Where Are We? Examining Positioning, Navigation and Timing Capabilities in the United States

SILVER SPRING, Md.—The Security Industry Association (SIA) welcomes today’s hearing on strengthening America’s positioning, navigation and timing capabilities. Resilient backup systems to GPS are essential for national security, critical infrastructure and public safety. 

SIA CEO Don Erickson issued the following statement:

“The Lower 900 MHz band supports a broad ecosystem of public safety and security devices—alarm systems, access control, smoke detectors and more—that millions of Americans rely on every day. 

Technical studies demonstrate that NextNav’s proposed high-power operations—roughly 1,600 times more powerful than essential life-safety and security devices currently operating in the band—would create unacceptable interference risks.

We encourage the subcommittee to focus on credible and viable solutions that can deliver real critical infrastructure resiliency without compromising existing systems. We look forward to the discussion of those options at today’s hearing. And we reiterate our opposition to FCC approval of NextNav’s proposed reconfiguration of the Lower 900 MHz Band.”

SIA’s letter to House Committee on Energy & Commerce leadership can be found here.