Wireless Siting Rules 'Sensible,' Should Be Upheld, FCC Tells 4th Circuit
FCC wireless facility siting rules, being challenged by Montgomery County, Maryland, and other local governments, are consistent with the Spectrum Act, and should be upheld by the court, the agency said in a pleading to the 4th U.S. Circuit Court…
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of Appeals, where the case is being heard. The case centers on how the FCC interpreted Section 6409(a) of the act in an October order designed to speed deployment of distributed antenna systems, small cells and other wireless facilities (see 1410170048). “The Commission adopted an objective test to determine the substantiality of a proposed facility modification,” the FCC said. “This approach is sensible. It is consistent with the Commission’s use of objective criteria to define substantiality in various related and unrelated contexts. And it furthers Congress’s intent to reduce the zoning delays that occurred when States and localities had virtually unlimited discretion to review even insubstantial facility modification requests.” The FCC offers local governments safeguards in the order, the commission said. The order “expressly preserves” environmental and historic preservation review of telecom projects and allows states and localities “to condition a facility modification request on compliance with concealment measures and generally applicable building and safety codes,” the agency said. “Nothing in the Order prevents a State or locality from seeking a waiver of the Section 6409(a) rules where application of those rules would contradict their intended purpose.” Contrary to Montgomery County arguments, the order doesn’t require local governments to administer a federal program, the agency said. "Nothing in the statute or the Order requires State or local officials to administer a federal program -- or for that matter, to do anything at all,” the FCC said. “States and localities have a choice: They can approve a facility modification request covered by Section 6409(a), or they can allow federal rules to fill the void.” CTIA and PCIA released a statement Tuesday urging the 4th Circuit to reject the municipal challenge. “As independent reports repeatedly estimate that usage for mobile services will continue to increase at a rapid pace, it’s vital that wireless companies, wireless carriers and infrastructure providers are able to deploy and update their infrastructure to meet the needs of Americans, businesses and governments,” the associations said.