Sec. 101. Preservation of local zoning authority
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Section 332(c) of the Communications Act of 1934 ( 47 U.S.C. 332(c) ) is amended by striking paragraph
(7)and inserting the following: Except as provided in this paragraph, nothing in this Act shall limit or affect the authority of a State or local government or instrumentality thereof over decisions regarding the placement, construction, or modification of personal wireless service facilities. The regulation of the placement, construction, or modification of a personal wireless service facility by any State or local government or instrumentality thereof— shall not discriminate among personal wireless service facilities or providers of communications service, including by providing exclusive or preferential use of facilities to a particular provider or class of providers of personal wireless service; and shall not prohibit or have the effect of prohibiting the provision, improvement, or enhancement of personal wireless service. It is not a violation of clause
(i)for a State or local government or instrumentality thereof to establish for personal wireless service facilities, or structures that support such facilities, objective, reasonable, and nondiscriminatory— structural engineering standards based on generally applicable codes; safety requirements (subject to clause (vi)); or aesthetic or concealment requirements, unless such requirements prohibit or have the effect of prohibiting the installation or modification of such facilities or structures. A State or local government or instrumentality thereof shall grant or deny a request for authorization to place, construct, or modify a personal wireless service facility not later than— in the case of a request for authorization to place, construct, or modify a personal wireless service facility that is not a small personal wireless service facility— if the request is for authorization to place, construct, or modify such facility using an existing structure, including with respect to an area that has not previously been zoned for personal wireless service facilities (other than small personal wireless service facilities), 90 days after the date on which the request is submitted by the requesting party to the government or instrumentality; or if the request is for any other action relating to such facility, 150 days after the date on which the request is submitted by the requesting party to the government or instrumentality; and in the case of a request for authorization to place, construct, or modify a small personal wireless service facility— if the request is for authorization to place, construct, or modify such facility using an existing structure, including with respect to an area that has not previously been zoned for personal wireless service facilities, 60 days after the date on which the request is submitted by the requesting party to the government or instrumentality; or if the request is for any other action relating to such facility, 90 days after the date on which the request is submitted by the requesting party to the government or instrumentality. In the case of requests described in subclause
(I)that are submitted as part of a single batch by the requesting party to the government or instrumentality on the same day, the applicable timeframe under such subclause for each request in the batch shall be the longest timeframe under such subclause that would be applicable to any request in the batch if such requests were submitted separately. The applicable timeframe under subclause
(I)shall apply collectively to all proceedings, including related permits and authorizations, required by a State or local government or instrumentality thereof for the approval of the request. A timeframe under subclause
(I)may not be tolled by any moratorium, whether express or de facto, imposed by a State or local government or instrumentality thereof on the submission, acceptance, or consideration of any request for authorization to place, construct, or modify a personal wireless service facility. If, not later than 10 days after the date on which a requesting party submits to a State or local government or instrumentality thereof a request for authorization to place, construct, or modify a small personal wireless service facility, the government or instrumentality provides to the requesting party a written notice described in item
(cc)with respect to the request, the timeframe described in subclause
(I)is tolled with respect to the request and shall restart at zero on the date on which the requesting party submits to the government or instrumentality a supplemental submission in response to the notice. If, not later than 30 days after the date on which a requesting party submits to a State or local government or instrumentality thereof a request for authorization to place, construct, or modify a personal wireless service facility that is not a small personal wireless service facility, the government or instrumentality provides to the requesting party a written notice described in item
(cc)with respect to the request, the timeframe described in subclause
(I)is tolled with respect to the request until the date on which the requesting party submits to the government or instrumentality a supplemental submission in response to the notice. If, not later than 10 days after the date on which a requesting party submits to a State or local government or instrumentality thereof a supplemental submission in response to a written notice described in item (cc), the government or instrumentality provides to the requesting party a written notice described in item
(cc)with respect to the supplemental submission, the timeframe under subclause
(I)is further tolled until the date on which the requesting party submits to the government or instrumentality a subsequent supplemental submission in response to the notice. The written notice described in this item is, with respect to a request described in subclause
(I)or a supplemental submission described in item
(aa)or
(bb)submitted to a State or local government or instrumentality thereof by a requesting party, a written notice from the government or instrumentality to the requesting party— stating that all of the information (including any form or other document) required by the government or instrumentality to be submitted for the request to be considered complete has not been submitted; identifying the information described in subitem
(AA)that was not submitted; and including a citation to a specific provision of a publicly available rule, regulation, or standard issued by the government or instrumentality requiring that such information be submitted with such a request. If a written notice provided by a State or local government or instrumentality thereof to a requesting party under item
(bb)with respect to a supplemental submission identifies as not having been submitted any information that was not identified as not having been submitted in the prior written notice under this subclause in response to which the supplemental submission was submitted, the subsequent written notice shall be treated as not having been provided to the requesting party. The timeframe under subclause
