FCC Criticized on State, Local Roles for Pole Attachments

The FCC "overstepped a bit" on the role that state and local governments play in pole attachments, said Public Knowledge Director-Government Affairs Greg Guice during a Schools, Health & Libraries Broadband Coalition webinar Wednesday. FCC policies have "made it easier for contractors, oftentimes less qualified contractors, to do some of these attachments and put at risk the reliability of broadband lines that are being attached." Recent rules and legislation left local officials confused and undermine community initiatives, said Corian Zacher, Next Century Cities policy counsel-state and local initiatives. "The FCC and an increasing number of states have enacted rules and legislation that treat these communities as homogenous, without allowing local officials a meaningful opportunity to contribute to that decision-making process." The cost of deployment and last-mile installation could be drastically reduced if pole location was made publicly available on a "surgical map," she said. Attachment agreements are a big challenges, said Merit Vice President-Strategy and Research Bob Stovall. "We've had cases where it's taken over two years to just get an attachment agreement, and you can’t even start to get permits until you get your agreements." Pole owners' construction standards should be reasonable and based on "genuine safety and engineering rationale," said Crown Castle Managing Counsel-Utility Relations Rebecca Hussey. "If a pole is in good condition … there's no reason that the pole has to be replaced just because there's a standard that says so."