USTelecom Provides FCC With Examples of Permitting Problems
USTelecom plans to file at the FCC this week a fact sheet urging the commission to cut red tape for wireline builds, a spokesperson said Friday. In response to a notice of inquiry that commissioners approved in September (see 2509300063), the fact sheet offers real-world examples of the impediments faced by carriers.
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For example, one Maryland city’s siting process “requires a chain of sequential hearings tied to rigid public-notice mailing windows,” the group said. “Missing a window by even one day restarts the entire process, routinely pushing approval timelines past five months.” Several states have statutory review timelines that are routinely ignored, including one "where a 60-day shot clock has never once been met,” it said. Other local governments impose “prohibitive” costs, such as a Minnesota city that “demanded a $63,000 permit fee plus $28,964 in per-foot charges for a single block of fiber.”