Rural Broadband Permitting Efficiency Act of 2019

I 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 292 To allow certain State and Tribal permitting authority to encourage expansion of broadband service to rural and Tribal communities, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES JANUARY 8, 2019 Mr. CURTIS introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources, and in addition to the Committee on Agriculture, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned A BILL To allow certain State and Tribal permitting authority to encourage expansion of broadband service to rural and Tribal communities, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Rural Broadband Per- 4 mitting Efficiency Act of 2019’’. 5 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 6 In this Act: 7 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:29 Jan 22, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H292.IH H292 pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 292 IH (1) BROADBAND PROJECT.—The term ‘‘broad- 1 band project’’ means an installation by a broadband 2 provider of wireless or broadband infrastructure, in- 3 cluding but not limited to, copper lines, fiber optic 4 lines, communications towers, buildings, or other im- 5 provements on Federal land. 6 (2) BROADBAND PROVIDER.—The term ‘‘broad- 7 band provider’’ means a provider of wireless or 8 broadband infrastructure that enables a user to 9 originate and receive high-quality voice, data, graph- 10 ics, and video telecommunications. 11 (3) INDIAN LANDS.—The term ‘‘Indian Lands’’ 12 means— 13 (A) any land owned by an Indian Tribe, lo- 14 cated within the boundaries of an Indian res- 15 ervation, pueblo, or rancheria; or 16 (B) any land located within the boundaries 17 of an Indian reservation, pueblo, or rancheria, 18 the title to which is held— 19 (i) in trust by the United States for 20 the benefit of an Indian Tribe or an indi- 21 vidual Indian; 22 (ii) by an Indian Tribe or an indi- 23 vidual Indian, subject to restriction against 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:29 Jan 22, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H292.IH H292 pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 292 IH alienation under laws of the United States; 1 or 2 (iii) by a dependent Indian commu- 3 nity. 4 (4) INDIAN TRIBE.—The term ‘‘Indian Tribe’’ 5 means a federally recognized Indian Tribe. 6 (5) OPERATIONAL RIGHT-OF-WAY.—The term 7 ‘‘operational right-of-way’’ means all real property 8 interests (including easements) acquired for the con- 9 struction or operation of a project, including the lo- 10 cations of the roadway, bridges, interchanges, cul- 11 verts, drainage, clear zone, traffic control signage, 12 landscaping, copper and fiber optic lines, utility shel- 13 ters, and broadband infrastructure as installed by 14 broadband providers, and any rest areas with direct 15 access to a controlled access highway or the National 16 Highway System. 17 (6) SECRETARY CONCERNED.—The term ‘‘Sec- 18 retary concerned’’ means— 19 (A) the Secretary of Agriculture (acting 20 through the Chief of the Forest Service), with 21 respect to National Forest System land; and 22 (B) the Secretary of the Interior, with re- 23 spect to land managed by the Department of 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:29 Jan 22, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H292.IH H292 pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 292 IH the Interior (including land held in trust for an 1 Indian Tribe). 2 SEC. 3. STATE OR TRIBAL PERMITTING AUTHORITY. 3 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary concerned shall es- 4 tablish (or in the case where both Department of the Inte- 5 rior and National Forest System land would be affected, 6 shall jointly establish) a voluntary program under which 7 any State or Indian Tribe may offer, and the Secretary 8 concerned may agree, to enter into a memorandum of un- 9 derstanding to allow for the State or Indian Tribe to pre- 10 pare environmental analyses required under the National 11 Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et 12 seq.) for the permitting of broadband projects within an 13 operational right-of-way on National Forest System land, 14 land managed by the Department of the Interior, and In- 15 dian Lands. Under such a memorandum of understanding, 16 an Indian Tribe or State may volunteer to cooperate with 17 the signatories to the memorandum in the preparation of 18 the analyses required under the National Environmental 19 Policy Act of 1969. 20 (b) ASSUMPTION OF RESPONSIBILITIES.— 21 (1) IN GENERAL.—In entering into a memo- 22 randum of understanding under this section, the 23 Secretary concerned may assign to the State or In- 24 dian Tribe, and the State or Indian Tribe may agree 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:29 Jan 22, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H292.IH H292 pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS 5 •HR 292 IH to assume, all or part of the responsibilities of the 1 Secretary concerned for environmental analyses 2 under the National Environmental Policy Act of 3 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.). 