FCC Appears Headed to Quick Action on Speeding Infrastructure Deployment

The BDAC meeting followed Thursday’s FCC meeting, where commissioners approved rulemakings looking at ways to speed wireless (see 1704200037) and wireline infrastructure deployment (see 1704200046). Pai has labeled April “infrastructure month” at the FCC.

“You know much better than I that deploying broadband is hard, it’s expensive and it’s time-consuming work, whether you’re trenching fiber, whether you’re attaching equipment to poles, or whether you’re setting up a gateway earth station,” Pai said. “Red tape shouldn’t make that task harder than it otherwise has to be. To me, it’s pretty simple. With rules that make it easier to deploy broadband, we will see more broadband deployed and in turn, we can empower millions of Americans with digital opportunity.”

Pai said he had expected only a few dozen applications for membership on the new advisory group. To his surprise, more than 380 applied, he said. “These were nominees from organizations large and small, representing industry, government, and consumer and community organizations.” Twenty-nine were selected for BDAC, he said. Pai said he looked for members who are involved in deploying broadband. “I simply talk about broadband here at the FCC; you do it across the country and that is no small feat,” he said.

A big part of the work will be developing two model codes -- one for municipalities and one for states -- for governments that want more deployment, Pai said. “In developing each, the goal should be guidelines that are forward-looking and fair, and that balance the legitimate interests of state and local governments with the ever-growing demands of the American public for better and faster and cheaper broadband,” he said. BDAC is also being asked to make recommendations on how to promote competitive access to broadband infrastructure, including utility poles, he said. “It might not be all the exciting to the outside world,” he said. “It is a critical part of the infrastructure equation, as you know.”

Another key focus is shortening the time frame for deployment on federal lands, which often takes twice as long as deploying on private property, Pai said. “Shortening that timeline could help prove the business case for deployment in areas where it might not otherwise exist,” he said.

Commissioner Mignon Clyburn said the infrastructure rulemakings adopted Thursday tended to view consumer protections as regulatory barriers. “I’m not trying to start another conflict, I just wanted you to know I haven’t changed [my stance] since yesterday,” she said in an aside to Pai. She voted for both items at the Thursday meeting.

Clyburn also asked BDAC to put consumers first as it proceeds. “Whether you are discussing how to address the thorny issues of access to poles, ducts, or conduits, I ask that you think about the impact your decisions will have on consumers,” Clyburn said. “When you are debating franchising model codes … I ask you to think about the impact the contours of that code will have on consumers in the franchise area.” Low-income communities must not have a “second-class broadband future,” Clyburn said. “You must ensure that the policies you recommend will mend, rather than make worse, longstanding digital and opportunities divides.”

Clyburn stressed that broadband must be affordable. “Will low-income households and communities be able to take advantage of this next generation infrastructure?” she said. “We should ask ourselves that.”

Big Job Ahead

Commissioner Mike O’Rielly said BDAC has a big job. “Having worked on these issues for quite a long time, let me share with you that there is no one answer,” O’Rielly said. “From weather and terrain to remoteness to jurisdictional fights and local power grabs, our nation’s broadband providers face a litany of obstacles that prevent all Americans from having access to sufficient broadband services.”

Private sector investment is “the American way” and he likely would oppose proposals for more government spending on broadband, O’Rielly said. “At some point I am sure, someone will argue that one solution is just to throw money at the problem. In this case, the money they talk about comes from consumers in the form of higher service fees than are necessary.”

BDAC member Jonathan Adelstein, president of the Wireless Infrastructure Association, said in an interview he's hopeful the FCC will move quickly on wireless siting rules. Adelstein joked during the session every month is infrastructure month at WIA.

Quick Action Expected

“My sense is that the FCC is moving as quickly as they possibly can” on both the rulemaking and a petition by Mobilitie asking the agency to pre-empt state and local authority over rights of way (see 1703080011), Adelstein said. The FCC already has completed its comment cycle on the petition (see 1704100056). “They’re moving on a dual track,” he said of the FCC. “We could see some action as quickly as you can anticipate.” Completing a rulemaking usually takes about six months, but the FCC could move quicker by addressing issues teed up in the Mobilitie petition, said Adelstein, a former FCC commissioner.

“I’ve never seen a more aggressive approach by any commission to getting infrastructure deployed, so they’re clearly on a fast track,” Adelstein said. He said he also expects BDAC to move quickly on its recommendations. The FCC could issue a declaratory ruling based on the Mobilitie petition without having to seek additional comment, he said. “That could be a vehicle for some fast action,” he said. There has been bipartisan consensus on the need to speed up deployment for several years, he said. “Nobody here is trying to say roll right over the localities,” he said.