House Communications Republicans, Eshoo Bow Additional Broadband Deployment Legislation
House Communications Subcommittee Republicans and Rep. Anna Eshoo, D-Calif., released separate sets of legislation Friday aimed at encouraging broadband deployment. The House Communications Republicans' bills were a third wave of additional legislation that followed the release earlier this month of overarching principles on broadband infrastructure before House work on a broader infrastructure bill to follow White House anticipated release of its legislative package. Lawmakers filed other sets of broadband legislation Tuesday and Wednesday (see 1801110058, 1801160048 and 1801170055).
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The House Communications Republicans' new set of five bills includes the House companion to the Streamlining Permitting to Enable Efficient Deployment of Broadband Infrastructure Act (HR-4842/S-1988), which Senate Communications Subcommittee Chairman Roger Wicker, R-Miss., and Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto, D-Nev., filed in October (see 1710200047). HR-4842, filed by Rep. John Shimkus, R-Ill., would aim to accelerate broadband deployments by exempting some projects in public rights-of-way from environmental and historic reviews under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and the National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA).
The Restoring Economic Strength and Telecommunications Operations by Releasing Expected Dollars (Restored) Act (HR-4832), from Rep. Kevin Cramer, R-N.D., would permit companies eligible for funds under the USF High-Cost program to elect up to a seven-month advance payment of funds to aid in the restoration of services in presidentially declared disaster areas. The Connecting Communities Post Disasters Act (HR-4845), from Rep. Pete Olson, R-Texas, would allow a five-year categorical exclusion from NEPA and NHPA reviews for communications facilities in presidentially declared disaster areas in a bid to aid replacement and improvements to affected facilities.
The Broadband Deployment Streamlining Act (HR-4847), from Rep. Susan Brooks, R-Ind., would direct the secretaries of agriculture and interior to issue regulations to streamline applications processes to locate or modify communications facilities on public lands. The bill also would amend the 2012 spectrum act to institute a firm shot clock for reviewing deployment applications and would direct the GAO to study the collection and accuracy of National Broadband Map data. H.Res. 701, from Rep. Bill Flores, R-Texas, would express the sense of the House that NEPA and NHPA reviews of broadband facilities should be “narrowly tailored and proportional to lands that are physically impacted by the deployment of such facilities.”
Eshoo and Rep. David McKinley, R-W.Va., meanwhile, filed their Clearing Local Impediments Makes Broadband Open to New Competition and Enhancements (Climb Once) Act, which would ensure federal laws don't hinder localities' “climb once” policies that Eshoo's office said “allow for a list of pre-approved contractors that pole owners agree on to handle make-ready work, eliminating the need for multiple contractors to perform the work.” Eshoo and McKinley filed their Broadband Conduit Deployment Act Wednesday. Eshoo and other House Democrats refiled their Community Broadband Act Thursday (see 1801180058).