Local Stakeholders Want More FCC Action on RF Safety, 5G
Local governments and their advocates want more FCC action related to RF safety and wireless including 5G, they told a conference in Tampa Monday. General Counsel Nancy Werner of meeting sponsor NATOA noted that federal law bars towns from considering…
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cellular structures based on such emissions, even though communities may want such power. "For years now," NATOA been asking for an FCC update about RF safety, she noted, and FCC Chairman Ajit Pai has an item circulating (see 1908080061). "I don’t think that what we will get from the FCC will appease the concerns of residents," Werner said. "I suspect that the wireless industry knows that isn’t going to be good enough." It’s unclear it's "going to address the specific concerns" of small cells, said the lawyer, who nonetheless hopes it does. "There's an opportunity for us to educate on what 5G is" that could include safety considerations, said T-Mobile Principal Corporate Counsel-Land Use Dylan Fuge. "In explaining what it can do and sort of the transformation, I think there’s the perception that it’s really different" and this generation "came out of the ether," Fuge said. "I think there’s the feeling that it’s the ‘other,'" he added. "There’s an opportunity to do some work there." Government can hold public events on this issue, said Austin Telecom and Regulatory Affairs Officer Rondella Hawkins. An official from another city, speaking from the audience, said that "we just feel like our hands are tied under current law." The FCC declined to comment. CTIA's "pleased" Pai's item "would preserve the existing guidance for health and safety, in keeping with the international scientific consensus," emailed a spokesperson for that association. "We look forward to the FCC completing the proceeding soon."