems.

Track 3 – Benefits Assessment
The key objective of the benefits assessment track is to estimate the safety benefits that may be realized by deployment of various V2V safety applications.  In addition, a methodology for estimating safety benefits for these and future safety applications will be implemented.  Performance measures, objective test procedures, and an adapted version of the Advanced Crash Avoidance Technologies (ACAT) Safety Impact Methodology will be used to determine the safety benefits.  Once estimates of safety benefits are validated, the safety application will be considered for either new regulation or the New Car Assessment Program (NCAP) process.

Track 4 – Application Development
The key objective of Track 4 is to develop the selected safety applications, identified as the result of Track 1 efforts, into safety application prototypes.   Information from the various tracks will provide an initial basis for the design and development of the selected safety application prototypes.

Track 5– Driver Issues
The key objective of this track is to develop a framework that can assess the impact of driver issues on the effectiveness of V2V based safety applications with a goal of developing a framework for implementing driver-vehicle-interfaces (DVIs) in an environment where applications may be periodically updated.  Understanding if drivers have accurate mental models is essential to achieving the desired safety impact.

Track 6 – Vehicle to Vehicle Communications Policy Issues
The key objective of Track 6 is to identify the main V2V policy issues and accomplish coordination with policy issues of the broader connected vehicles program policies.  Work activities will be addressed within the Vehicle-to-Vehicle Communications Policy Roadmap with coordination with the V2V program.

Track 7 – Commercial Vehicle Applications
The key objective of this track is to ensure that unique aspects of commercial vehicles that are critical to the successful deployment of V2V are addressed.  Once estimates of safety benefits are validated, the safety application will be considered for Commercial Vehicle Operations(CVO) regulation decision.

Track 8 – Transit Vehicle Applications
The KEY objective of this track is to ensure that unique aspects of transit vehicles that are critical to the successful deployment of V2V are addressed. To that end, a comprehensive transit vehicle safety analysis must first be conducted that will support the identification of both V2V and V2I transit safety applications. Once the applications have been identified, a determination will be made regarding which applications to move to prototype development and evaluation.


 

 

Vehicle-to-Infrastructure (V2I) Communications for Safety

Research Overview

Vehicle-to-infrastructure communications for safety is the wireless exchange of critical safety and operational data between vehicles and highway infrastructure, intended primarily to avoid or mitigate motor vehicle crashes but also to enabe a wide range of other safety, mobility, and environmental benefits.  V2I communications apply to all vehicle types and all roads, and transform infrastructure equipment1 into “smart infrastructure” through the incorporation of algorithms that use data exchanged between vehicles and infrastructure elements to perform calculations that recognize high-risk situations in advance, resulting in driver alerts and warnings through specific countermeasures.  One particularly important advance is the ability for traffic signal systems to communicate the signal phase and timing (SPAT) information to the vehicle in support of delivering active safety advisories and warnings to drivers.  Early implementation of the SPAT application can enable near-term benefits from V2I communications in the form of reduced crashes, which in turn demonstrate benefits that can help accelerate deployment.

The vision of V2I Communications is that a minimum level of infrastructure will be deployed to provide the maximum level of safety and mobility benefits for highway safety and operational efficiency nationwide.  Importantly, V2I communications have the potential to resolve an additional 12 percent of crash types not addressed under V2V communications.  V2I Communications for Safetyis a key technology in the USDOT’s Connected Vehicles Program, and is complimented by the V2V communications research.  While the primary goal is safety, V2I communications are also significant in improving mobility and environment by reducing delays and congestion caused by crashes, enabling wireless roadside inspections, or helping commercial vehicle drivers identify safe areas for parking.

The objectives of the V2I Communiications for Safety research program are fourfold: (1) building from the research results under the prior Vehicle Infrastructure Integration (VII) program and VII proof-of-concept test, to complete the development and testing of the V2I communications technologies, advanced applications, and standards for national interoperability—in particular, the SPAT capability; (2) to develop a rigorous estimation of safety benefits and develop a regulatory/policy guidance versus market position in support of deployment, (3) to provide tools and information that support infrastructure deployments nationwide, and (4) and to ensure appropriate strategies are implemented for privacy, security, system certification and accessibility, scalability, governance structures, public acceptance, and a sustainable marketplace that can effectively propel deployment.

