Rep McNerney (D-CA) Leads Letter Urging FCC to Delay 5G Infrastructure Vote

Rep Jerry McNerney (D-CA), along with eight Democratic Representatives on the House Commerce Committee, sent a letter to Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai, requesting the proposed Streamlining Deployment of Next Generation Wireless Infrastructure Declaratory Ruling and Third Report and Order be removed from Sept 26’s FCC Open Meeting agenda. "[I]n order to achieve the best outcome for consumers, it is crucial that 5G be deployed in a way that carefully balances the interests of both communities and the wireless carriers. The Declaratory Ruling and Order clearly falls short of striking such a balance," they wrote. "The item assumes the savings that wireless carriers will have from paying lower fees will result in 5G deployment investment in rural areas. Yet, there is no guarantee that the savings will result in wider deployment, and indeed the Declaratory Ruling and Order places no obligations or commitments on carriers to do so. Given the potential consumer harms that could result from hamstringing cities and municipalities, it is important that these dynamics be further explored before the Commission takes such drastic action."