Local governments and large industry trade groups are not aligned on the idea of wireline permitting reforms.
That’s not breaking news, but the differences of opinion were newly highlighted in an FCC docket, opened last year, soliciting comments and proposing questions about how the Commission can use its authority under section 253 of the Communications Act to preempt state and local laws that “have a prohibitive effect on wireline telecommunications deployments and services.” The FCC collected comments after opening the proceeding in September, with reply comments due in December 2025.
They highlight their views…
The groups stress that local permitting rules protect public safety, and they point to recent instances where “companies installing and deploying communications infrastructure endangered residents in multiple communities” – including situations that “sometimes resulted in the death of children,” according to the Local Government Associations.
The filing highlights a few instances in particular – including one in November 2025, for example, where “an excavation crew hired by Spectrum ruptured a gas main in Mitchell, Wisconsin,” resulting in four workers becoming hospitalized, two homes being damaged and “the evacuation of dozens of residents,” said the groups.