Senate Commerce Committee backs two‑year budget, holds wide‑ranging hearing on spectrum policy and national security

The Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation approved its committee budget for a two‑year period by unanimous consent and then held a hearing on the role of spectrum policy in the U.S. economy and national security. Chairman Ted Cruz opened the hearing by calling spectrum auctions “one of the most successful drivers of American innovation, economic growth, and global technology leadership.”

The hearing brought together four expert witnesses — an economist, two engineers and a national security specialist — to discuss ways Congress and federal agencies can expand commercial access to mid‑band spectrum while protecting Department of Defense (DOD) capabilities. Witnesses described both technical paths (dynamic spectrum sharing and adaptive radios) and policy paths (restoring FCC auction authority and reforming relocation funding) to accelerate private investment and retain U.S. leadership in wireless technologies.

Why it matters: Committee members framed spectrum as both an economic engine for job creation and a strategic resource for national defense. Several senators warned that delay risks ceding technological leadership to the People’s Republic of China and increasing vulnerability to insecure equipment. At the same time witnesses and senators repeatedly emphasized that any reallocation or auctioning of federal bands must account for physics, legacy military systems and the time and cost needed to upgrade or relocate critical national security sensors.

Most significant testimony and details

- Chairman Ted Cruz argued auctions and a clear mid‑band pipeline are needed to spur private investment and retain U.S. technological leadership. He said it has been “two years since…