House panel approves broadband permitting overhaul
Source: Roll Call
Posted December 4, 2025 at 8:18am
The House Energy and Commerce Committee voted 26-24 along party lines Wednesday to advance a bill to overhaul the broadband permitting system. The permitting bill would set deadlines for state and local governments to approve or deny certain projects, including personal wireless facilities and telecommunications service facilities, after which the projects would be deemed approved.
The bill also would set rules for what fees can be charged for permitting applications. It would similarly set deadlines for the approval of requests related to cable franchises. The bill also would exempt certain connectivity projects, including those in public rights of way or where easements have already been granted for communications facilities, as well as those in floodplains or brownfield sites, from certain reviews under the National Environmental Policy Act and the National Historic Preservation Act.
The effort comes as the National Telecommunications and Information Administration has begun approving state proposals for grants to expand access to high-speed internet through the Broadband Equity Access and Deployment — or BEAD — program, and as the Trump administration mulls connecting some of the funding to state laws governing artificial intelligence. A draft executive order first published by a news outlet in late November would require the federal government to develop a list of state AI laws that make those states ineligible for non-deployment funds through the program.
A White House spokesperson said in a statement that “until officially announced by the WH, discussion about potential executive orders is speculation.” The committee also advanced six bipartisan bills, including some to modernize the permitting process for connectivity projects on federal lands. Those bills would create an online portal for applications, require a plan for tracking applications and creating greater transparency and require a report on barriers to establishing an online portal.
Read more: https://rollcall.com/2025/12/04/house-panel-approves-broadband-permitting-overhaul/