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News & Events
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Press Releases
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| For Immediate Release |
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| 800 MHz Transition Administrator, L.L.C |
Contact: Nikki Diamantes
Phone: (703) 747-4386
E-mail: comments@800TA.org |
| Sprint Nextel |
Contact: Tim O'Regan
Phone: (703) 433-4816
E-mail: Timothy.oregan@Sprint.com |
| APCO |
Contact: Robert Gurss
Phone: (202) 833-3800
E-mail: gurssr@apco911.org |
| IAFC |
Contact: Alan Caldwell
Phone: (703) 273-0911
E-mail: acaldwell@iafc.org |
| IACP, MCC, NSA, MCSA |
Contact: Harlin McEwen
Phone: (607) 257-1522
E-mail: chiefhrm@lpubsaf.com |
800 MHz Transition Administrator, Public Safety Leadership
and Sprint Nextel Announce Fast Track Option for Planning Funding
The 800 MHz Transition Administrator, LLC ("TA"), jointly with Public Safety leadership and Sprint Nextel
(NYSE: S), announced today a new option for licensees to obtain planning funding, where necessary, for 800
MHz Reconfiguration - the Planning Funding Agreement (PFA) Fast Track Option.
Under certain circumstances, public safety licensees affected by 800 MHz reconfiguration may obtain planning
funding without the need to negotiate planning costs with Sprint Nextel. To speed up the planning process
and enable licensees to more quickly conclude a reconfiguration agreement, Sprint Nextel has agreed to fast
track any planning funding request that equates to no more than $55 per subscriber unit operated by the
licensee. Once the TA has reviewed the request for conformance to program guidelines, Sprint Nextel will,
without undertaking a detailed review and negotiation of each cost element, enter into a contract for any
approved request that is at or below the $55 threshold. If, for any reason, a licensee requires planning
funding that exceeds the $55 threshold, it may still pursue the current process that provides for up to 60
days of negotiations, followed by mediation, if required.
Details on the PFA Fast Track Option will be available by June 5, 2006 when the TA will publish detailed
guidance on its website, www.800TA.org.
Wanda McCarley, President of the Association of Public-Safety Communications Officials-International (APCO),
praised the new Fast Track Option, noting that "APCO, working with our public safety partners, has been
working hard to address the concerns of public safety licensees regarding the planning funding process,
and we believe that this new approach will help public safety agencies obtain necessary planning funds
faster, in most cases without having to negotiate a funding agreement. I am pleased with the extraordinary
level of cooperation between public safety, Sprint Nextel, and the 800 MHz Transition Administrator to
identify and resolve this critical element in the reconfiguration process. Without question, this highly
dynamic reconfiguration process will face future challenges. These revisions in the planning funding
process are indicative of the progress that can be achieved when all parties in the process are willing
and able to address these challenges in a cooperative spirit."
"The TA is pleased to have facilitated this agreement between Sprint Nextel and Public Safety leadership,"
said Brett Haan of the Transition Administrator. "We knew from speaking with hundreds of licensees and
from monitoring the pace of negotiations that something significant needed to be done. When we approached
Sprint Nextel and Public Safety with our analysis, they were very receptive. We commend both parties for
thinking outside the box and coming together to make this happen. We expect this will significantly
benefit licensees and the overall reconfiguration program."
The TA estimates that more than half of the licensee population requiring planning funding will be able to
use the Fast Track Option. By eliminating weeks or even months of negotiations, licensees will be able to
complete their planning more quickly, so that they will have more time to enter into Frequency
Reconfiguration Agreements and prepare for the actual retuning process. Licensees with more complex needs
will also benefit, as the Fast Track Option will free up Sprint Nextel and TA resources to focus on unique
licensee situations and requirements. Licensees' rights and obligations, including the requirement to
conduct activities at the "least cost", remain the same under the Fast Track Option and are subject to the
TA's true-up process at the end of reconfiguration.
"The TA will continue to look for improvements to the process while balancing the rights of stakeholders,"
Haan said. "For example, smaller licensees with 500 or fewer radios may need only minimal planning
funding, and there ought to be a way for these licensees to quickly get to a reconfiguration cost estimate
and agreement."
All planning funding requests should be submitted to the TA in accordance with the following published
deadlines:
Channels 1-120
Wave 4, Stage 1 July 1, 2006
NPSPAC
Wave 2, Stage 2 August 1, 2006
Wave 3, Stage 2 November 1, 2006
Wave 4, Stage 2 February 1, 2007
To learn more about the RFPF process and to obtain copies of required forms, please visit the TA website
at www.800TA.org.
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