By: Kery Murakami | Route Fifty
With more than $42 billion in funding being distributed to states by the end of June to expand broadband around the country, House Republicans are pushing for changes to make the permitting process easier and faster.
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Several of the Republican bills being considered by the subcommittee exempt projects from environmental reviews as a means of speeding up permitting.
A bill being worked on by Rep. Russ Fulcher, an Idaho Republican, would exempt broadband projects on federal lands from being reviewed to see if they comply with NEPA and the historic preservation act. Another bill pushed by Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers, a Washington Republican, would exempt projects to rebuild wifi connectivity that was damaged in wildfires from environmental reviews.
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