{"id":31668,"date":"2020-05-22T21:47:16","date_gmt":"2020-05-22T21:47:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/uncategorized\/2020\/05\/22\/government-requests-hold-reversal-on-the-ligado-fcc-decision\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T18:16:38","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T18:16:38","slug":"government-requests-hold-reversal-on-the-ligado-fcc-decision","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/congress\/2020\/05\/22\/government-requests-hold-reversal-on-the-ligado-fcc-decision\/","title":{"rendered":"Government requests hold and reversal on the FCC\u2019s Ligado decision"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The National Telecommunications and Information Administration has requested the Federal Communications Commission officially reconsider its vote in favor of Ligado Networks \u2014 while also filling a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ntia.doc.gov\/files\/ntia\/publications\/ntia_petition_for_stay_in_ligado_proceedings.pdf\" target=_blank>separate request<\/a> for the commission to put a stay on the company\u2019s plan, which <a href=\"https:\/\/www.c4isrnet.com\/battlefield-tech\/2020\/05\/22\/hasc-leadership-outline-concerns-over-ligado-in-new-letter\/\" target=_blank>critics have said will damage<\/a> the Global Positioning System.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The request to reconsider the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.c4isrnet.com\/breaking-news\/2020\/04\/17\/fcc-has-votes-to-approve-spectrum-plan-pentagon-rejected\/\" target=\"_blank\">FCC\u2019s April 20 vote<\/a>, when it voted 5-0 in support of Ligado\u2019s request to use the L-band spectrum, was made on behalf of the Department of Defense. Department officials indicated they would <a href=\"https:\/\/www.c4isrnet.com\/battlefield-tech\/2020\/05\/06\/the-pentagon-had-made-its-case-against-ligado-what-comes-next-isnt-clear\/\" target=\"_blank\">use the formal mechanism<\/a> in hopes the FCC commissioners would reconsider their support for Ligado.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The NTIA <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ntia.gov\/press-release\/2020\/ntia-files-petition-reconsideration-fcc-grant-ligado-license-modification\" target=_blank>requests <\/a>that the FCC hit pause on Ligado\u2019s approval until the commission can \u201cmeaningfully and promptly consider the appropriate metrics and mitigation procedures \u2014 and their realistic application to Ligado\u2019s actual terrestrial network \u2014 before coordination and deployment efforts under the current conditions commence.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\t<aside class=\"smg-interstitial-link wp-block-smg-interstitial-link\">\n\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/battlefield-tech\/2020\/05\/13\/support-growing-for-review-of-ligado-interference-information\/\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__inner\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"200\" src=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Cover_2.jpg_e2d433.jpg?w=300\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__image wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" \/>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__content\">\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"smg-interstitial-link__kicker\">Related<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"smg-interstitial-link__title\">Support growing for review of Ligado interference information<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"smg-interstitial-link__excerpt\">Several groups want the National Academy of Sciences to review testing data at the heart of the question on whether Ligado&#039;s planned use for spectrum will interfere with GPS.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t<\/aside>\n\t\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cMaintaining the status quo would be appropriate when a serious legal question is presented, if little harm will befall others if the stay is granted and denial of the stay would inflict serious harm,\u201d the filling read.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The NTIA said it is filling the request \u201con behalf of the executive branch.\u201d The FCC is directly responsible to Congress, not the executive branch, but the branch itself has not been united in its opposition: both Attorney General William Barr and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo have <a href=\"https:\/\/www.c4isrnet.com\/breaking-news\/2020\/04\/10\/fcc-to-approve-spectrum-plan-that-pentagon-claims-will-harm-gps\/\" target=\"_blank\">been supportive of the FCC\u2019s move<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Because the FCC is outside the executive branch, it has independence from some of the legal constraints that apply to government agencies; in theory, that could also open the agency up to a lawsuit from the Pentagon, although such move would be extremely rare.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThe department remains opposed to the Ligado proposal and has made no secret of its intent to see the FCC\u2019s recent approval of it reversed. Today\u2019s NTIA filing on behalf of the DOD and other executive branch agencies is the first step in the process of seeking that reversal,\u201d Pentagon spokesman Lt. Col. Robert Carver said in a statement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThe Ligado proposal to repurpose spectrum adjacent to that used by the Global Positioning System for use in a terrestrial 5G network will do irreparable harm to GPS. Such a network in this spectrum space will adversely impact both military and civilian use of this critical service,\u201d Carver added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Countered Ligado spokeswoman Ashley Durmer: \u201cThis rehash of arguments put before the FCC over two years ago contains no new information or technical data to support its request that the FCC reconsider its recent unanimous, bipartisan decision.&#8221;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThe FCC carefully analyzed and dismantled that argument in its 74-page Order, and we are confident that it will affirm its decision upon review. Maybe this is why Congress has raised so many concerns about what is happening at the NTIA and questioned its ability to play a positive role in critical spectrum management policy decisions,\u201d Durmer added. \u201cWe remain confident that, after review, the FCC will stand firm with its decision.