Cities Say No to Pre-Emption by Congress, FCC

timeframe guidelines” for state and local consideration of small-cell applications (see 1807250056). The bill would let the federal government take broad swaths of local government land, and there’s no one-size-fits-all answer for states and cities, the mayors wrote in a Monday letter to Senate Commerce Committee leaders. “Local governments should have the time and flexibility to ensure that small cell wireless infrastructure is deployed, not just quickly, but safely and correctly in our communities.” The letter was signed by 24 mayors including from Atlanta, Chicago, Denver, Louisville, Los Angeles, New York, Philadelphia, Seattle and San Francisco. In a Tuesday letter to the FCC in docket 17-79, Austin telecom officer Rondella Hawkins urged the agency to rethink pre-empting local authority. “The Commission appears to be on the cusp of a rulemaking that would cripple local government authority to manage valuable public property, protect public safety, preserve the aesthetic appeal of our communities, and protect the interest of other property owners.” Pace of small-cell application approval is quickening as Austin works with industry and other municipalities on best practices, Hawkins said.