Composition of BDAC Remains a Question as Work Starts on Disaster Recovery
Questions continue about lack of state and local representation on the FCC Broadband Deployment Advisory Committee as it launches a new focus on infrastructure and disasters. Some told us that what's viewed as a lack of diversity will work against the BDAC as it takes on a new area at the urging Friday of FCC Chairman Ajit Pai (see 1807270020). Some ask if FCC will add any public safety officials to the BDAC or as members of any new working groups. The agency will be soliciting "new members with the appropriate expertise for the working group on infrastructure and disasters," said a spokesperson.
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“NARUC has always said that the idea of the BDAC is a good one, but there’s still a problem with the balance, the composition,” said Brad Ramsay, general counsel who was at last week’s meeting. “The output is always going to be slanted to reflect the majority views,” he said. “For disaster recovery, if anything, it’s even more important to have more state and local officials involved.” The state and local governments “are heavily involved” in coordinating disaster recovery, he said, “in the middle of it.”
“It’s hard to build up political capital with folks when you overtly ignore them,” said Blair Levin, an analyst.
The committee required huge amounts of work on her part, said Karen Charles Peterson, a Massachusetts regulator and BDAC member. Pai indicated he plans to bring in “new blood” to help with the disaster focus, Peterson told us. “It’s left to be seen who will be on the working group,” she said.
The most important next step would be adding first responders to the discussions, said Richard Bennett, a member of BDAC’s municipal code working group. “Politicians don’t have very detailed knowledge of the logistics of disaster recovery and tend to bring agendas with them that aren’t helpful to policy development,” Bennett said. “BDAC needs people who are committed to the process and willing to spend the time needed to do quality work and see the process to its conclusion.”
Adding more state voices could avoid dismissing a safety measure “because one side feels it gets in their way unduly, when in fact there may be a legitimate reason for having a little more caution,” said NARUC Telecom Committee Chair Paul Kjellander.
“I believe the FCC will include local government representatives, along with other appropriate parties, in this important work,” said BDAC member Larry Hanson from the Georgia Municipal Association. “I interpreted Chairman Pai’s comments to say a new committee would soon be formed and members could apply.” Cities “look forward to ensuring that local officials in the areas most affected by disasters like hurricanes and wildfires are well-represented,” said Angelina Panettieri, National League of Cities principal associate-technology and communications.
“There is nothing like a deadline to create a sense of urgency to finish a job,” Hanson said on BDAC’s unfinished state code. Last week’s meeting was productive and Chair Elizabeth Bowles “will push the members to continue the hard work to bring forth fair and balanced recommendations if we are provided an additional 60 days or so to continue our work,” he said.
State commissioners worried that the state model code would get “a rubber stamp” due to imbalanced membership, “so I’m glad to see that was not the case,” Kjellander said. The Idaho commissioner said he would prefer that BDAC write “guiding principles” rather than model codes, which “sound like something an advocacy group would do” to push its agenda, he said. “What seems to be missing is the perception of being an honest broker.”
“Concerns about the process seem to be dominating the conversation,” said NATOA General Counsel Nancy Werner. “While I appreciate some of the changes that have occurred so far -- like softening a provision that would have given communications providers the right to place facilities on a city hall or in a public park … without reasonable compensation to the community -- the final product is likely to retain the give-away of local rights of way to industry with no obligation for industry to provide a community benefit.”
“BDAC’s decision to strike or table much of the code recognizes that not enough opportunity was given to city stakeholders to provide input on policy matters that have an outsized impact on local communities,” Panettieri said. “The policy process is complicated and works best when it takes place in an open, fair, deliberative discussion.”
Pai asked BDAC to look at policies for making networks better prepared for disasters, ways to minimize the downtime for networks during storms and strategies for quickly building networks after a storm has passed.
BDAC member Kristian Stout from the International Center for Law and Economics doesn’t understand recurring criticism of the group's makeup. David Young, who represents Lincoln, Nebraska, “was very sensitive to making sure that state and local concerns are brought up and considered at our meetings last week,” Stout said. “We have a very healthy mix of interests voiced across the public-private spectrum, and a large share of the discussions we have focus on the best way to balance state and local interests, large private interests, and small private interests.”