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If you need the complete document, download the WordPerfect version or Adobe Acrobat version, if available. ***************************************************************** Before the Federal Communications Commission Washington, D.C. 20554 In the matter of ) ) Minneapolis Special School District ) Request for Waiver of Section 90.753 ) of the Commission's Rules ) ORDER Adopted: October 15, 1997 Released: October 16, 1997 By the Chief, Wireless Telecommunications Bureau: I. INTRODUCTION 1. This order grants a request filed by the Minneapolis Special School District (MSSD) for waiver of Section 90.753(a) to relocate the base station of its 220 MHz system beyond the maximum distance allowed by the Commission's rules. II. BACKGROUND 2. MSSD acquired a 220-222 MHz frequency band radio license under call sign WPCA411, and began operating the station at a Minnetonka, Minnesota location. The station was intended to serve the 555 school buses that MSSD uses in the daily transportation of 55,000 Minneapolis area students. MSSD conducted field tests and discovered that the Minnetonka licensed location was not adequate to cover the full 64 square miles of the school district. In light of that finding, MSSD sought Special Temporary Authority (STA) from the Commission on January 25, 1996 to move its base station to the First Bank Building in downtown Minneapolis, Minnesota. The approximately 7 mile relocation distance to the First Bank Building exceeds the 8 kilometer (4.9 mile) relocation distance permitted by Section 90.753(a) of the Commission's rules. MSSD was awarded Special Temporary Authority to relocate to the Minneapolis location on January 30, 1996. 3. MSSD filed a formal waiver request to permanently relocate Station WPCA411 to the First Bank Building on March 22, 1996. In accordance with Section 90.753 of the Commission's rules, 220 MHz Phase I non-nationwide licensees (1) whose base stations are located outside a Designated Filing Area (DFA) or (2) who obtained an STA to operate at an alternative location on or before January 26, 1996 and constructed their base station and placed it in operation at that location on or before January 26, 1996, may relocate their base station further than the maximum allowable distance of 8 kilometers. MSSD does not qualify for a relocation of greater than 8 kilometers because it did not receive its STA until January 30, 1996 and the station was originally licensed within a DFA. Nonetheless, MSSD asserts that a waiver is warranted because there are no other licensees on the frequencies covered by license WPCA411 within 100 miles of Minneapolis. III. DISCUSSION 4. Pursuant to Section 90.151(a) of the Commission's rules, a Part 90 provider requesting a rule waiver must meet two criteria. First, the requesting party must show that unique circumstances are involved, and second, that there is no reasonable alternative solution within existing rules. Further, a waiver of the Commission's rules is, in general, appropriate "only if special circumstances warrant a deviation from the general rule and such deviation will serve the public interest." MSSD seeks to relocate a base station approximately 7 miles from its licensed location, exceeding by approximately 2.1 miles the 8 kilometer (4.9 mile) relocation distance permitted by Section 90.753. MSSD asserts that there are no other licensees on the frequencies covered by license WPCA411 within a 100 mile range. MSSD also submits that the two-way radio system that the District is currently using consists of two 45 MHz simplex radio channels and a diverse mixture of aging or obsolete radio equipment that does not adequately cover the District from the two base station sites now being used. Finally, MSSD argues that grant of the waiver is essential because the system is used by 55 school buses serving 55,000 students over a 64 square mile area and that the current lack of adequate radio coverage is dangerous and inefficient. 5. In the 220 MHz Second Report and Order the Commission concluded that those licensees operating base stations at alternative locations pursuant to STAs should be permitted to continue such operation. Similarly, the Commission granted relief to licensees that were in the process of constructing their base station at an STA site by permitting the licensees to seek permanent authorizations at the STA sites, if the request was granted within the specified time frame. 6. We note that, while MSSD's STA application was received by the Commission on January 25, 1996 -- before the January 26, 1996 deadline imposed by Section 90.753(c) for licensees to have been granted an STA in order to be permitted to seek permanent authorization to relocate to their STA site -- the Commission did not grant the STA until January 30, 1996. MSSD missed the opportunity to seek permanent authorization by four days. Nevertheless, we are satisfied that MSSD has met the Part 90 waiver criteria with respect to its request to permanently relocate its base station for license WPCA411 to First Bank Place in Minneapolis. We find, in this matter, that the school system's desire to operate a radio system that best preserves the safety of its students, its stated inability to operate such a system at the initial license site, and the lack of alternative frequencies available to MSSD constitute unique and special circumstances that warrant a waiver of the Commission's rules. Moreover, we feel that this waiver is in the public interest because it facilitates operation of a system that would adequately serve the entire school service area and supports efficient communication among school buses. IV. CONCLUSION 7. We therefore conclude that, to allow MSSD to adequately operate a system that is a critical link in the safety of its students, MSSD should have the benefit of a waiver of the rules. Moreover, we believe that MSSD has satisfied the waiver criteria and that a waiver of our rules serves the public interest, convenience, and necessity. V. ORDERING CLAUSE 8. Accordingly, IT IS ORDERED THAT, pursuant to Section 4(i) of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended, 47 U.S.C.  154(i), and Sections 0.241 and 0.331 of the Commission's rules, 47 C.F.R.  0.241 and 0.331, the Request for Waiver of 47 C.F.R.  90.753 filed by the Minneapolis Special School District is GRANTED. FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION Daniel B. Phythyon Chief, Wireless Telecommunications Bureau