Clyburn Warns BDAC Against Single Approach to Infrastructure Rules; Carr Urges Action
FCC Broadband Deployment Advisory Committee reports don’t do enough to recognize concerns of state and local governments, Commissioner Mignon Clyburn said at day two of BDAC’s meeting called to finalize much of its work. BDAC approved a report from its streamlining federal siting working group and spent much of the rest of the session discussing the model codes for states and for municipalities. Tuesday, FCC Chairman Ajit Pai said the agency will take quick action on the BDAC recommendations (see 1801230043).
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“While I am continuing to review each of the filed reports, it is regrettable that the concerns of localities do not appear to have been fully addressed,” Clyburn said. “While I appreciate the BDAC’s acknowledgement that public-private partnerships may provide solutions to bridge those divides, I noticed that there was an expressed preference for industry over municipalities in broadband deployment efforts.”
Clyburn warned that one-size solutions don’t work. “I continue to ask for municipalities to be allowed to deploy a broadband network, if that best suits the needs of the people they are elected and appointed to serve,” she said. Clyburn was pleased the model codes now include language on the importance of eliminating the digital divide between urban and rural areas and allocating resources to spur broadband adoption: “Your report can provide guidance to those, who for far too long, have been on the wrong side of the digital and opportunities divide.”
“The work that you’re doing here is extremely important and it’s something that’s one of my top priorities,” said Commissioner Brendan Carr. Connecting communities with broadband is key to job creation and economic opportunity, he said.
Estimates are that 5G will require $275 billion in U.S. investments, Carr said. “The set of issues that you all are working … is going to be the key to making sure that we’re 5G ready from a regulatory position,” he said. “I don’t think we’re there.” Work remains in all the areas being examined by BDAC, he said. The U.S. led the world on 4G, he said. “I think we want to lead on 5G as well.”
On the access to federal lands report, San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo asked why, as recommended in the report, providers shouldn’t have to pay a security deposit before negotiation and execution of a lease or easement. The telecom industry “is occasionally volatile,” he said, citing the collapse 15 years ago of WorldCom and a few smaller players. Some $2 trillion in market capitalization “went out the door,” he said. “I’m not sure why we wouldn’t have security deposits, as with other industries.” Liccardo questioned a finding there should be a 60-day shot clock for application review with a deemed approved remedy if federal landholding or managing agencies don’t meet the deadline. He asked whether the proposed rules provide “adequate exceptions,” for example for bad-faith applications. “I just have generalized concern,” he said.
The rules would provide a “very broad out” for federal land managers, said Jonathan Adelstein, chairman of the federal leasing working group and president of the Wireless Infrastructure Association. “All they need do is explain in writing why they can’t meet the period that is specified to respond to the application,” he said. The rules just force an explanation, he said. “We had changed that from the previous report where we focus on an absolute deemed granted [solution].” Kelly McGriff, general counsel at Southern Light, said that “as we build out networks across states, especially on and near federal lands, it becomes tremendously difficult getting the attention of a federal agency or getting them to move or act in any way that fits with our development timeline,” he said.
The model codes haven’t been finalized, and the FCC posted early versions in November, after the last meeting (see here and here). BDAC will seek further feedback from members with a goal of finalizing the codes in about three weeks, said Elizabeth Bowles of wireless ISP Aristotle, BDAC chair. Bowles said the group will meet next in March or April to vote on the codes.
The model code for states' working group has been meeting on at least a weekly basis, reflecting a huge commitment, said McGriff, its chairman. The code runs 56 pages over 13 articles, he noted. BDAC went over each article at the meeting. His working group is coordinating closely with the municipal code group with an eye on making the models as close as possible. “We’re hoping we can do that more rather than less,” he said.
The goal of the code is accelerating deployment of broadband “by reducing or removing regulatory barriers as we see them and barriers to infrastructure investment,” McGriff said. The code seeks to define the role of state regulatory agencies and broadband councils in deployment and encouraging build out locally, he said. “We find that there is a great divide and disparity” across the U.S. on access to broadband, he said. “The digital divide is a multifaceted challenge involving many conflicting interests which the state model code attempts to address through effective broadband deployment.”
The problem his committee addressed is “how do we enhance broadband deployment across the whole country, and that includes broadband that doesn’t exist in certain geographic areas, as well as enhanced or better or more options for broadband and less expensive broadband,” said Douglas Dimitroff, chair of the municipal codes working group and lawyer at Phillips Lytle. “It's a tall order because it's a continuing problem,” he said. “It has been a continuing problem since networks were designed and developed.” There’s only so much money to go around, he said.