House Natural Resources Advances Rural Broadband Permitting Bill
The House Natural Resources Committee advanced the Rural Broadband Permitting Efficiency Act Wednesday. HR-4824, from Rep. John Curtis, R-Utah, would streamline federal broadband permitting processes by requiring the Department of Agriculture to create a program that would sign memorandums of…
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understanding with state governments to delegate them with permitting of broadband projects in operational rights of way. HR-4824 would require the Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management designate broadband projects in existing operational rights of way as categorical exclusions under the National Environmental Policy Act. The bill “will empower States and Tribal governments to more efficiently bring this resource to rural communities and help spur economic development in these areas,” Curtis said. CTIA Senior Vice President-Government Affairs Kelly Cole said it would “streamline federal siting, accelerate deployment of wireless infrastructure in rural areas, and help close the digital divide."