ARLINGTON, Va. – The Wireless Infrastructure Association (WIA) applauded the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) for approving the “5G Upgrade Order” today at its Open Meeting, which streamlines wireless infrastructure deployment rules in response to petitions that WIA submitted last year.
“This is the culmination of a multi-year effort by WIA working with the FCC to smooth the path for upgrading the nation’s wireless infrastructure through collocation. The 5G Upgrade Order comes at an ideal time as 5G deployments are accelerating. By improving the process for collocation, the FCC makes deploying 5G more efficient for communities across America. The FCC also teed up further action to expand compounds by 30 feet around existing towers, where upgrades are needed for public safety, generators, and mobile edge computing for 5G services,” said WIA President and CEO Jonathan Adelstein. “WIA is grateful for Commissioner Carr’s consistent leadership on these reforms and the strong support from Chairman Pai and Commissioner O’Rielly. We also thank the FCC staff for their diligent attention to WIA’s petitions. Today truly marks a victory for wireless consumers who are relying more than ever on connectivity.”
In 2012, on a bipartisan basis Congress passed the SPECTRUM Act, which included Section 6409(a) – the provision addressed by the Order.
“In 2014, the FCC unanimously adopted rules clarifying many of Section 6409(a)’s terms to advance Congress’ goal of facilitating rapid deployment of wireless networks on existing infrastructure. These rules helped the U.S. lead the world in 4G. Since that time, some aspects of the rules have proven ambiguous which has led to misinterpretations in certain municipalities, even while most others followed the rules, causing discrepancies and costly delays. The 5G Upgrade Order clarifies these ambiguities so that our members can upgrade networks by quickly collocating next-generation wireless services on existing towers and other wireless facilities,” said Adelstein.
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