RTG, CTIA, ITTA, PCIA, RCA and WCAI wrote Secretary Locke of the Commerce Department to express their concern that the substantial public interest benefits promised by the Broadband Technology Opportunities Program (BTOP) could be undermined if the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) adopts unnecessarily burdensome procedures implementing the National Environmental Policy Act and other environmental legislation (collectively NEPA). NTIA is urged to establish a categorical exclusion for all BTOP applications that propose facilities subject to the environmental requirements of the FCC, so long as the application includes a certification by the applicant that it will comply with the FCC’s requirements prior to commencing construction.

Click here for a copy of the letter.