With a broad boost from U.S. Reps. Anna G. Eshoo and Jackie Speier (D-Palo Alto, Hillsborough), a large coalition of Western cities and counties are waging a legal showdown with a shuttered federal government in the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals over control of 5G wireless installations. Eshoo's bill, H.R. 530 -- called the Accelerating Wireless Broadband Development by Empowering Local Communities Act of 2019, "essentially resets the clock on the FCC's new rules by erasing what the federal government has implemented in the under-the-wire maneuver." Eshoo noted "5G is essential for our country's communications network and economy, but it must be deployed responsibly and equitably."
Manteca city leaders ponder agreement for small cell towers
The city council in Manteca, CA, is considering approving a "master pole agreement for wireless providers to install cells sites on city property." The agreement "establishes a streamlined encroachment permit process. It also establishes policies for controlling location, aestheti...
AT&T is creating a 5G hospital
AT&T is partnering with Rush University Medical Center to "create the first 5G-enabled hospital in the US. The technology is expected to speed up network communications and reduce latency to help improve care at the Chicago hospital." AT&T also announced that "it’s installin...
Report: Charleston lags behind other SC towns in high-speed Internet availability
A report from BroadbandNow shows only 9.4 percent of Charleston County residents have access to high-quality, high-speed fiber Internet service. Meanwhile, 17.9 percent of South Carolinians can buy fiber Internet if they wish, and 27.1 percent of all Americans can. The Charleston ...
Saratoga Springs to lay fiber networks
Over the summer, city officials in Saratoga Springs, NY signed a long-term contract with SiFi Networks to design, install and maintain a fiber optic network, "making it the first municipality in the state and one of only a handful in the nation to embrace the technology." The agre...
Smyth County is striving to expand broadband access
Smyth County Board of Supervisors in Virginia "gave its OK for county administration staff to pursue funding that would help bring high-speed internet access to a portion of eastern Smyth County." A resolution adopted by the supervisors said that Comcast "has recently discussed it...
Broadband report says Concord’s options are small and not all that impressive
In a report issued by BroadbandNow, an analysis of broadband in Concord found that there "aren’t many options for most homeowners." The report concludes that the high end of Concord services are slower than state and national high ends. "The top 10 percent of download speeds...