New Policy Brief: U.S. Needs More Commercial Spectrum for Economic Strength

The use of radio spectrum is increasingly important for America’s economic and national security, argues a policy brief released today by American Compass. The policy brief, authored by Gail Slater and Chris Emper, emphasizes that private sector access to spectrum is critical for the United States to meet the challenges of AI and reindustrialization.

All wireless communications technologies, from cell phones and WiFi connections, to television and radio broadcasts and satellites, operate by sending signals through radio waves on the electromagnetic spectrum. These radio waves are finite—and the competition to use them is increasing. Wireless network traffic has increased tenfold over the last decade and in the years to come rapidly advancing development in AI and robotics are expected to drive even more dramatic traffic increases.

If the United States wants to support innovation and avoid ceding technological leadership to China ahead of the rollout of the sixth generation of wireless networks (6G) in 2030, private businesses need a greater spectrum allowance. While the 2025 One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) included the most important legislative policy advancement for spectrum in years by restoring the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) authority to auction spectrum and requiring the auction of 800 MHz by 2034, the policy brief calls on the government to go further and provide more commercial spectrum, sooner. The policy brief recommends:

• The FCC should continue to move forward with implementation of OBBBA auctions as quickly as possible.
• President Trump should go beyond OBBBA’srequirement of auctioning 800 MHz by 2034 and set a goal to auction 1,000 MHz (1 GHz) by the end of his term in January 2029.
• The FCC should try to protect existing commercial spectrum interests, but the U.S. future spectrum roadmap should focus on offering channels up to 400 MHz wide.
• Federal agencies should build on President Trump’s 6G memorandum to prioritize global leadership on international standards.

Read the policy brief here.