The Federal Communications Commission on August 7 published a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) in the docket, “Build America: Eliminating Barriers to Wireline Deployments.”
The NPRM “proposes to adopt presumptions that would limit the authorization processing timelines and fees that state and local governments may impose” regarding pole attachments using section 253 of the Telecommunications Act of 1996.
Comments on the NPRM are due by September 21, and reply comments are due by Thursday, November 5.
APPA said it will file comments opposed to the NPRM highlighting the municipal exemption from federal pole attachment regulations in section 224 of the Communications Act.
This action follows a Notice of Inquiry from the FCC in the same docket, issued last fall, that sought comment on the agency’s intent to review the approval process, timelines, and fees for deploying wireline telecommunications services using publicly owned infrastructure.
APPA submitted comments last November and reply comments in December, challenging the FCC’s authority to regulate pole attachment rates and processes for public power utilities, given the municipal exemption from federal pole attachment regulations under section 224 of the Communications Act.
APPA argues that section 253 covers only government entities acting in a regulatory capacity, and that public power utilities do not act in a regulatory capacity when processing pole attachment requests, they act as market participants with the same siting and permitting requirements as privately-owned entities.
