Industry, Localities Support Separate Small-Cells Bills in Maryland
Industry and local governments are backing rival Maryland bills meant to speed wireless infrastructure deployment. Maryland Economic Matters Committee Chair Dereck Davis (D) Wednesday introduced HB-654 to pre-empt local governments in the right of way. It includes a “deemed granted”…
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provision on a 60-day shot clock for local authorities to act on a collocation application and a 90-day clock for installing, modifying or replacing a pole. It would limit application fees to $500 for a single application including up to five facilities, plus $100 per each additional facility on that form. Annual ROW occupancy rates couldn't exceed $20 yearly per facility, and collocation “shall be set” at $100 annually per facility. Industry and local government spent months negotiating, but Davis introduced what industry initially had proposed, said ultraMontgomery Program Director Mitsuko Herrera in a Thursday interview. She said Montgomery County is “firmly opposed” to HB-654 but supports an alternative, SB-713, drafted by municipal and county groups and introduced Monday by Sen. Pamela Beidle (D). The Senate Finance panel Wednesday scheduled a hearing on it for Feb. 26 at 1 p.m. Localities’ bill doesn’t set limits on rental fees because Maryland already requires cost-based fees, Herrera said. It would uphold local zoning regulations, require public hearings, consider community needs including aesthetics and ensure enhanced connections to the unserved, she said. CTIA didn’t comment. Meanwhile, Georgia's SB-66, the expected result of autumn talks between industry and local governments (see 1901070045), entered the Senate hopper Wednesday. It would limit application fees to $100 per facility on existing poles, $250 for each replacement pole and $1,000 for each new pole. Annual ROW couldn't exceed $100 annually for each small cell on an existing or replacement pole or $200 for each new pole, and annual collocation rates couldn’t exceed $40 yearly. If the application is “an eligible facilities request, the authority shall not deny the application” and must approve it within 60 days, the bill said. Mississippi's SB-2003 died Tuesday in committee.