119-hr1617

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1617 Introduced in House

    (IH) ]

<DOC>

119th CONGRESS
 1st Session
 H. R. 1617

 To amend the Middle Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act of 2012 to 
streamline the consideration by State and local governments of requests 
for modification of certain existing wireless facilities, and for other 
 purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

 February 26, 2025

Mr. Langworthy introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
 Committee on Energy and Commerce

_______________________________________________________________________

 A BILL

 To amend the Middle Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act of 2012 to 
streamline the consideration by State and local governments of requests 
for modification of certain existing wireless facilities, and for other 
 purposes.

 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

 This Act may be cited as the ``Wireless Resiliency and Flexible 
Investment Act of 2025''.

SEC. 2. REQUESTS FOR MODIFICATION OF CERTAIN EXISTING WIRELESS 
 FACILITIES.

    (a) In General.--

Section 6409

    (a) of the Middle Class Tax Relief and 
Job Creation Act of 2012 (47 U.S.C. 1455

    (a) ) is amended--

    (1) in paragraph

    (1) , by striking ``a State or local 
 government'' and all that follows and inserting the following: 
 ``a State or local government or instrumentality thereof may 
 not deny, and shall approve, any eligible facilities request 
 for a modification of an existing wireless tower, base station, 
 or eligible support structure that does not substantially 
 change the physical dimensions of such wireless tower, base 
 station, or eligible support structure.'';

    (2) by amending paragraph

    (2) to read as follows:
 ``

    (2) Timeframe.--
 ``
        (A) Deemed approval.--If a State or local 
 government or instrumentality thereof does not, before 
 or on the date that is 60 days after the date on which 
 a requesting party submits to the government or 
 instrumentality a request as an eligible facilities 
 request, approve the request or make the determination 
 and provide the written notice described in 
 subparagraph
        (B) with respect to the request, the 
 request is deemed approved on the day after the date 
 that is 60 days after the date on which the requesting 
 party submits the request.
 ``
        (B) Determination request is not eligible 
 facilities request.--
 ``
            (i) Determination described.--The 
 determination described in this subparagraph is 
 a determination by a State or local government 
 or instrumentality thereof that a request 
 described in subparagraph
        (A) is not an 
 eligible facilities request.
 ``
            (ii) Written notice described.--The 
 written notice described in this subparagraph 
 is a written notice of the determination 
 described in clause
            (i) provided by the 
 government or instrumentality to the requesting 
 party that clearly describes the reasons why 
 the request is not an eligible facilities 
 request and includes a citation to a specific 
 provision of this subsection or the regulations 
 promulgated under this subsection relied upon 
 for the determination.
 ``
            (C) Tolling due to incompleteness.--
 ``
            (i) Initial request incomplete.--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 
 described in subparagraph
        (A) , the government 
 or instrumentality provides to the requesting 
 party a written notice described in clause
            (iii) with respect to the request, the 60-day 
 timeframe under subparagraph
        (A) is tolled 
 until the date on which the requesting party 
 submits to the government or instrumentality a 
 supplemental submission in response to the 
 notice.
 ``
            (ii) Supplemental submission 
 incomplete.--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 under clause
            (i) with 
 respect to a request described in subparagraph
        (A) or a written notice under this clause with 
 respect to a subsequent supplemental 
 submission, the government or instrumentality 
 provides to the requesting party a written 
 notice described in clause
            (iii) with respect 
 to the supplemental submission, the 60-day 
 timeframe under subparagraph
        (A) 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.
 ``
            (iii) Written notice described.--The 
 written notice described in this clause is, 
 with respect to a request described in 
 subparagraph
        (A) or a supplemental submission 
 described in clause
            (i) or
            (ii) 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--
 ``
            (I) 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;
 ``
            (II) identifying the information 
 described in subclause
            (I) that was not 
 submitted; and
 ``
            (III) 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.
 ``
            (iv) Limitation.--
 ``
            (I) Initial written notice.--If a 
 written notice provided by a State or 
 local government or instrumentality 
 thereof to a requesting party under 
 clause
            (i) with respect to a request 
 described in subparagraph
        (A) identifies as not having been submitted 
 any information that the government or 
 instrumentality is prohibited by 
 paragraph

