Larry Pressler: “On February 8, 1996, the Federal Communications Commission issued a notice of proposed rulemaking which proposed to…”

“On February 8, 1996, the Federal Communications Commission issued a notice of proposed rulemaking which proposed to fundamentally change the way in which paging systems are licensed. The FCC adopted a freeze on the filing of paging applications, which immediately brought about many harmful effects. I promptly expressed my concerns to the FCC about its actions and asked Chairman Hundt to do something about the freeze in a letter dated March 15, 1996. I am glad to say that on April 23, 1996, the FCC issued an order demonstrating it had listened to my concerns and the concerns of the industry with regard to the paging freeze. The FCC has modified the freeze so that existing paging carriers can apply to expand their systems by putting transmitters within 40 miles of stations they already are operating, so long as these stations were licensed before the freeze. The FCC also has decided against retroactively applying the freeze and will now process all applications which were filed before the February 8 freeze date. These are two very important steps towards mitigating the harmful impact of the freeze, and I wish to congratulate the FCC on its response. However, it has come to my attention there are some significant shortcomings in the mechanics of the new rules. With minor clarifications, the FCC could eliminate these shortcomings.”