Because of the great variety of vehicle and infrastructure safety systems now installed and planned for the future, the focus on consistent, widely applicable standards and protocols is critical.  Additionally, the research will concentrate on the key FHWA and FMCSA application areas of interest, including intersection safety, run-off-road prevention, speed management, and commercial vehicle enforcement and operations.

Research Questions

The following research questions will be answered by the V2I Communications for Safety Program

  • What safety applications are effective and have validated benefits?
  • What minimum infrastructure is needed for maximum benefit? (Initial deployment)
  • Can SPAT and mapping information be transmitted over a wireless network via a universal architecture?
  • What degree of market penetration is required for effectiveness?
  • Are there unique applications for specialty vehicles (transit bus, commercial vehicles, light rail, etc)?

Research Approach

V2I Communications for Safety will provide cooperative and communications-based applications designed to assist vehicle operators avoid vehicular crashes.  The technologies under investigation will provide a graduated spectrum of safety interfaces from in-vehicle information and advisories to in-vehicle driver warnings of imminent crash scenarios.  These interfaces will be based on open standards for all applications.  Dedicated Short Range Communications (DSRC) will be used for time critical safety applications.

The V2I communications program is designed to enable the exchange of data over a wireless network which enables each vehicle on-board equipment (OBE), device (e.g. handheld cellular devices, aftermarket portable GPS devices), or roadside equipment (RSE) to perform calculations and issue driver advisories and warnings to avoid or mitigate crashes through specific advanced safety applications.  This plan will pursue activities that will validate, assess, and estimate benefits for high value applications and enable national interoperability for the transmission of safety related information exchange (e.g., signal phase and timing data) between roadside equipment (RSE) and/or nearby vehicles. For the commercial vehicle enforcement applications this plan establishes research and demonstration activities to support enforcement regulations and real-time parking information in a wireless environment.

The six (6) V2I Communications for Safety program tracks represent the research work necessary to enable a deployable connected vehicle system, but it does not represent actual implementation of a deployed solution.

Through collaborative research, participation in standards development, and other research efforts, the ITS Program will engage the appropriate parties in a multi-track program that addresses the breadth of technical and non-technical V2I research needs.

Program Tracks

Track 1 – Application Analysis
The key objective of this track is to determine the high value safety applications that will be initially addressed for V2I deployment.  This track will analyze crash data to identify, verify, and prioritize applications that should be pursued as part of the V2I research.  The following application areas will be the initial focus of the crash analysis:

  • Intersection safety
  • Run-off-road
  • Speed management
  • Commercial/transit vehicle enforcement and operations for safety

Track 2 – Prototype Applications
The key objective of Track 2 is to develop and validate prototypes of high value cooperative safety applications that will be field operationally tested in Track 4.  Requirements from each application related to positioning, mapping, security, and communications will be used as input to Track 3 – Infrastructure Prototyping Efforts.  Prototyped safety applications will undergo integration and testing as part of Track 3.

Track 3 – Infrastructure Communications/Interoperability
The key objective of this track is to provide the critical technological underpinnings that allow safety applications to work at locations throughout the United States of America.  Interoperability is critical to the deployment of V2I safety systems and will facilitate national availability and consistency across all connected vehicle applications.

Track 4 –Benefits Assessment
The key objective of this track is to quantify safety benefits that may be realized by deployment of V2I applications.  The results of testing will be used to support deployment decisions, policies, and rulemaking.

Track 5 – Deployment Planning
The key objectives of this track are to:

  • Identify infrastructure needed to support initial deployment
  • Define application effectiveness vs. market penetration for initial set of applications
  • Conduct study and assessment on leveraging aftermarket and retrofit opportunities to provide benefits more rapidly.
  • Provide tools and guidelines for practitioners to deploy and maintain V2I systems.

