UPDATED: FCC Extends Timeline for Public Comment, Berliner Asks Leggett for Input on Telecommunications Facilities
UPDATED The FCC has revised the deadline for public comments about small cell infrastructure until March 8, following a request by several national organizations. You can find more information about the timeline, here.
ORIGINAL POST Montgomery County Council President Roger Berliner has written a letter to County Executive Ike Leggett about telecommunications facilities.
The letter follows a public notice by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) for comments about small cell antennas. Comments are due by Feb. 6.
“We believe the county would be best served by a joint letter to the FCC indicating the county’s interest in retaining its authority over new telecommunications facilities,” writes Berliner. “We could agree to hire outside council to join with other jurisdictions, if you believe it is in the county’s interest to do so. The Council looks forward to seeing your draft comments to the FCC that I can sign with you.”
In his Jan. 19 letter, Berliner references the hundreds of small cell applications before the Telecommunications Facilities Committee in Montgomery County.
“These applications involve the use of county rights-of-way and invoke the county’s process of conditional use approval,” said Berliner. “The Council has been petitioned by concerned residents to retain the Center for Municipal Solutions, a firm based in North Carolina, to assist the county in drafting appropriate county measures that would maximize their community protection in the process.”
You may remember the County Council hosted a forum on small cell antennas last fall. The city of Gaithersburg is holding a work session on the topic on Feb. 13.
You can read Berliner’s letter in its entirety, below:
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