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A federal appeals court commissioner has, for now, set a schedule that sorts out the various challenges to last year’s Federal Communications Commission decisions that preempted local ownership of streetlights and similar infrastructure, and put tight restrictions on how local governments manage public right of ways. Last week Peter Shaw, a commissioner for the ninth circuit federal appeals court in San Francisco, met with attorneys for local agencies and associations that are challenging various aspects of the order, and with lawyers for mobile carriers that are pretending to be upset with the FCC’s decisions, but are actually jumping in on its side.… More

The federal appellate court review of two Federal Communications Commission rulings that preempt local authority over wireless attachment and wireline excavation permits, and take away local ownership of streetlight poles and similar property will continue, albeit slowly. Yesterday, the ninth circuit court of appeals in San Francisco refused to ice the case completely, as requested by the FCC and as dutifully echoed by wireless carriers.

Instead, the court consolidated the twelve separate appeals of the September wireless attachment order into a single case, and assigned it to the same set of judges who will consider two appeals of the August wireline excavation order.… More

The FCC wants to stall a federal appellate court review of its order preempting local ownership of street light poles and similar municipal assets located in the public right of way. Dozens of cities, counties and associations pushed back against the move, telling the court they would face “significant hardships” if their appeal was iced for months while the FCC pretends to reconsider its original ruling at its leisure.

There’s no hardship, the FCC told the San Francisco-based ninth circuit federal appeals court in its reply.… More

The cities and counties that are challenging the Federal Communication Commission’s preemption of local ownership of streetlight poles and other assets located in the public right of way don’t want any delays in their cases. In filings yesterday with the ninth circuit federal appeals court in San Francisco, local agencies objected to the FCC’s request to put everything on hold while it thinks about whether it’s going to reconsider its decision. Which could take months, or longer.… More

The Federal Communications Commission asked the federal appeals court in San Francisco to put cases filed against it by local governments on hold.

Dozens of cities, counties and associations sued the FCC, challenging its preemption of local ownership of street light poles and other assets in the public right of way. Several have also asked the FCC to reconsider its September decision, which is a routine administrative request that is routinely denied. But the FCC hasn’t done anything with it yet, and is using its own inaction as an excuse to stall the court case.… More

People at the Federal Communications Commission might have leaned on AT&T, Verizon, Sprint and the Puerto Rico Telephone Company to go shopping for sympathetic judges who would be more likely to bless its preemption of local ownership of streetlight poles and similar municipal assets. A letter sent by a pair of democratic congressmen – Frank Pallone (D – New Jersey) and Mike Doyle (D – Pennsylvania) – directs republican FCC chairman Ajit Pai to enlighten them on why the four wireless companies filed largely identical and completely ludicrous appeals of its September order…

It has come to our attention that certain individuals at the FCC may have urged companies to challenge the Order the Commission adopted in order to game the judicial lottery procedure and intimated the agency would look unfavorably towards entities that were not helpful.