On September 16, 2025 the FCC issued Public Notice DA 25-853 (RM-12009) seeking comment on a Petition for Rulemaking filed by the Safer Buildings Coalition (SBC). In the petition SBC requests the Commission revise section 90.219 of its rules to update and modify the regulatory framework for deployment of industrial signal boosters, also known as Emergency Responder Communication Enhancement Systems (ERCES), under Part 90 of the Commission’s rules.
Current FCC rules require that “express consent” be obtained from the license holders of any frequencies the signal booster operates on, but the rules don’t provide any guidance for granting or tracking those requests and licensee consent. Improper installation and activation of these systems causes interference to the public safety radio systems they are meant to enhance, and in many cases the public safety radio system manager is unaware of these ERCES and their locations.
In the petition SBC provides information on the problems that are occurring in the deployment of ERCES and the impact to public safety radio systems and the work load of technical staff managing those public safety radio systems. The petition provides recommended changes to existing FCC regulations and additional regulations to address the problems.
In the FCC Notice, the FCC asks; “We seek comment on the SBC’s Petition and its proposed rule changes. In particular, we seek comment on whether parties agree with the SBC that improperly deployed signal boosters cause interference to public safety radio communications and whether the problem is as pervasive as SBC claims. If so, we seek comment on the extent parties believe SBC’s proposed revisions to section 90.219 of the Commission’s rules will address the problem.”
Comments are due October 16, 2025.
Reply comments are due October 31, 2025.
The four-page Public Notice can be found here: https://docs.fcc.gov/public/attachments/DA-25-853A1.pdf or by searching for FCC DA 25-853. The Safer Buildings Coalition 39-page petition can be found here: https://www.fcc.gov/ecfs/document/10722376517888/1.