Congress handed the FCC back its auction authority and opened a path to 800MHz of new commercial spectrum — but a bureaucratic snag between the FCC and NTIA threatens to stall the auction of the priority 2.7GHz band beyond 2028, according to a June 26 analysis from the R Street Institute.

The One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) restored the FCC's lapsed auction authority and specifically appropriated $50 million to help the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) analyze the 2690–2900MHz band as a reallocation priority. Capitol Hill's message was unambiguous: bring this spectrum to market quickly. An NTIA oversight hearing on June 30 gives lawmakers a chance to check whether the agencies are on track.

Why does the 2.7GHz band matter?

The 210MHz-wide band sits in a sweet spot for mid-band 5G buildout and future 6G deployment. R Street argues spectrum is both the lifeblood of the information economy and a binding constraint on wireless technology. Without a steady flow of auctionable spectrum, the analysis warns, the United States risks ceding its standard-setting role in next-generation wireless to China, which has made 6G leadership an explicit national priority.

The incumbents in the band are federal: the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and the Department of Commerce. All three have requested Spectrum Relocation Fund (SRF) dollars to fund their exit.

What is the bottleneck?

Before the FCC can auction the band, it must notify NTIA of its intent at least 18 months in advance, giving federal incumbents time to plan their departure. The problem sits in how that notification interacts with SRF rules.

• SRF money earmarked for research and development is unavailable for frequencies already "identified" for auction.
• The FCC has historically bundled all of its 18-month frequency identification notifications to NTIA into one package.
• That bundling triggers the R&D funding cutoff before agencies are ready to absorb the loss.
• NTIA hesitates, incumbents slow their exit, and the auction timeline stalls.

R Street stresses the bundling is agency practice, not a statutory requirement.

Is there a fix without new legislation?

Yes, according to the analysis. The FCC could split the process: notify NTIA of its intent to auction the band now — starting the 18-month clock immediately — while deferring the formal identification of specific frequencies to a later date. That would preserve incumbent access to SRF research funds. Combined with recharacterizing agency funding requests from R&D to transition funds, R Street says the change would provide "a clear and realistic path to a 2028 auction without the need for Congress to reform the underlying statute."

The workaround is administrative, respects congressional intent, and protects federal incumbents' transition needs, the institute argues. It frames the FCC's legacy of centralized spectrum management as the recurring source of such friction points.

Why the June 30 hearing matters

R Street draws a parallel with an earlier episode: a Pentagon veto provision in the National Defense Authorization Act that threatened to paralyze the OBBBA auction process. The lesson there was that political interference only slows deployment and creates openings for geopolitical rivals. The 2.7GHz case is different — and, in the institute's view, more easily solved.

The band presents no technical conflicts, no national security concerns, and no disagreements over its use. The incumbents are not blocking reallocation. NOAA and the FAA are already incorporating spectrum repurposing into their ongoing radar modernization procurement, making the case what R Street calls "a genuine win-win rather than a forced relocation." The alignment of incentives, the analysis argues, makes any delay a deliberate choice rather than the product of outside constraints.

NTIA has acknowledged the mandate is already underway. R Street notes the FCC, NTIA, and the Office of Management and Budget hold the tools to move the auction forward without waiting for Congress. The hearing, it says, is the moment to ask what specific steps are being taken — and, if the answer is none, what that means for the auction timeline.

"The U.S. cannot win the 6G race through perfect planning and deliberation," the analysis concludes. "It can only win by getting spectrum in the hands of innovators faster than its competitors. In the case of 2.7GHz, the clock is already running."