WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Pat Roberts today said reports of attempts by LightSquared, a Virginia-based company, and White House officials to influence the decision making process of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) could lead to interference with Global Positioning Systems (GPS) signals, a serious threat to public safety.

“This whole process has been troubling from the start, especially since numerous government and industry reports have continued to show problems,” said Roberts. “LightSquared has offered a series of unproven alternative solutions. I am encouraged by the FCC and the National Telecommunication and Information Administration’s decisions to continue with extensive testing before LightSquared is allowed to proceed. This is what I and one-third of my Senate colleagues asked for in our letter last May.” 

The concerns stem over media reports of the Obama administration’s alleged favoritism to LightSquared, after it was revealed LightSquared is tied to a generous Democratic donor.

 “GPS is too important to national security, aviation safety, first responders, agriculture and commerce, among many other uses for the millions of Americans who rely on it every day,” Roberts said. “LightSquared’s proposal cannot be permitted to move forward unless GPS is protected.”

Reports of the alleged favoritism comes on the heels of news that the company Solyndra has gone under, despite being given a $535 million loan guarantee as part of stimulus funds from the Obama administration.

Sen. Roberts spearheaded a bipartisan letter to the FCC earlier this year asking FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski to take all necessary steps to protect GPS from interference that could cause interruptions.  You can read more about it here.

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