4 (2) STATE OR INDIAN TRIBE RESPONSI- 5 BILITY.— 6 (A) IN GENERAL.—A State or Indian 7 Tribe that assumes any responsibility under 8 paragraph (1) shall be subject to the same pro- 9 cedural and substantive requirements as would 10 apply if the responsibility were carried out by 11 the Secretary concerned. 12 (B) EFFECT OF ASSUMPTION OF RESPON- 13 SIBILITY.—A State or Indian Tribe that as- 14 sumes any responsibility, including financial re- 15 sponsibility, under paragraph (1) shall be solely 16 responsible and solely liable for carrying out, in 17 lieu of the Secretary concerned, the responsibil- 18 ities assumed under that paragraph until the 19 date on which the program is terminated under 20 subsection (g). 21 (C) ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW.—A State 22 or Indian Tribe that assumes any responsibility 23 under paragraph (1) shall comply with the envi- 24 ronmental review procedures under parts 1500– 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:29 Jan 22, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H292.IH H292 pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS 6 •HR 292 IH 1508 of title 40, Code of Federal Regulations 1 (or successor regulations), and the regulations 2 of the Secretary concerned. 3 (3) FEDERAL RESPONSIBILITY.—Any responsi- 4 bility of the Secretary concerned described in para- 5 graph (1) that is not explicitly assumed by the State 6 or Indian Tribe in the memorandum of under- 7 standing shall remain the responsibility of the Sec- 8 retary concerned. 9 (c) OFFER AND NOTIFICATION.—A State or Indian 10 Tribe that intends to offer to enter into a memorandum 11 of understanding under this section shall provide to the 12 Secretary concerned notice of the intent of the State or 13 Indian Tribe not later than 90 days before the date on 14 which the State or Indian Tribe submits a formal written 15 offer to the Secretary concerned. 16 (d) TRIBAL CONSULTATION.—Within 90 days of en- 17 tering into any memorandum of understanding with a 18 State, the Secretary concerned shall initiate consultation 19 with relevant Indian Tribes. 20 (e) MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING.—A memo- 21 randum of understanding entered into under this section 22 shall— 23 (1) be executed by the Governor or the Gov- 24 ernor’s designee, or in the case of an Indian Tribe, 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:29 Jan 22, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H292.IH H292 pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS 7 •HR 292 IH by an officer designated by the governing body of 1 the Indian Tribe; 2 (2) be for a term not to exceed 10 years; 3 (3) be in such form as the Secretary concerned 4 may prescribe; 5 (4) provide that the State or Indian Tribe— 6 (A) agrees to assume all or part of the re- 7 sponsibilities of the Secretary concerned de- 8 scribed in subsection (b)(1); 9 (B) expressly consents, including through 10 the adoption of express waivers of sovereign im- 11 munity, on behalf of the State or Indian Tribe, 12 to accept the jurisdiction of the Federal courts 13 for the compliance, discharge, and enforcement 14 of any responsibility of the Secretary concerned 15 assumed by the State or Indian Tribe; 16 (C) certify that State laws and regulations, 17 with respect to States, or Tribal laws and regu- 18 lations, with respect to Indian Tribes, are in ef- 19 fect that— 20 (i) authorize the State or Indian Tribe 21 to take the actions necessary to carry out 22 the responsibilities being assumed; and 23 (ii) are comparable to section 552 of 24 title 5, United States Code, including pro- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:29 Jan 22, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H292.IH H292 pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS 8 •HR 292 IH viding that any decision regarding the pub- 1 lic availability of a document under the 2 State laws is reviewable by a court of com- 3 petent jurisdiction; 4 (D) agrees to maintain the financial re- 5 sources necessary to carry out the responsibil- 6 ities being assumed; 7 (E) agrees to provide to the Secretary con- 8 cerned any information the Secretary concerned 9 considers necessary to ensure that the State or 10 Indian Tribe is adequately carrying out the re- 11 sponsibilities assigned to and assumed by the 12 State or Indian Tribe; 13 (F) agrees to return revenues generated 14 from the use of public lands authorized under 15 this section to the United States annually, in 16 accordance with the Federal Land Policy Man- 17 agement Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.); 18 and 19 (G) agrees to send a copy of all author- 20 izing documents to the United States for proper 21 notation and recordkeeping; 22 (5) prioritize and expedite any analyses under 23 the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:29 Jan 22, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H292.IH H292 pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS 9 •HR 292 IH U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) under the memorandum of un- 1 derstanding; 2 (6) not be granted to a State on Indian Lands 3 without the consent of the relevant Indian Tribe; 4 and 5 (7) not be granted to an Indian Tribe on State 6 lands without the consent of the relevant State. 