With a unanimous vote by the state Senate in the waning hours of the now-closed legislative session, Gov. Ned Lamont is poised to push forward on one of his campaign talking points: Making Connecticut a leader in the rollout of “5G” wireless technology.
The bill is headed to Lamont’s desk, and the former telecom entrepreneur is expected to sign it.
It establishes a council to review and approve requests from wireless carriers wanting to install antennae and other 5G infrastructure on state-owned property, and also sets up a process to help municipalities streamline their own regulations related to licensing public property for 5G installations.
AT&T Connecticut President John Emra posted an enthusiastic tweet early Thursday morning after the Senate vote.
“The passage of this important legislation will help to accelerate investment in cutting edge wireless technology which will grow our economy,” Emra wrote.
State regulators have seen an increasing number of applications from wireless companies wanting to install “small cell” antennae, which are seen as a vital piece of the still nascent rollout of the next-generation 5G wireless network across the U.S.
5G promises to be as much as 100 times faster than its 4G predecessor. But there are also plenty of hurdles and uncertainty.
The new bill aims to address some of them.
While Connecticut has existing processes in place for carriers that want to put that infrastructure on utility poles, getting approvals to site them on buildings or other structures in denser areas is a patchwork of state and local rules, which 5G advocates say has led to delays and difficulties in a potential 5G rollout.
“Access to ultra-fast internet speeds is critical to our economic future and the pursuit of good paying jobs for the residents of our state,” Lamont said in a statement. “We’re putting in place processes that will allow the telecommunications companies to build the infrastructure they need to make 5G a reality, and ensure that low-cost, high-speed WiFi is available in all of our cities and small towns.”
A newly created seven-member Council on 5G Technology, which will include the presidents of UConn and the Connecticut State Colleges and Universities, as well as several agency commissioners and a gubernatorial appointee, will review requests to site infrastructure on state-owned properties.
The bill orders state agencies to draft license agreements by November to be used in the siting process on state structures and land. A fee structure will also be created.
Meanwhile, several agencies will jointly work with municipal officials to streamline their siting processes.
