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FCC Proposes to Recalibrate the UMFUS Framework to Expand Satellite Access

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The rapid expansion of the commercial space economy over the last decade has resulted in demand on spectrum far exceeding the Commission’s expectations at the time it devised and adopted its Upper Microwave Flexible Use Spectrum (UMFUS) sharing framework. At the same time, negligible adoption of millimeter wave bands by terrestrial services has upended the assumptions central to the framework and its constraints on earth station deployments in favor of 5G operations. As a result, the UMFUS framework quickly became an impediment to efficient use of millimeter wave spectrum and a barrier to the deployment of next-generation satellite systems.

Recognizing that the 24 GHz, 28 GHz, upper 37 GHz, 39 GHz, 47 GHz, and 50 GHz bands have not become “core terrestrial wireless spectrum” and that satellite operators continue to seek increased access to these same millimeter wave bands, the Commission adopted a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking to review the spectrum sharing rules and policies applicable to UMFUS and Fixed Satellite Service (FSS) in the relevant band segments. Specifically, the NPRM seeks comment on a variety of proposals that could encourage more intensive use of the millimeter wave spectrum and that can scale with the increasing demand for licenses in these bands. Such proposals include:

  1. “Light Licensing” – Replace the current framework with a process consisting of obtaining a nationwide, non-site earth station license, registering sites in a common database alongside terrestrial licensees to verify for interference risks, and then proceed with registration or remediation of interference risk based on results.
  2. Market-Based Approach – Permit UMFUS licensees to voluntarily negotiate with FSS operators to operate in the shared bands without meeting certain interference protection criteria required under the rules—including per county caps and population coverage limits—with such agreements serving as the basis for a waiver of the Commission’s rules at the time the FSS operators applies for earth station authority.
  3. Revisions to Section 25.136 – Adjust the sharing rule itself, including, among other things, whether the rule should be applicable in the absence of an UMFUS licensee and the treatment of collocated earth stations for purposes of the geographical caps.
  4. New Paradigm – Replace the existing regime with an entirely different paradigm for sharing between UMFUS and FSS, including, for example, dynamic spectrum sharing.

The NPRM also acknowledges that the showings required by section 25.136 are time-consuming and the cause of delay in approvals. To that end, the NPRM seeks comment on alternative approaches that can increase the efficiency of application processing while reducing the burdens on applicants to produce these materials. The proposals include certifications, limiting technical showings, developing safe harbors, and adopting de minimis exceptions.

Comments on the NPRM are due on January 2, 2026; reply comments are due February 2, 2026.

For more information about the above NPRM, submitting comments, or UMFUS licensing generally, please contact a member of Pillsbury’s Communications Practice Group.

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