7 (f) LIMITATION.—Nothing in this section permits a 8 State or Indian Tribe to assume— 9 (1) any rulemaking authority of the Secretary 10 concerned under any Federal law; and 11 (2) Federal Government responsibilities for gov- 12 ernment-to-government consultation with Indian 13 Tribes. 14 (g) TERMINATION.— 15 (1) TERMINATION BY THE SECRETARY.—The 16 Secretary concerned may terminate the participation 17 of any State or Indian Tribe in the program estab- 18 lished under this section if— 19 (A) the Secretary concerned determines 20 that the State or Indian Tribe is not adequately 21 carrying out the responsibilities assigned to and 22 assumed by the State or Indian Tribe; 23 (B) the Secretary concerned provides to 24 the State or Indian Tribe— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:29 Jan 22, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H292.IH H292 pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS 10 •HR 292 IH (i) notification of the determination of 1 noncompliance; and 2 (ii) a period of at least 30 days during 3 which to take such corrective action as the 4 Secretary concerned determines is nec- 5 essary to comply with the applicable agree- 6 ment; and 7 (C) the State or Indian Tribe, after the no- 8 tification and period provided under subpara- 9 graph (B), fails to take satisfactory corrective 10 action, as determined by the Secretary con- 11 cerned. 12 (2) TERMINATION BY THE STATE OR INDIAN 13 TRIBE.—A State or Indian Tribe may terminate the 14 participation of the State or Indian Tribe in the pro- 15 gram established under this section at any time by 16 providing to the Secretary concerned a notice of in- 17 tent to terminate by not later than the date that is 18 90 days before the date of termination. 19 (3) TERMINATION OF MEMORANDUM OF UN- 20 DERSTANDING WITH STATE OR INDIAN TRIBE.—A 21 State or an Indian Tribe may terminate a joint 22 memorandum of understanding under this section at 23 any time by providing to the Secretary concerned a 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:29 Jan 22, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H292.IH H292 pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS 11 •HR 292 IH notice of intent to terminate by no later than the 1 date that is 90 days before the date of termination. 2 SEC. 4. FEDERAL BROADBAND PERMIT COORDINATION. 3 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary concerned 4 shall establish a broadband permit streamlining team com- 5 prised of qualified staff under subsection (b)(4) in each 6 State or regional office that has been delegated responsi- 7 bility for issuing permits for broadband projects. 8 (b) MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING.— 9 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 90 days after 10 the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary con- 11 cerned, in consultation with the National Conference 12 of State Historic Preservation Officers and the Na- 13 tional Tribal Historic Preservation Officers Associa- 14 tion, shall enter into a memorandum of under- 15 standing to carry out this section with— 16 (A) the Secretary of Agriculture or of the 17 Interior, as appropriate; 18 (B) the Director of the Bureau of Indian 19 Affairs; and 20 (C) the Director of the United States Fish 21 and Wildlife Service. 22 (2) PURPOSE.—The purpose of the memo- 23 randum of understanding under paragraph (1) is to 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:29 Jan 22, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H292.IH H292 pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS 12 •HR 292 IH coordinate and expedite permitting decisions for 1 broadband projects. 2 (3) STATE OR TRIBAL PARTICIPATION.—The 3 Secretary concerned may request that the Governor 4 of any State or the officer designated by the gov- 5 erning body of the Indian Tribe with one or more 6 broadband projects be a party to the memorandum 7 of understanding under paragraph (1). 8 (4) DESIGNATION OF QUALIFIED STAFF.— 9 (A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 30 days 10 after the date of entrance into the memo- 11 randum of understanding under paragraph (1), 12 the head of each Federal agency that is a party 13 to the memorandum of understanding (other 14 than the Secretary concerned) may, if the head 15 of the Federal agency determines it to be ap- 16 propriate, designate to each State or regional 17 office an employee of that Federal agency with 18 expertise in regulatory issues relating to that 19 Federal agency, including, as applicable, par- 20 ticular expertise in— 21 (i) plann [Text truncated for display. 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