> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://broadbandbreakfast.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Citizens Broadband Radio Users Depend on Free Tier, New America Says - URL: https://broadbandbreakfast.com/citizens-broadband-radio-users-depend-on-free-tier-new-america-says/ - Published: 2026-10-20T18:33:17.000Z - Updated: 2026-11-09T22:47:51.000Z - Description: Proponents of the CBRS band fear disruption from increased power levels or an auction - Author: Jake Neenan - Tags: Spectrum, CBRS, OTI, New America, Dean Bubley, FCC, Arpan Sura, Derek Khlopin, John Deere, Dow Chemical, BMW, #with-siderail WASHINGTON, Oct. 20, 2026 – Users of an important shared spectrum band still depend on its free, general access tier, according to a new analysis of data from one of the band’s coordinators. As of July 2026, 96.3 percent of radios using the Citizens Broadband Radio Service (CBRS) use its free general authorized access (GAA) tier. That’s up slightly from a government survey in July 2024. [![CTA Image](https://storage.ghost.io/c/29/97/29976d9d-89ea-4c77-8c0b-0e8a0eafed35/content/images/2026/10/ai_and_congress_event_graphic_v4-jpg-2.jpg)](https://payments-na1.hubspot.com/payments/7TyXGqH4bm?referrer=PAYMENT%5FLINK&ref=broadbandbreakfast.com) [***Sign up for Broadband and AI in the Next Congress on Dec 1!**](https://broadbandbreakfast.com/broadband-and-ai/) [Don't Miss Out! ](https://payments-na1.hubspot.com/payments/7TyXGqH4bm?referrer=PAYMENT%5FLINK&ref=broadbandbreakfast.com) In the intervening years, deployed CBRS devices grew more than 10 percent to 446,000 from 400,000\. It became more common for devices to mix both GAA and paid priority access licenses (PAL), with the share of mixed-use devices increasing from 24 percent to 33 percent. The share of spectrum channels used under GAA stayed roughly flat, falling from more than 82 percent to 80 percent. The analysis of CBRS administrator data was published [in a Thursday report](https://www.newamerica.org/insights/the-indispensable-spectrum/?ref=broadbandbreakfast.com) by New America’s Open Technology Institute. The group is a supporter of the band and spectrum sharing generally, and argued that disrupting the band by raising power limits or auctioning it off would hurt the various industries that deploy private CBRS networks. CBRS covers 150 megahertz from 3.55-3.7 GHz. PAL users are protected from interference by GAA users, and coastal Navy radars get protection from both PAL and GAA. CBRS was not protected from a 2025 law mandating the auction of 800 megahertz of spectrum by 2034, [leading to fears](https://broadbandbreakfast.com/wispa-to-fcc-dont-sell-general-access-cbrs-spectrum/) part of the band could be tapped to meet that threshold. The top 50 megahertz of the band is reserved for only GAA, and supporters have sought [to convince regulators](https://broadbandbreakfast.com/cbrs-proponent-studies-changes-to-shared-band-would-be-disruptive/) that while it might seem relatively easy to reallocate the GAA portion, it would [still be costly](https://broadbandbreakfast.com/cbrs-proponents-reiterate-opposition-to-higher-power/). Verizon, the largest PAL holder, has also supported raising power levels in response to an open FCC inquiry that asked about the issue. That would result in unworkable interference for GAA users, OTI director **Michael Calabrese** argued in the report. “If high-power operations were authorized in CBRS, current GAA users would suffer a classic tragedy of the commons as more and more operators raise power levels to expand coverage or, more likely, to defend themselves against other GAA and adjacent-channel PAL users who have increased their power or could be expected to do so in the future,” he wrote. OTI’s report said GAA was essential for private networks deployed by a range of entities like manufacturing companies, airports, utilities, and military bases. BMW and the Miami International Airport only use GAA spectrum for their deployments, the report said, and companies like John Deere and Dow Chemical combine it with PAL licenses, the report said. Rural broadband providers also use the band for fixed wireless access, OTI said, with “nearly all” of them relying heavily or entirely on GAA. The report follows two March studies from other CBRS proponents that looked at ### *Government perspective* Earlier this year **Arpan Sura**, a top advisor to FCC Chairman **Brendan Carr**, said during a webinar [he wanted to](https://broadbandbreakfast.com/carr-advisor-wants-more-study-on-cbrs-usage/) “interrogate” whether the rising number of CBRS devices was a good indicator for utilization. “What does success look like in this band? And how do we gauge success in a way that’s quantitative, in a way that isn’t just pointing to our favorite examples but actually gets to the heart of the matter?” he said. He said the agency had a full plate of more immediate spectrum auction goals on the horizon. The FCC has since said it’s planning to hold auctions in the upper C-band, 4.4 GHz, 2.7 GHz, and 1.6 GHz bands before the end of the Trump administration. Last week **Derek Khlopin**, a top spectrum official at the Commerce Department, called CBRS a “great model” for spectrum sharing that could be built on as industry demand grew.