FCC Seeks Public Input on Utility Pole Replacement Cost-Sharing

By Leslie Stimson, Inside Towers Washington Bureau Chief

The FCC wants to minimize disputes over utility pole attachments, especially before the $65 billion in broadband infrastructure funding gets used from the administration’s Infrastructure Law. That’s why Commissioners voted 4-0 at Wednesday’s meeting to seek public input on establishing clear standards for how utilities and attachers must share in pole replacement costs.  In the Second Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, the FCC asks questions such as who should pay the cost of pole replacement when that isn’t determined by a new attachment request and whether utilities benefit from various types of pole replacements. It asks if the Commission should require utilities to pay a proportional share of all replacement costs. Continue Reading