Tribal Consultation with FCC Chairman Ajit Pai
The FCC's Office of Native Affairs and Policy and Wireless Telecommunications Bureau are hosting a Tribal Consultation with FCC Chairman Ajit Pai and staff from the Chairman's office along with senior FCC staff from ONAP and WTB on issues addressed in the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking and Notice of Inquiry entitled Accelerating Wireless Broadband Deployment by Removing Barriers to Infrastructure Investment, WT Docket No. 17-79.
The consultation meeting will be held on Tuesday, August 22, 2017 from 2:00 PM to 5:00 PM at the Twin Arrows Navajo Casino Resort, located at 22181 Resort Blvd., Flagstaff, AZ 86004. Tribal representatives are encouraged to register promptly to help us ensure that we are able to accommodate all persons desiring to attend. To register, please send an e-mail containing your name, your Tribal affiliation, and your Tribal government position to ArizonaConsultation@fcc.gov. On-site registration will begin 30 minutes prior to the beginning of the meeting. Because of the government-to-government nature of consultation, this event will not be open to the public or to members of the press.
The meeting will focus on the NPRM and NOI, which can be found at: https://www.fcc.gov/document/fcc-takes-steps-to-promote-wireless-broadband-deployment. The NPRM/NOI seeks comment on, among other issues, the historic preservation and Tribal review processes currently required to deploy wireless facilities. Reply Comments were due on July 17, 2017, but comments filed after that date will still be considered to be part of the record. Tribal Nations are highly encouraged to submit comments even though the formal comment period has closed. Comments filed now should, however, be labeled as ex parte.
The FCC looks forward to engaging in a meaningful government-to-government dialogue on these important topics. If you have additional questions, or wish to discuss other opportunities to participate in consultation, please send an email to tribalinfrastructure@fcc.gov.
The Commission remains committed to consultation and intends to hold an additional consultation meeting in Washington D.C. in the coming weeks. When it becomes available, information on that meeting will be posted on the ONAP website, www.fcc.gov/native.