The FCC issued a Public Notice with the longest title I can remember: Wireline Competition Bureau Reminds Reverse-preemption States of Obligation to Effectively Regulate Pole Attachments and Seeks Comment on Need for Changes to the Commission’s Certification Rules to Ensure Effective State Pole Attachment Regulation.

The Public Notice asks for comments on the effectiveness of regulations in States that have chosen to regulate pole attachments, meaning rules that regulate how telcos and others get access to poles that are in the public right-of-way. Comments are due on the Public Notice by July 13, 2026.

States were given the right to regulate pole attachments in Section 224 of the 1934 Communications Act. Twenty-three States have elected to regulate poles over the years, and the FCC has created regulations for the States that have not done so. In one of the oddities of regulatory language, States that have elected to regulate pole attachments are said to have “reverse-preempted” the federal pole attachment rules.

The Public Notice is seeking comments on whether States are properly regulating the rates, terms and conditions of pole attachments. More specifically, the FCC is asking what steps it could take to make sure that state pole attachment regulations are “transparent and effective”.

In strongly worded language, the FCC reminds States of the “obligation to effectively and clearly regulate pole attachments in their jurisdictions.” In what feels like a veiled threat, the FCC asks if it should require reverse-preemption States to refile new certifications for FCC review. This could present an opportunity for the FCC to refuse the certifications and take over the pole attachment rules. It will seem likely that there will be lawsuits if the FCC tries to take back jurisdiction of pole attachments, since the state’s right to regulate pole attachments is clearly stated in the Communications Act.

There is one annoying mention in the Public Notice that this is being done to protect the $42 billion BEAD program. NTIA’s Benefit of the Bargain rules cut the amount that will be used for infrastructure in half. Of the remaining BEAD awards, a lot will go to satellite, fixed wireless, or buried fiber construction that will not require the use of pole attachments. If only this was being done to protect $42 billion of infrastructure construction.

I also have to wonder about the timing of this. Many States are in the process of signing BEAD contracts, and some of the earliest steps for an ISP starting a new project is to immediately start the pole attachment paperwork process along with seeking rights-of-way. Even if the pole attachment rules could be better in some states, the FCC’s action would make more sense if it had been started a year earlier.

I think that it would be very disruptive if the FCC chooses to seize pole attachment regulation back from the states. At a minimum, in a state where the regulations reverted to federal authority, it seems likely that pole owners will take some time to fully digest and cope with the change, and to look at forms and processes.

I could be wrong, but this feels more like the FCC trying to take regulatory authority from States more than an attempt to improve BEAD. While BEAD is a large grant program, the many other grant programs in recent years have collectively funded more fiber than BEAD. My guess is that some States will fight to keep their own pole attachment rules, and any attempt to do this will result in a protracted court fight, and that BEAD will be in the rearview window before this is settled.