Sec. 2. Streamlining the Department of the Interior and the Forest Service process for consideration of communications facility location applications
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In this section: The term communications facility includes— any infrastructure, including any transmitting device, tower, or support structure, and any equipment, switches, wiring, cabling, power sources, shelters, or cabinets, associated with the licensed or permitted unlicensed wireless or wireline transmission of writings, signs, signals, data, images, pictures, and sounds of all kinds; and any antenna or apparatus that— is designed for the purpose of emitting radio frequency; is designed to be operated, or is operating, from a fixed location pursuant to authorization by the Federal Communications Commission or is using duly authorized devices that do not require individual licenses; and is added to a tower, building, or other structure.
The term communications site means an area of covered land designated for communications uses. The term communications use means the placement and operation of communications facility. The term communications use authorization means an easement, right-of-way, lease, license, or other authorization to locate or modify a communications facility on covered land by the Department concerned for the primary purpose of authorizing the occupancy and use of the covered land for communications use.
The term covered land means— public land administered by the Secretary of the Interior; and National Forest System land. The term Department concerned means the Department of the Interior or the Department of Agriculture. The term organizational unit means— with respect to public land administered by the Secretary of the Interior— a State office; a district office; or a field office; and within the Forest Service— a regional office; the headquarters; a management unit; or a ranger district office.
The term Secretary concerned means— the Secretary of the Interior, with respect to public land; and the Secretary of Agriculture, with respect to National Forest System land. Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary concerned shall issue regulations— to streamline the process for considering applications to locate or modify communications facilities on covered land of the Department concerned; to ensure, to the maximum extent practicable, that the process is uniform and standardized across the organizational units of the Department concerned; and to require that the applications described in paragraph
(1)be considered and granted on a competitively neutral, technology neutral, and non-discriminatory basis. The regulations issued under subsection
(b)shall include the following: Procedures for the tracking of applications described in subsection (b)(1), including— identifying the number of applications— received; approved; and denied; in the case of an application that is denied, describing the reasons for the denial; and describing the amount of time between the receipt of an application and the issuance of a final decision on an application. Provision for minimum lease terms of not less than five years for leases with respect to the location of communications facilities on covered land. A policy under which a communications use authorization renews automatically on expiration, unless the communications use authorization is revoked for good cause; and A structure of fees for— submitting an application described in subsection (b)(1), based on the cost to the Department concerned of considering such an application; and issuing communications use authorizations, based on the cost to the Department concerned of any maintenance or other activities required to be performed by the Department concerned as a result of the location or modification of the communications facility. In issuing regulations under subsection (b), the Secretary concerned shall consider— how discrete reviews in considering an application described in subsection (b)(1) can be conducted simultaneously, rather than sequentially, by any organizational units of the Department concerned that must approve the location or modification; and how to eliminate overlapping requirements among the organizational units of the Department concerned with respect to the location or modification of a communications facility on covered land administered by those organizational units. The Secretary concerned shall, with respect to the regulations issued under subsection (b)— communicate the regulations to the organizational units of the Department concerned; and ensure that the organizational units of the Department concerned follow the regulations. The Secretary of the Treasury shall establish a special account in the Treasury for each Department concerned for the deposit of fees collected by the Department concerned under subsection (c)(4) for communications use authorizations on covered land granted, issued, or executed by the Department concerned. Fees collected by the Department concerned under subsection (c)(4) shall be— based on the costs described in subsection (c)(4); and competitively neutral, technology neutral, and nondiscriminatory with respect to other users of the communications site. Fees collected by the Department concerned under subsection (c)(4) shall be deposited in the special account established for that Department concerned under paragraph (1). Amounts deposited in the special account for a Department concerned shall be available, to the extent and in such amounts as are provided in advance in appropriation Acts, to the Secretary concerned to cover costs incurred by the Department concerned described in subsection (c)(4), including the following: Preparing needs assessments or other programmatic analyses necessary to designate communications sites and issue communications use authorizations. Developing management plans for communications sites. Training for management of communications sites. Obtaining or improving access to communications sites. Except as provided in paragraph (4), no other amounts are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section.