(I)may be tolled once, for a period of not more than 30 days, by mutual agreement between the State or local government or instrumentality thereof and the requesting party. If a State or local government or instrumentality thereof fails to take final action to grant or deny a request within the applicable timeframe under subclause
(I)of clause (iii), the request shall be deemed granted on the date on which the government or instrumentality receives a written notice of the failure from the requesting party. In the case of a request that is deemed granted under subclause (I), the placement, construction, or modification requested in the request shall be considered to be authorized, without any further action by the government or instrumentality, beginning on the date on which the request is deemed granted under such subclause. Any decision by a State or local government or instrumentality thereof to deny a request for authorization to place, construct, or modify a personal wireless service facility shall be— in writing; supported by substantial evidence contained in a written record; and publicly released, and provided to the requesting party, on the same day such decision is made. No State or local government or instrumentality thereof may regulate the operation, placement, construction, or modification of personal wireless service facilities on the basis of the environmental effects of radio frequency emissions to the extent that such facilities or structures comply with the Commission’s regulations concerning such emissions. To the extent permitted by law, a State or local government or instrumentality thereof may charge a fee to consider a request for authorization to place, construct, or modify a personal wireless service facility or a fee for use of a right-of-way or a facility in a right-of-way owned or managed by the government or instrumentality for the placement, construction, or modification of a personal wireless service facility, if the fee is— competitively neutral, technology neutral, and nondiscriminatory; established in advance and publicly disclosed; calculated— based on actual and direct costs for— review and processing of requests; and repairs and replacement of components and materials directly resulting from and affected by the placement, construction, or modification (including the installation or improvement) of personal wireless service facilities or repairs and replacement of equipment that facilitates the placement, construction, or modification (including the installation or improvement) of such facilities; and using, for purposes of item (aa), only costs that are objectively reasonable; and described to a requesting party in a manner that distinguishes between— nonrecurring fees and recurring fees; and the use of facilities on which personal wireless service facilities are already located and facilities on which there are no personal wireless service facilities as of the date on which the request is submitted by the requesting party to the government or instrumentality. Any person adversely affected by any final action or failure to act by a State or local government or any instrumentality thereof that is inconsistent with this paragraph may, within 30 days after the action or failure to act, commence an action in any court of competent jurisdiction, which shall hear and decide the action on an expedited basis. For the purposes of this paragraph, a request to a State or local government or instrumentality thereof shall be considered submitted on the date on which the requesting party takes the first procedural step within the control of the requesting party— to submit such request in accordance with the procedures established by the government or instrumentality for the review and approval of such a request; or in the case of a government or instrumentality that has not established specific procedures for the review and approval of such a request, to submit to the government or instrumentality the type of filing that is typically required to initiate a standard review for a similar facility or structure. Nothing in this paragraph may be construed to affect section 6409(a) of the Middle Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act of 2012 ( 47 U.S.C. 1455(a) ). Any regulation promulgated by the Commission to implement this paragraph (including any interpretation of the requirements of and terms used in this paragraph contained in any such regulation) shall be binding on a court in any action under subparagraph (C). In this paragraph: The term antenna means an apparatus designed for the purpose of emitting radiofrequency radiation, to be operated or operating from a fixed location for the transmission of writing, signs, signals, data, images, pictures, and sounds of all kinds. The term communications network means a network used to provide a communications service. The term communications service means each of— cable service, as defined in section 602; information service; telecommunications service; and personal wireless service. The term generally applicable code means a uniform building, fire, electrical, plumbing, or mechanical code adopted by a national code organization, or a local amendment to such a code, to the extent not inconsistent with this Act. The term network interface device means a telecommunications demarcation device and cross-connect point that— is adjacent or proximate to— a small personal wireless service facility; or a structure supporting a small personal wireless service facility; and demarcates the boundary with any wireline backhaul facility. The term personal wireless service means any fixed or mobile service (other than a broadcasting service) provided via licensed or unlicensed frequencies, including— commercial mobile service; commercial mobile data service (as defined in section 6001 of the Middle Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act of 2012 ( 47 U.S.C. 1401 )); unlicensed wireless service; and common carrier wireless exchange access service. The term personal wireless service facility means a facility used to provide or support the provision of personal wireless service. The term small personal wireless service facility means a personal wireless service facility— that is mounted— on a structure 50 feet or less in height (including any antenna); or on a structure not more than 10 percent taller than other adjacent structures; that does not extend the structure on which such facility is mounted to a height of more than 50 feet or by more than 10 percent, whichever is greater; and in which each antenna is not more than 3 cubic feet in volume (excluding a wireline backhaul facility connected to such personal wireless service facility). The term unlicensed wireless service — means the offering of telecommunications service or information service using a duly authorized device that does not require an individual license; and does not include the provision of direct-to-home satellite services, as defined in section 303(v). The term wireline backhaul facility means an above-ground or underground wireline facility used to transport communications service or other electronic communications from a small personal wireless service facility or the adjacent network interface device of such facility to a communications network. .
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