Wireless Carriers Seek Quick FCC Action on Twilight Towers; Tribes Say Not So Fast
Verizon, AT&T and the Competitive Carriers Association were among commenters urging the FCC to finalize a draft program comment approved 5-0 by commissioners in December (see 1712140049). A group representing tribes said the FCC must act with care. The towers…
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were constructed between March 16, 2001, and March 7, 2005, and either didn’t get historic review or weren't documented to have the review. “Verizon fully supports the Commission’s proposal to make ‘twilight towers’ available for collocation without the need for historic preservation review,” the carrier said in reply comments in docket 17-79. “Doing so will speed deployment and reduce the need for unnecessary new towers.” AT&T said the record "demonstrates that the Program Comment, as drafted, advances the public interest through an appropriate balance of promoting broadband deployment and protecting historic and tribal properties." CCA complained about the high costs of reviews. “One CCA member operating in portions of Kansas, Colorado, and Nebraska paid over $107,000 to 36 Tribes for the deployment of just seven towers, in a seven-month period,” CCA said. “This is an average of over $15,000 per tower, solely for Tribal review fees. This is not a sustainable arrangement, especially considering future networks will require denser deployment scenarios.” The National Association of Tribal Historic Preservation Officers objected, saying initial comments “have not shown that the Draft Program Comment is even needed, much less that it would satisfy the requirements of the National Historic Preservation Act.” The FCC should curtail action until the tribes are told the locations of all twilight towers “so they can make an informed decision on the process to follow, and a proper government-to-government consultation has been completed,” the group said.