    (5) from requiring to be 
 submitted, such notice shall be treated 
 as not having been provided to the 
 requesting party.
 ``
            (II) Subsequent written notice.--
 If a written notice provided by a State 
 or local government or instrumentality 
 thereof to a requesting party under 
 clause
            (ii) 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 clause
            (i) or
            (ii) 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.
 ``
            (D) Tolling by mutual agreement.--In addition to 
 any tolling under subparagraph
            (C) , the 60-day 
 timeframe under subparagraph
        (A) may be tolled by 
 mutual agreement between the State or local government 
 or instrumentality thereof and the requesting party.'';

    (3) in paragraph

    (3) , by striking ``paragraph

    (1) '' and 
 inserting ``this subsection''; and

    (4) by adding at the end the following:
 ``

    (4) When request considered submitted.--
 ``
        (A) In general.--For the purposes of this 
 subsection, a request described in paragraph

    (2)
        (A) shall be considered submitted on the date on which the 
 requesting party takes the first procedural step within 
 the control of the requesting party--
 ``
            (i) 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
 ``
            (ii) 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.
 ``
        (B) No pre-application requirements.--A State or 
 local government or instrumentality thereof may not 
 require a requesting party to undertake any process, 
 meeting, or other step prior to or as a prerequisite to 
 a request being considered submitted.
 ``

    (5) Limitation on required documentation.--A State or 
 local government or instrumentality thereof may require a 
 requesting party submitting a request as an eligible facilities 
 request to submit information (including a form or other 
 document) with such request only to the extent that such 
 information is reasonably related to determining whether such 
 request is an eligible facilities request and is identified in 
 a publicly available rule, regulation, or standard issued by 
 the government or instrumentality requiring that such 
 information be submitted with such a request. A State or local 
 government or instrumentality thereof may not require a 
 requesting party to submit any other documentation or 
 information with such a request.
 ``

    (6) Enforcement.--
 ``
        (A) In general.--A requesting party may bring an 
 action in any district court of the United States to 
 enforce the provisions of this subsection.
 ``
        (B) Expedited review.--A district court of the 
 United States shall consider an action under 
 subparagraph
        (A) on an expedited basis.
 ``

    (7) === Definitions. ===
-In this subsection:
 ``
        (A) Eligible facilities request.--The term 
 `eligible facilities request' means any request for a 
 modification of an existing wireless tower, base 
 station, or eligible support structure that does not 
 substantially change the physical dimensions of such 
 wireless tower, base station, or eligible support 
 structure and that involves--
 ``
            (i) collocation of new transmission 
 equipment;
 ``
            (ii) removal of transmission equipment;
 ``
            (iii) replacement of transmission 
 equipment; or
 ``
            (iv) placement, construction, or 
 modification of equipment that--
 ``
            (I) improves the resiliency of 
 the wireless tower, base station, or 
 eligible support structure; and
 ``
            (II) provides a direct benefit to 
 public safety, such as--
 ``

    (aa) providing backup 
 power for the wireless tower, 
 base station, or eligible 
 support structure;
 ``

    (bb) hardening the 
 wireless tower, base station, 
 or eligible support structure; 
 or
 ``
            (cc) providing more 
 reliable connection capability 
 using the wireless tower, base 
 station, or eligible support 
 structure.
 ``
        (B) Eligible support structure.--The term 
 `eligible support structure' means a structure that, at 
 the time when an eligible facilities request for a 
 modification of such structure is submitted to a State 
 or local government or instrumentality thereof, 
 supports or could support transmission equipment.
 ``
            (C) Transmission equipment.--The term 
 `transmission equipment' has the meaning given such 
 term in 

section 1.6100

    (b)

    (8) of title 47, Code of 
 Federal Regulations (as in effect on the date of the 
 enactment of this paragraph).''.

    (b) Implementation.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, the Federal Communications Commission shall 
issue final rules to implement the amendments made by subsection

    (a) .
            (c) Applicability.--The amendments made by subsection

    (a) shall 
apply with respect to any eligible facilities request described in 
paragraph

    (1) of 

section 6409

    (a) of the Middle Class Tax Relief and Job 
Creation Act of 2012 (47 U.S.C. 1455

    (a) ) that is submitted (as 
determined under paragraph

    (4) of such section, as added by subsection

    (a) ) by a requesting party on or after the date of the enactment of 
this Act.
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