Track 6 – Policy
The key objective of this track is to develop policy requirements that may be unique to V2I Communications for Safety applications.  The connected vehicle policy roadmap will identify the overall policy and governance issues and the V2I team will give input to the policy team as issues are identified.  No funded activities are planned at this time for the V2I program that concern policy related issues

1. Includes highway equipment, systems, and structures (other than vehicles) such as roadside signals (stoplights, warnings, variable message signs, etc.), traffic management centers, weather information systems, or signal phase and timing systems, among others.

 

 

 

H.R.821 – Wi-Fi Innovation Act

  • Official Title as Introduced: To promote unlicensed spectrum use in the 5 GHz band, to maximize the use of the band for shared purposes in order to bolster innovation and economic development, and for other purposes. Introduced in House (02/10/2015)

Wi-Fi Innovation Act – Summary: H.R.821 — 114th Congress (2015-2016)

Requires the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to provide additional unlicensed spectrum in the 5850-5925 megahertz band under technical rules suitable for the widespread commercial development of unlicensed operations.

Provides for such technical rules to permit outdoor unlicensed operations without requiring devices to dynamically detect signals from other systems.

Directs the FCC’s Office of Engineering and Technology to seek public comments on proposals for interference-mitigation techniques and potential rechannelization that would accommodate both incumbent licensees and widespread commercial unlicensed operations in such band.

Sets forth a process for the FCC to test mitigation measures and methods of sharing spectrum with unlicensed devices within such band in a manner that would not cause harmful interference to incumbent licensees.

Directs the FCC, if it determines that existing licensees would not be harmed by interference, to modify regulations to adopt technical rules for widespread commercial deployment of unlicensed operations for such band. Prohibits modification of such regulations if the FCC determines that mitigation, rechannelization, or sharing would not prevent harmful interference. Requires the FCC to notify Congress, the Department of Transportation, and the National Telecommunications and Information Administration of a harmful interference determination.

Requires the FCC to modify regulations relating to Intelligent Transportation Systems radio service and dedicated short-range communications service on-board units if such modification would maximize utility of such band while protecting existing licensees.

Directs the FCC to make recommendations to Congress regarding the availability of broadband Internet access using unlicensed spectrum and wireless networks in low income neighborhoods.

 


 

[Congressional Bills 114th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Printing Office]
[H.R. 821 Introduced in House (IH)]

114th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 821

 To promote unlicensed spectrum use in the 5 GHz band, to maximize the 
use of the band for shared purposes in order to bolster innovation and 
             economic development, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           February 10, 2015

   Mr. Latta (for himself, Mr. Issa, Ms. Eshoo, Ms. Matsui, and Ms. 
   DelBene) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                    Committee on Energy and Commerce

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To promote unlicensed spectrum use in the 5 GHz band, to maximize the 
use of the band for shared purposes in order to bolster innovation and 
             economic development, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Wi-Fi Innovation Act''.

SEC. 2. PROMOTING UNLICENSED SPECTRUM.

