HR 651 119th Congress
Spectrum Pipeline Act of 2025
To require the Federal Communications Commission to auction spectrum in the band between 1.3 gigahertz and 13.2 gigahertz, and for other purposes.
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Introduction Congress.gov
Introduced
Introduced in the House.
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Referred to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce.
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Introduced in House
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Introduced in House
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Introduced in House
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| Date and time | Record | Official detail | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| IntroductionIntroduced | Introduced in the House. | Congress.gov | |
| Official actionReferred to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce. | No additional detail supplied.IntroReferral · House floor actions · Code H11100 | Congress.gov | |
| Official actionIntroduced in House | No additional detail supplied.IntroReferral · Library of Congress · Code Intro-H | Congress.gov | |
| Official actionIntroduced in House | No additional detail supplied.IntroReferral · Library of Congress · Code 1000 | Congress.gov | |
| Text versionIntroduced in House | A dated text-version record is available. | Congress.gov |
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Congressional Research Service
CRS summary
Spectrum Pipeline Act of 2025This bill renews the authority of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to auction licenses for the use of radio frequency spectrum, and requires some frequencies currently used by the federal government to be reallocated to permit use by private entities.Specifically, the bill reauthorizes the FCC’s use of competitive bidding (i.e., auctions) to grant licenses for the use of specific frequencies. (The FCC’s auction authority must be renewed by Congress periodically. It expired on March 9, 2023, and has not been renewed.)Further, the bill directs the National Telecommunications and Information Administration to identify frequencies currently designated for use by the federal government that may be reallocated to permit use by private entities either exclusively or on a shared basis. At least half of the spectrum identified for reallocation must be allocated to commercial use (including commercial wireless use), and licenses in this category must be auctioned by the FCC within a specified time frame. A separate portion of the spectrum must be allocated to unlicensed use. (Unlicensed frequencies are commonly used to support Wi-Fi, connected appliances, wearable consumer devices, and other electronics.) The bill also makes certain changes to the process for compensating federal entities that relocate to new frequencies under a spectrum reallocation plan. The bill shortens the time frame for congressional review of payments to these entities, and permits such payments to be used to cover the cost of replacing existing systems and equipment with state-of-the-art upgrades.
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- Introduced in HouseJan 23, 2025