Some of the nation’s largest cellular carriers and their allies are urging the Federal Communications Commission to dramatically raise power levels in the 3.5 GHz band, claiming that a new auction framework could unlock tens of billions for the Treasury. The FCC should reject this proposal outright. 

My new technical analysis shows that the promised gains would come at a devastating cost to the over one thousand operators who depend on this band today. Significant impacts include a 1,000-fold degradation of throughput at American manufacturing facilities, the loss of nearly a third of network capacity at a major international airport, and repeated broadband outages in rural communities with no alternative means to gain internet access.