FCC Seeks to Remove Barriers to Network Deployment: Could AI Help?

The FCC’s proposals come at a critical time for U.S. network infrastructure. Network demands have surged, driven in part by the need for capacity to support AI applications, and providers are gearing up for the further expansion of 5G and even 6G deployments. At the same time, the federal government has made significant investments to promote next-generation connectivity, including through its Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment Program, which allocated $42.45 billion in funding to build infrastructure. These factors underscore the need for streamlined permitting processes that support efficient deployment.

While AI is driving increasing network demand, it can also offer solutions. Many operators already use AI to optimize network performance and plan infrastructure deployments. AI can also equip regulators to identify outdated or duplicative regulations that slow or block deployments and streamline permitting by automating application reviews, flagging issues, and improving workflow efficiency. Incorporating AI into state and local permitting processes has the potential to accelerate deployments while helping regulatory frameworks keep pace with future technologies.

The comment period will offer businesses and other stakeholders an opportunity to shape the FCC’s approach to wireline and wireless infrastructure buildout by highlighting real-world challenges and potential solutions for aiding network deployment processes, including the use of AI in planning and operations.

Comments on the NPRM regarding wireless deployments will be due 30 days after publication in the Federal Register, with reply comments due 15 days later. Comments on the NOI on wireline deployments were due November 17, with reply comments due December 17.

Background

The FCC has taken several steps over the last decade to streamline wireless and wireline deployment by implementing and interpreting statutory provisions that limit state and local regulatory barriers. For example:

• Wireless Networks. In 2014, the FCC implemented Section 6409(a) of the Spectrum Act of 2012 by adopting rules that require state and local governments to approve eligible modifications to existing towers and base stations within 60 days and defining what constitutes as a permissible modification versus a “substantial change.” The FCC also adopted rules implementing Sections 253 and 332(c)(7) of the Communications Act, as amended, which preempts state and local actions that prohibit or effectively prohibit telecommunications or wireless services. In 2018, the FCC adopted rules limiting fees, establishing permit review timelines, and setting aesthetic standards to ensure local requirements do not impede deployment.¹
• Wireline Networks. In 2018, the FCC adopted two orders addressing unlawful state and local barriers under Section 253 of the Communications Act. The Moratoria Order found that explicit and de facto state and local moratoria on permit processing violate Section 253. The Small Cell Order reaffirmed that state and local rules that materially inhibit service violate Sections 253 and 332(c)(7), established standards for evaluating deployment-related fees, and updated permit review “shot clocks.”

In addition, the Trump Administration has directed federal agencies “to expedite, eliminate, and simplify permitting burdens that inhibit economic development, job creation, and energy production.”² The NPRM and NOI also align with the Trump Administration’s AI Action Plan, which calls for a sweeping review of federal and state regulations that impede AI innovation and deployment across industries, including telecommunications. All together, the FCC’s proposals further the Administration’s efforts and build on the agency’s previous efforts to streamline deployment rules and support network investment.

Key Proposals

The NPRM and NOI each seek comment on a range of potential reforms to address state and local barriers to wireless and wireline network deployment. For example, in the NPRM, the FCC asks whether any state or local AI laws effectively prohibit the provision of telecommunications service under Sections 253 and 332. For wireless networks, the FCC proposes clarifying permitting provisions and exploring additional ways to streamline approval processes. For wireline networks, the FCC seeks to address delays, fees, and conditions that impede access to public rights-of-way and slow deployment.

More specifically:

• The Wireless Networks NPRM proposes to:

1. codify the 2020 Declaratory Ruling’s clarifications regarding concealment elements and siting conditions, providing guidance to reduce permitting disputes, clarifying the treatment of time-limited permits and renewal conditions, and considering additional rule changes to further streamline approvals;
2. assess state and local permitting regulations, fees, and aesthetic requirements under Sections 253 and 332(c)(7), including considering whether to extend the FCC’s 2018 Small Cell Order to macro towers and other facilities and whether certain fees and aesthetic requirements impede deployment;
3. evaluate the effect of the FCC’s shot clock rules on speed, clarity, and efficiency and consider improvements to permit review timelines;
4. explore alternative dispute-resolution mechanisms to reduce costly litigation over permitting delays; and
5. evaluate how state and local AI-related regulations may be effectively prohibiting wireless providers from offering service using AI technologies; how AI tools are or could be used in communications networks to improve service quality and ensure efficient and intensive use of spectrum; how state and local AI regulations may be impeding telecommunications and personal wireless services; and whether the FCC has authority under Sections 253 and 332(c)(7) to preempt these state and local AI regulations.

• The Wireline Networks NOI seeks comment on:

1. delays in obtaining state and local authorizations to access public rights-of-way, including whether the FCC should establish time limits for negotiating, reviewing, and issuing required permits;
2. fees and in-kind compensation requirements, and whether the FCC should set standards for determining when such requirements effectively prohibit service under Section 253;
3. whether the combination of delays, fees, or conditions violates Section 253 by effectively prohibiting wireline services; and
4. whether state or local laws seeking to govern or limit uses of AI are prohibiting or effectively prohibiting the provision of wireline telecommunications services.

Next Steps

Interested parties should consider submitting comments to explain the regulatory challenges providers face at the state and local level, as well as the potential for AI and other solutions to streamline permitting, support network deployment, and improve network performance.

For questions about the NPRM, NOI, or assistance preparing comments, please contact the authors.

Authored by Mark Brennan, Katy Milner, Jaclyn Rosen, and Jordyn Johnson.