Bill orders review of slow broadband permits on federal lands
Passed one chamberH.R. 5419Latest action
Sponsor: Thomas H. Kean, Jr. · Representative · NJ
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Official title: Enhancing Administrative Reviews for Broadband Deployment Act
119th Congress
Topics: Environment & energy
Introduced:
Read the official bill on Congress.govIn plain words
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Interior and Agriculture must study permit delays for cell towers and broadband on federal land, then report within a year.
45-second read · 4 questions answered below
What does this do?
This bill directs the Department of the Interior and the Department of Agriculture to investigate why permits for communications infrastructure on public lands and national forests take so long to approve. The agencies must study procedural obstacles, possible rule updates, and ways to prioritize certain requests, then submit a joint report within one year that includes a staffing plan for timely reviews.
Who does it affect?
Telecommunications and internet companies seeking to build broadband or cell infrastructure on federal land, along with agency offices like the Bureau of Land Management and Forest Service. Rural Americans awaiting improved internet or cell coverage are indirectly affected.
Why does it matter?
Faster or slower permit approvals could affect when broadband and cell infrastructure gets built on federal land. The bill does not change any rules itself; it only requires research and a plan.
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Where does it stand?
- IntroducedSep 17, 2025
- House committee
- House vote
- SenateYou are here · Mar 4, 2026
- The president's desk
Right now: it passed the House, and the official record shows nothing new since. If the Senate changes it, it goes back to the House before reaching the president.
Latest action: — Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.