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The stay request comes with four points to support it. The first, NTIA stated, is that there would be \u201csubstantial, irreparable harm\u201d if the Ligado plan goes through.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Second, it is in the public interest if the FCC evaluates the technical issues \u201cunder more scientific rigor before applying it to a large number of GPS devices relied upon for national security and public safety.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Third, the stay would not harm Ligado, as the NTIA cites public reports that the company does not expect to commence service within the next 18 months.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And finally, the stay request argued, the FCC is likely to reverse the decision anyway when it takes a better look at the case details.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That last point seems arguable at best, given both the unanimous vote in favor of Ligado and the tensions between the FCC and supporters of the DoD, such as Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman Jim Inhofe, R-Okla., who has accused the FCC of operating in secretary to slip the Ligado vote past opponents Through a spokesman, the FCC has dismissed those claims as \u201cbaseless fearmongering.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Under the FCC guidelines, a re-vote is not required; the FCC can simply decide not to reconsider the Ligado matter. \u201cWe appreciate the support that our Ligado Order has received from high-ranking Executive Branch officials like Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Attorney General William Barr,&#8221; an FCC spokesman said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In a statement, Inhofe said the NTIA move &#8220;underscores how imperative it is that we find a whole-of-government approach to electromagnetic spectrum sharing that involves both these agencies and other key stakeholders. We\u2019ve got to balance both national security requirements and commercial industry needs \u2014 that\u2019s the only way we can compete against China successfully.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThe FCC should reconsider or rescind its Ligado Networks Order, given the likely harmful impacts it will have on GPS users nationwide. The risks are so great that the NTIA actually asked the FCC to stay its Order while the FCC considers the NTIA\u2019s request. Will the FCC listen to the experts? I hope so \u2014 it\u2019s well past time they do.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>There&#8217;s now a formal petition for the FCC to overturn its decision to let Ligado use the L-band spectrum.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":69593,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-noindex":"","_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-nofollow":"","_yoast_wpseo_canonical":"","_acf":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_category":8,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","_smg_distribution_targets":[]},"categories":[8,160,36,19],"tags":[],"coauthors":[3378],"class_list":["post-31668","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-congress","category-daily-news-roundup","category-newsletters","category-pentagon"],"acf":{"subheadline":"","legacy_arc_id":"AMQVSPNVIRH2LNYDYM4T2FP4OY","arc_canonical_url":"\/battlefield-tech\/2020\/05\/22\/government-requests-hold-reversal-on-the-ligado-fcc-decision\/","remove_feature_photo":false,"is_sponsored":false,"subtype":"","redirect_url":"","disable_inline_ads":false,"native_logo_pretext":"Presented By:"},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v26.0 (Yoast SEO v28.1) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Government requests hold and reversal on the FCC\u2019s Ligado decision - Defense News<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"There&#039;s now a formal petition for the FCC to overturn its decision to let Ligado use the L-band spectrum.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"noindex, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Government requests hold and reversal on the FCC\u2019s Ligado decision\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"There&#039;s now a formal petition for the FCC to overturn its decision to let Ligado use the L-band spectrum.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/congress\/2020\/05\/22\/government-requests-hold-reversal-on-the-ligado-fcc-decision\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Defense News\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2020-05-22T21:47:16+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-08-08T18:16:38+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Aaron Mehta\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Aaron Mehta\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\n\t    \"@context\": \"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\n\t    \"@graph\": [\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"Article\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/congress\\\/2020\\\/05\\\/22\\\/government-requests-hold-reversal-on-the-ligado-fcc-decision\\\/#article\",\n\t            \"isPartOf\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/congress\\\/2020\\\/05\\\/22\\\/government-requests-hold-reversal-on-the-ligado-fcc-decision\\\/\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"author\": {\n\t                \"name\": \"migration\",\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/cc76c831bb37a926738c8391fca7a3b1\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"headline\": \"Government requests hold and reversal on the FCC\u2019s Ligado decision\",\n\t            \"datePublished\": \"2020-05-22T21:47:16+00:00\",\n\t            \"dateModified\": \"2026-08-08T18:16:38+00:00\",\n\t            \"mainEntityOfPage\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/congress\\\/2020\\\/05\\\/22\\\/government-requests-hold-reversal-on-the-ligado-fcc-decision\\\/\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"wordCount\": 863,\n\t            \"commentCount\": 0,\n\t            \"publisher\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/#organization\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"image\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/congress\\\/2020\\\/05\\\/22\\\/government-requests-hold-reversal-on-the-ligado-fcc-decision\\\/#primaryimage\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"thumbnailUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/GPS-example.png.png\",\n\t            \"articleSection\": [\n\t                \"Congress\",\n\t                \"Daily News Roundup\",\n\t                \"Newsletters\",\n\t                \"Pentagon\"\n\t            ],\n\t            \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t            \"potentialAction\": [\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"CommentAction\",\n\t                    \"name\": \"Comment\",\n\t                    \"target\": [\n\t                        \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/congress\\\/2020\\\/05\\\/22\\\/government-requests-hold-reversal-on-the-ligado-fcc-decision\\\/#respond\"\n\t                    ]\n\t                }\n\t            ]\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"WebPage\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/congress\\\/2020\\\/05\\\/22\\\/government-requests-hold-reversal-on-the-ligado-fcc-decision\\\/\",\n\t            \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/congress\\\/2020\\\/05\\\/22\\\/government-requests-hold-reversal-on-the-ligado-fcc-decision\\\/\",\n\t            \"name\": \"Government requests hold and reversal on the FCC\u2019s Ligado decision - Defense News\",\n\t            \"isPartOf\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/#website\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"primaryImageOfPage\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/congress\\\/2020\\\/05\\\/22\\\/government-requests-hold-reversal-on-the-ligado-fcc-decision\\\/#primaryimage\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"image\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/congress\\\/2020\\\/05\\\/22\\\/government-requests-hold-reversal-on-the-ligado-fcc-decision\\\/#primaryimage\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"thumbnailUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/GPS-example.png.png\",\n\t            \"datePublished\": \"2020-05-22T21:47:16+00:00\",\n\t            \"dateModified\": \"2026-08-08T18:16:38+00:00\",\n\t            \"description\": \"There's now a formal petition for the FCC to overturn its decision to let Ligado use the L-band spectrum.\",\n\t            \"breadcrumb\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/congress\\\/2020\\\/05\\\/22\\\/government-requests-hold-reversal-on-the-ligado-fcc-decision\\\/#breadcrumb\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t            \"potentialAction\": [\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"ReadAction\",\n\t                    \"target\": [\n\t                        \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/congress\\\/2020\\\/05\\\/22\\\/government-requests-hold-reversal-on-the-ligado-fcc-decision\\\/\"\n\t                    ]\n\t                }\n\t            ]\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"ImageObject\",\n\t            \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/congress\\\/2020\\\/05\\\/22\\\/government-requests-hold-reversal-on-the-ligado-fcc-decision\\\/#primaryimage\",\n\t            \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/GPS-example.png.png\",\n\t            \"contentUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/GPS-example.png.png\"\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"BreadcrumbList\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/congress\\\/2020\\\/05\\\/22\\\/government-requests-hold-reversal-on-the-ligado-fcc-decision\\\/#breadcrumb\",\n\t            \"itemListElement\": [\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"ListItem\",\n\t                    \"position\": 1,\n\t                    \"name\": \"Home\",\n\t                    \"item\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/\",\n\t                    \"ad_zone\": \"home\"\n\t                },\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"ListItem\",\n\t                    \"position\": 2,\n\t                    \"name\": \"Congress\",\n\t                    \"item\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/congress\\\/\",\n\t                    \"ad_zone\": \"congress\"\n\t                },\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"ListItem\",\n\t                    \"position\": 3,\n\t                    \"name\": \"Government requests hold and reversal on the FCC\u2019s Ligado decision\"\n\t                }\n\t            ]\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"WebSite\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/#website\",\n\t            \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/\",\n\t            \"name\": \"Defense News\",\n\t            \"description\": \"Covering the politics, business and technology of defense | Defense News\",\n\t            \"publisher\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/#organization\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"potentialAction\": [\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"SearchAction\",\n\t                    \"target\": {\n\t                        \"@type\": \"EntryPoint\",\n\t                        \"urlTemplate\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"\n\t                    },\n\t                    \"query-input\": {\n\t                        \"@type\": \"PropertyValueSpecification\",\n\t                        \"valueRequired\": true,\n\t                        \"valueName\": \"search_term_string\"\n\t                    }\n\t                }\n\t            ],\n\t            \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\"\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"Organization\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/#organization\",\n\t            \"name\": \"Defense News\",\n\t            \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/\",\n\t            \"logo\": {\n\t                \"@type\": \"ImageObject\",\n\t                \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\n\t                \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/defensenews-logo-white.png\",\n\t                \"contentUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/defensenews-logo-white.png\",\n\t                \"caption\": \"Defense News\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"image\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"\n\t            }\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"Person\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/cc76c831bb37a926738c8391fca7a3b1\",\n\t            \"name\": \"migration\",\n\t            \"image\": {\n\t                \"@type\": \"ImageObject\",\n\t                \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=gcf4cb6ee0ec29e49e7a963234e4340ec\",\n\t                \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\n\t                \"contentUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\n\t                \"caption\": \"migration\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/author\\\/migration\\\/\"\n\t        }\n\t    ]\n\t}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Government requests hold and reversal on the FCC\u2019s Ligado decision - Defense News","description":"There's now a formal petition for the FCC to overturn its decision to let Ligado use the L-band spectrum.","robots":{"index":"noindex","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Government requests hold and reversal on the FCC\u2019s Ligado decision","og_description":"There's now a formal petition for the FCC to overturn its decision to let Ligado use the L-band spectrum.","og_url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/congress\/2020\/05\/22\/government-requests-hold-reversal-on-the-ligado-fcc-decision\/","og_site_name":"Defense News","article_published_time":"2020-05-22T21:47:16+00:00","article_modified_time":"2026-08-08T18:16:38+00:00","author":"Aaron Mehta","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Aaron Mehta","Est. reading time":"4 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/congress\/2020\/05\/22\/government-requests-hold-reversal-on-the-ligado-fcc-decision\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/congress\/2020\/05\/22\/government-requests-hold-reversal-on-the-ligado-fcc-decision\/"},"author":{"name":"migration","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/#\/schema\/person\/cc76c831bb37a926738c8391fca7a3b1"},"headline":"Government requests hold and reversal on the FCC\u2019s Ligado decision","datePublished":"2020-05-22T21:47:16+00:00","dateModified":"2026-08-08T18:16:38+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/congress\/2020\/05\/22\/government-requests-hold-reversal-on-the-ligado-fcc-decision\/"},"wordCount":863,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/congress\/2020\/05\/22\/government-requests-hold-reversal-on-the-ligado-fcc-decision\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/GPS-example.png.png","articleSection":["Congress","Daily News Roundup","Newsletters","Pentagon"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/congress\/2020\/05\/22\/government-requests-hold-reversal-on-the-ligado-fcc-decision\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/congress\/2020\/05\/22\/government-requests-hold-reversal-on-the-ligado-fcc-decision\/","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/congress\/2020\/05\/22\/government-requests-hold-reversal-on-the-ligado-fcc-decision\/","name":"Government requests hold and reversal on the FCC\u2019s Ligado decision - Defense News","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/congress\/2020\/05\/22\/government-requests-hold-reversal-on-the-ligado-fcc-decision\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/congress\/2020\/05\/22\/government-requests-hold-reversal-on-the-ligado-fcc-decision\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/GPS-example.png.png","datePublished":"2020-05-22T21:47:16+00:00","dateModified":"2026-08-08T18:16:38+00:00","description":"There's now a formal petition for the FCC to overturn its decision to let Ligado use the L-band spectrum.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/congress\/2020\/05\/22\/government-requests-hold-reversal-on-the-ligado-fcc-decision\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/congress\/2020\/05\/22\/government-requests-hold-reversal-on-the-ligado-fcc-decision\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/congress\/2020\/05\/22\/government-requests-hold-reversal-on-the-ligado-fcc-decision\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/GPS-example.png.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/GPS-example.png.png"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/congress\/2020\/05\/22\/government-requests-hold-reversal-on-the-ligado-fcc-decision\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/","ad_zone":"home"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Congress","item":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/congress\/","ad_zone":"congress"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"Government requests hold and reversal on the FCC\u2019s Ligado decision"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/#website","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/","name":"Defense News","description":"Covering the politics, business and technology of defense | Defense News","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/#organization","name":"Defense News","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/defensenews-logo-white.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/defensenews-logo-white.png","caption":"Defense News"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/#\/schema\/person\/cc76c831bb37a926738c8391fca7a3b1","name":"migration","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=gcf4cb6ee0ec29e49e7a963234e4340ec","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"migration"},"url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/author\/migration\/"}]}},"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"distributor_meta":false,"distributor_terms":false,"distributor_media":false,"distributor_original_site_name":"Defense News","distributor_original_site_url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews","push-errors":false,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/GPS-example.png.png","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31668","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=31668"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31668\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":31671,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31668\/revisions\/31671"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=31668"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=31668"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=31668"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=31668"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}