PITTSBURGH, Aug. 12, 2020 – The following statement may be attributed to ACA Connects President and CEO Matthew M. Polka:
“Today’s decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit, upholding critical aspects of the FCC’s 2018 Pole Attachment order, is good news for anyone that wants to see broadband providers accelerate their network deployments in all areas of the country. As ACA Connects demonstrated to the FCC, far too often investor-owned utilities hold up or seek to impose excessive fees on new attachers, which can result in the new attacher deciding to walk away from a build.
“The FCC’s order seeks to draw clear lines preventing such behavior by utilities. ACA Connects members want to work cooperatively with utilities to expedite pole attachments and obtain access to conduit at reasonable cost, and they want utilities to reciprocate. With the court endorsing the FCC’s order, we hope that our aim becomes reality. In the end, we all should keep our eye on the prize — bringing high-performance broadband service to all Americans as quickly as possible.”