Today, the House passed Congressman Mike Turner’s language in the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), which requires the Secretary of Defense to notify Congress if he determines there is widespread interference with the military’s use of the Global Positioning System (GPS) caused by a commercial communications service. The language states that the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) shall not provide final authorization for LightSquared operations until Defense Department concerns about GPS interference have been resolved. Turner, the House Armed Services Subcommittee Chairman on Strategic Forces, has legislative jurisdiction over military and certain intelligence community space and satellite systems. Passage by the full House today, will be followed by the Senate. The White House has dropped its veto threat to the bill over other matters, which all but ensures its signature by the President – becoming law.
“Our military is heavily reliant on GPS capability to do its job. It is unacceptable for our armed forces to be put at greater risk or made less effective as a result of LightSquared’s operations. Congress and the Defense Department must have assurances from the FCC and this Administration that it will fully resolve the harmful interference issue prior to granting LightSquared final authorization to provide service. Our troops are depending on our government, and the FCC, to do the right thing,” said Turner.
In January 2011, the FCC granted a conditional waiver to a single commercial communications company, called LightSquared, to build tens of thousands of ground stations that may cause widespread interference to neighboring GPS signals. The Commander of Air Force Space Command, General William Shelton, stated at a hearing held by Turner’s Subcommittee in September 2011 that, “tests show LightSquared signal causes significant interference to military GPS.”
While under consideration by the full House, Turner strengthened his language in the NDAA, which requires the Secretary of Defense to notify Congress if he determines there is widespread interference with the military’s use of the Global Positioning System (GPS) caused by a commercial communications service. The revised language states that the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) shall not provide final authorization for LightSquared operations until Defense Department concerns about GPS interference have been resolved. While the bill was in conference, the committee retained Turner’s language and added additional measures from the Senate bill to ensure that the U.S. military is protected.