H.R. 1665: Deploying Infrastructure with Greater Internet Transactions And Legacy Applications Act
This bill, known as the DIGITAL Applications Act
, aims to improve the processing of certain communications use authorizations by requiring the Department of the Interior and the Department of Agriculture to create online portals. These portals would facilitate the acceptance, processing, and disposal of Form 299, which is used for authorizations related to communications facilities on public and national forest lands.
Key Provisions of the Bill
- Establishment of Online Portals: Within a year of the bill's enactment, each relevant department must create an online portal specifically for handling Form 299 applications related to communications use authorizations.
- Notification of Portal Creation: Once a portal is established, the respective Secretary must notify the Assistant Secretary of the creation of this portal within three business days.
- Public Accessibility: The Assistant Secretary will publish a link to each online portal on the website of the National Telecommunications and Information Administration to ensure public access.
Definitions
- Assistant Secretary: Refers to the Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Communications and Information.
- Communications Facility: Defined as installations for communications use as per existing federal law.
- Communications Use Authorization: This includes easements, rights-of-way, leases, licenses, or other permissions granted by the Secretary of the Interior or the Secretary of Agriculture to locate or modify communications facilities on designated lands.
- Covered Land: Refers to public lands and National Forest System lands.
- Form 299: The form used for the submissions pertaining to communications use authorizations, established under federal law.
Relevant Companies
- VZ - Verizon Communications Inc.: This legislation may impact Verizon as it often seeks authorizations for placing communications infrastructure on public lands.
- T - AT&T Inc.: Similar to Verizon, AT&T may be affected by the requirement for new procedures for obtaining communications use authorizations.
- SBAC - SBA Communications Corporation: This company, which owns and operates communications towers, could see impact on how it secures rights for new installations on said lands.
This is an AI-generated summary of the bill text. There may be mistakes.
Sponsors
2 bill sponsors
Actions
5 actions
| Date | Action |
|---|---|
| Apr. 09, 2025 | Committee Consideration and Mark-up Session Held |
| Apr. 09, 2025 | Ordered to be Reported by Unanimous Consent. |
| Apr. 09, 2025 | Referred to the Subcommittee on Commodity Markets, Digital Assets, and Rural Development. |
| Feb. 27, 2025 | Introduced in House |
| Feb. 27, 2025 | Referred to the Committee on Natural Resources, and in addition to the Committees on Energy and Commerce, and Agriculture, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned. |
Corporate Lobbying
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