On the recordOctober 1, 2020
I rise today on behalf of the first responders in our country. Every day, brave women and men on the frontlines of the COVID-19 pandemic rely on T-Band, a spectrum that makes it possible for them to communicate with each other. T-Band is the radio frequency that is set aside for these public safety officials so that they can talk to each other to keep all of us safe, all of us healthy. In 11 metropolitan areas, the T-Band system enables our courageous public safety personnel to work quickly and effectively during life-and-death situations. T-Band allows emergency medical service teams to relay important information about patients' conditions. T-Band permits 9-1-1 dispatchers to send first responders to emergency scenes. Firefighters use T-Band to quickly coordinate strategy. After the Boston bombing, after the marathon bombing, first responders used T-Band to communicate with each other during the ensuing manhunt. This resource is nothing short of a lifesaver. T-Band really stands for ``trusted band.'' It is the resource public safety can rely upon. Unfortunately, the Middle Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act of 2012 required the Federal Communications Commission to begin to auction off the T-Band, the trusted band, by February of 2021, but it would cost between $5 billion and $6 billion for first responders--police and fire--to relocate from the T-Band. That is much more money than an auction of that spectrum would ever generate.…