    (a) Definitions.--In this section:
            (1) Commission.--The term ``Commission'' means the Federal 
        Communications Commission.
            (2) Dedicated short-range communications services.--The 
        term ``Dedicated Short-Range Communications Services'' has the 
        meaning given the term in section 90.7 of title 47, Code of 
        Federal Regulations.
            (3) Dynamic frequency selection.--The term ``Dynamic 
        Frequency Selection'' has the meaning given the term in section 
        15.403 of title 47, Code of Federal Regulations.
            (4) 5850-5925 mhz band.--The term ``5850-5925 MHz band'' 
        has the meaning given the term in section 6406(c) of the Middle 
        Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act of 2012 (47 U.S.C. 
        1453(c)).
            (5) NTIA.--The term ``NTIA'' means the National 
        Telecommunications and Information Administration.
            (6) Technical rules suitable for the widespread commercial 
        development of unlicensed operations.--The term ``technical 
        rules suitable for the widespread commercial development of 
        unlicensed operations'' means technical rules that, to the 
        maximum extent feasible--
                    (A) permit outdoor unlicensed operations;
                    (B) permit unlicensed operations at a maximum 
                conducted transmitter output power limit of not less 
                than 1 watt; and
                    (C) do not require unlicensed devices to employ 
                Dynamic Frequency Selection.
    (b) Modification of Regulations To Promote Unlicensed Use in the 5 
GHz Band.--
            (1) In general.--
                    (A) Provision of additional unlicensed spectrum.--
                The Commission shall modify title 47, Code of Federal 
                Regulations, to provide additional unlicensed spectrum 
                in the 5850-5925 MHz band under technical rules 
                suitable for the widespread commercial development of 
                unlicensed operations in the band, as specified under 
                paragraph (2).
                    (B) NTIA cooperation.--The NTIA shall facilitate 
                the modification described in subparagraph (A) by 
                cooperating with the Commission to identify the 
                spectrum management actions necessary to accommodate 
                the regulatory changes specified under paragraph (2).
            (2) Required actions and modifications.--
                    (A) In general.--
                            (i) Office of engineering and technology 
                        public notice.--Not later than 3 months after 
                        the date of enactment of this Act, the Office 
                        of Engineering and Technology of the Commission 
                        shall issue a public notice seeking comment on 
                        proposals for--
                                    (I) interference-mitigation 
                                techniques and technologies, and 
                                potential rechannelization, that would 
                                accommodate both incumbent licensees, 
                                including Dedicated Short Range 
                                Communications Services licensees, and 
                                widespread commercial unlicensed 
                                operations in the 5850-5925 MHz band; 
                                and
                                    (II) deployment timelines for the 
                                technologies described in subclause 
                                (I).
                            (ii) NTIA response.--The NTIA, in response 
                        to the public notice issued under clause (i), 
                        shall publicly submit to the Office of 
                        Engineering and Technology a description of any 
                        current and anticipated further Federal uses of 
                        the 5850-5925 MHz band.
                    (B) Test plan.--
                            (i) In general.--Not later than 6 months 
                        after the date of enactment of this Act, the 
                        Commission shall, in consultation with the 
                        Department of Transportation and the NTIA, 
                        develop and publish a test plan, including a 
                        timeline, for the use of unlicensed devices in 
                        the 5850-5925 MHz band.
                            (ii) Requirement.--The test plan developed 
                        and published under clause (i) shall be 
                        designed to allow the Commission to evaluate 
                        technologies for allowing unlicensed devices to 
                        utilize the 5850-5925 MHz band without causing 
                        harmful interference to incumbent licensees, 
                        including Dedicated Short Range Communications 
                        Services licensees.
                            (iii) Testing multiple methods.--The 
                        Commission may choose to test multiple methods 
                        of sharing the 5850-5925 MHz band.
                            (iv) Considerations.--In developing the 
                        test plan under clause (i), the Commission 
                        shall consider--
                                    (I) the comments filed in response 
                                to the public notice issued under 
                                subparagraph (A)(i);
                                    (II) the comments filed in response 
                                to ET Docket No. 13-49;
                                    (III) the functions currently 
                                authorized under exclusive allocation 
                                that could be performed by unlicensed 
                                or shared spectrum;
                                    (IV) whether a system of priority 
                                access could substitute for exclusive 
                                licensing and, if so, whether the 
                                system of priority access should be 
                                confined to--
                                            (aa) particular portions of 
                                        the 5850-5925 MHz band; and
                                            (bb) functions critical for 
                                        dedicated short-range 
                                        communications crash avoidance;
                                    (V) whether non-exclusive licensing 
                                or other forms of shared spectrum 
                                access could substitute for exclusive 
                                licensing;
                                    (VI) whether the Commission could 
                                promulgate rules to migrate existing 
                                licensees to an alternative band;
                                    (VII) whether, to protect critical 
                                public safety communications, the 
                                Commission could allow sharing in only 
                                a portion of the 5850-5925 MHz 
                                spectrum; and
                                    (VIII) whether shared use or a 
                                system of priority access--
                                            (aa) causes harmful 
                                        interference to incumbent 
                                        licensees; or
                                            (bb) compromises safety-of-
                                        life uses by incumbent 
                                        licensees that are necessary 
                                        for advancing motor vehicle 
                                        safety.
                    (C) Testing; results.--Not later than 15 months 
                after the date of enactment of this Act, the 
                Commission, in consultation with the Department of 
                Transportation and the NTIA, shall--
                            (i) conduct testing in accordance with the 
                        test plan developed under subparagraph (B);
                            (ii) publish a summary of the results of 
                        the testing to the docket relating to the 5850-
                        5925 MHz band; and
                            (iii) reference the results of the testing 
                        and the comments filed under subparagraph (A) 
                        in determining unlicensed device use of the 
                        5850-5925 MHz band.
                    (D) Regulations.--
                            (i) In general.--Not later than 24 months 
                        after the date of enactment of this Act--
                                    (I) if the Commission determines 
                                that a mitigation technology, 
                                rechannelization, or other approach 
                                would allow unlicensed operations in 
                                the 5850-5925 MHz band that will not 
                                cause harmful interference to existing 
                                licensees of that band, the Commission 
                                shall modify part 15 of title 47, Code 
                                of Federal Regulations, to adopt 
                                technical rules suitable for the 
                                widespread commercial deployment of 
                                unlicensed operations for the 5850-5925 
                                MHz band; or
                                    (II) if the Commission determines 
                                that no mitigation technology, 
                                rechannelization, or other sharing 
                                approach would prevent unlicensed 
                                operations in the 5850-5925 MHz band 
                                from causing harmful interference to 
                                existing licensees of that band, the 
                                Commission--
                                            (aa) shall provide 
                                        notification of the 
                                        determination to--

