The Commerce Department, which administers the historic $42.5 billion Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program to close the digital divide, is currently in the process of approving states’ BEAD projects and has pledged to get money out the door by the end of this year. But without urgent action to fix our broken permitting process for broadband builds, that money will get tangled in red tape before a single foot of fiber reaches rural America.
Every broadband provider in this country is ready to build. The problem is, they can’t get permission to do it. From the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) to the U.S. Forest Service to state agencies, outdated and inconsistent permitting rules routinely delay broadband projects for months — and often years — leaving unserved communities waiting on the sidelines.
I recently testified before Congress about how federal permitting has become one of the most intractable barriers to building America’s connected future.
The examples are unfortunately endless but consider a few particularly rage-inducing anecdotes from broadband providers. One provider waited nearly three years for federal approval just to repair an existing fiber line crossing BLM property. Another had to navigate five different federal agencies to build a single broadband route, with each agency requiring its own analyses, studies, and environmental reviews. And in parts of New Mexico, simply obtaining the permits needed to deploy broadband on federal lands can take up to four years, which is, of course, long after communities have lost patience and project costs have soared.
These are not edge cases; they are emblematic of a system that is simply not built for the pace and scale American connectivity demands. Every month of delay means higher costs, fewer homes connected, and investment capital stranded instead of serving rural America.
That’s why it is encouraging that just this week, the House Energy and Commerce Committee advanced bipartisan permitting reform legislation. This is meaningful, practical progress, and Congress must build on it. The full House should move swiftly to pass these measures, and the Senate must take up and advance comprehensive permitting reform so that BEAD dollars can translate into real broadband connectivity.
The fixes for broadband deployment on federal lands are not complicated: establish firm timelines (“shot clocks”) for federal permit approvals, standardize applications across agencies, streamline reviews for low-impact broadband projects, and ensure agencies have the resources to process permits efficiently. We’re also encouraged by the Federal Communications Commission’s recently launched inquiry examining ways to cut through the permitting red tape that network operators and the communities they serve face at the state and local level.
We have a once-in-a-generation opportunity to finish the job of connecting every American. Let’s not allow outdated permitting processes to block the future. Instead, Washington must help us build it.
Jonathan Spalter is President and CEO of USTelecom – The Broadband Association, which represents broadband internet providers across the country.
Opinion pieces from industry experts, analysts or our editorial staff do not represent the opinions of Fierce Network.