Industry Experts Raise Concerns About Pole Attachment Policies Ahead of BEAD
Industry officials urged policymakers to consider the impact of the costs of make-ready work, pole attachments and replacements on broadband deployment projects funded by federal investments, including NTIA's broadband, equity, access and deployment program. Panelists during a Broadband Breakfast webinar…
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Wednesday (see 2309080027) also raised concerns about whether any potential revisions and pending FCC proceedings on the issue could affect deployment efforts. Pole attachments are infrastructure that "often gets overlooked ,but it's crucial in connecting us," said Crown Castle Managing Counsel David Van Fleet Bloys. The FCC should allocate costs "fairly" between pole owners and attachers when a pole must be replaced, he said, noting the commission sought comments on the issue last year (see 2206280066). "There's a very real sense amongst utilities that we need to get ready to be able to process pole attachments on a timely basis" with the forthcoming funding through NTIA's broadband, equity, access, and deployment program, said Brett Kilbourne, Utilities Technology Council senior vice president-general counsel. Utility companies replace poles voluntarily, Kilbourne said, "but there are costs associated with that" and "folks want to try and place that burden on utilities" when the current practice works well. Pole attachments involve a "complex process," he said, and efforts to regulate it could ultimately create more delays.