House Commerce to Mark Up American Broadband Deployment Act, 6 Other Connectivity Bills
The House Commerce Committee is planning a meeting Wednesday to mark up the Communications Subcommittee-cleared American Broadband Deployment Act (HR-2289) and six bipartisan connectivity bills that the subpanel advanced in November (see 2511180053). House Commerce said Monday night that the bills on the docket are the Federal Broadband Deployment Tracking Act (HR-1343), Facilitating the Deployment of Infrastructure With Greater Internet Transactions and Legacy Applications Act (HR-1588), Deploying Infrastructure With Greater Internet Transactions and Legacy Applications Act (HR-1665), Expediting Federal Broadband Deployment Reviews Act (HR-1681), Standard Fees to Expedite Evaluation and Streamlining Act (HR-1731) and the Broadband and Telecommunications Rail Act (HR-6046).
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Lobbyists said they expect House Commerce Democrats to strongly oppose HR-2289, which combined language from 22 GOP-led connectivity permitting bills, but back the other six measures. During the last Congress, the committee similarly divided along party lines on a previous version of the broadband package, which never reached the floor amid Democratic resistance (see 2305230067). House Commerce’s meeting Wednesday will begin at 10 a.m. in 2123 Rayburn.
The Association of American Railroads noted “significant safety concerns” with HR-6046 ahead of the House Commerce markup. HR-6046 and its Senate companion, S-3268 (2511200069), would require a broadband provider to apply to a railroad to place equipment in its right-of-way and set shot clocks for the railroad to decide whether to grant such a request and schedule the work. It would allow a railroad to deny a request only if the application fails to meet safety and damage mitigation requirements or would prohibit the railroad’s operations. The legislation would also require broadband providers to work with state and local governments to determine the scope of the project.
“While railroads support efforts to expand broadband access across the nation, this cannot take precedence over guaranteeing construction on or near railroad property is done safely,” AAR said in a statement. The group noted objections to giving the FCC a role in overseeing railroad rights-of-way, which “disregards” the Federal Railroad Administration’s status as “the agency with expertise in rail safety.” AAR believes HR-6046’s proposed “notification-only system for broadband providers is insufficient and poses risks to railroad employees, construction crews, and nearby communities.” It also called for House Commerce to ensure that railroads “receive fair and complete compensation, including reimbursement of out-of-pocket costs.”