                                                    (AA) Congress;

                                                    (BB) the Department 
                                                of Transportation; and

                                                    (CC) the NTIA; and

                                            (bb) may not modify part 15 
                                        of title 47, Code of Federal 
                                        Regulations, to adopt technical 
                                        rules suitable for the 
                                        widespread commercial 
                                        deployment of unlicensed 
                                        operations for the 5850-5925 
                                        MHz band until the Commission 
                                        can ensure that such operations 
                                        will not cause harmful 
                                        interference to existing 
                                        licensees of that band.
                            (ii) Intelligent transportation systems.--
                        The Commission shall modify subpart M of part 
                        90 of title 47, Code of Federal Regulations 
                        (relating to the Intelligent Transportation 
                        Systems radio service), and subpart L of part 
                        95 of title 47, Code of Federal Regulations 
                        (relating to dedicated short-range 
                        communications service on-board units), if the 
                        Commission determines that such a modification 
                        would maximize the utility of the 5850-5925 MHz 
                        band while protecting existing licensees from 
                        harmful interference.

SEC. 3. ASSESSING UNLICENSED SPECTRUM AND WI-FI USE IN LOW-INCOME 
              NEIGHBORHOODS.

    (a) Study.--
            (1) In general.--The Federal Communications Commission (in 
        this section referred to as the ``Commission'') shall conduct a 
        study to evaluate the availability of broadband Internet access 
        using unlicensed spectrum and wireless networks in low-income 
        neighborhoods.
            (2) Requirements.--In conducting the study under paragraph 
        (1), the Commission shall consider and evaluate--
                    (A) any barriers preventing or limiting the 
                deployment and use of wireless networks in low-income 
                neighborhoods;
                    (B) how to overcome the barriers described in 
                subparagraph (A) through incentives, policies, or 
                requirements that would increase the availability of 
                unlicensed spectrum and related technologies in low-
                income neighborhoods to increase broadband adoption by 
                elementary and secondary school-age children in schools 
                and at home in these communities;
                    (C) proposals that would encourage the home 
                broadband adoption by not less than 50 percent of 
                households with elementary and secondary school-age 
                children that are in low-income neighborhoods; and
                    (D) the availability of wireless Internet hot spots 
                and access to unlicensed spectrum for children 
                described in subparagraph (B).
    (b) Report.--Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of 
this Act, the Commission shall submit to the Committee on Commerce, 
Science, and Transportation of the Senate and the Committee on Energy 
and Commerce of the House of Representatives a report that--
            (1) summarizes the findings of the study conducted under 
        subsection (a); and
            (2) makes recommendations with respect to the potential 
        incentives, policies, and requirements described in subsection 
        (a)(2)(B).
                                 <all>

Link: Wi-Fi Innovation Act – Summary: H.R.821

Related Bill: S.424 – Wi-Fi Innovation Act

 

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