HomeMy WebLinkAbout2020-040 5G Wireless PermitsDate: April 24, 2020 Report No. 2020-040
INFORMAL STAFF REPORT
TO MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL
SUBJECT:
Information on request for a moratorium on 5G wireless permits
BACKGROUND:
On April 16, a concerned resident wrote to City Council and City Manager’s Office staff regarding
the rollout of 5G wireless technology. The citizen requests that the City impose a moratorium on
“small cells” and other wireless infrastructure permits process and deployment until the COVID-
19 pandemic response is complete.
DISCUSSION:
The City of Denton is a member of the Texas Coalition of Cities for Utility Issues (TCCFUI),
which is a coalition of more than 50 Texas municipalities dedicated to protecting and supporting
the interests of the citizens and cities of Texas with regard to utility issues. TCCFUI is comprised
of all sizes of cities from large municipalities to rural villages. TCCFUI monitors the activities of
the United States Congress, the Texas Legislature, the Public Utility Commission of Texas, the
Texas Railroad Commission, and the Federal Communications Commission on utility issues of
importance to municipalities.
The City Attorney’s Office was on a conference call recently with the TCCFUI board regarding
the subject of 5G in the state of Texas. Questions were raised about stopping and/or delaying 5G
permit applications. The TCCFUI board concluded that Texas law does not allow cities to not
issue 5G permits under Chapter 284 of the Texas Local Government Code for which proper
application and review has been made. Also, Texas law does not allow cities to put moratoria in
place to prevent the issuance of the permits and federal law, in this instance, does not preempt
Texas’ legislative effort in this area. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Texas Municipal League
(TML) has requested relaxation of the Chapter 284 shot clock (and other shot clocks)
requirements; however, the governor has not agreed to do so at this time.
To date, 32 permits have been issued to construct the first small cell network nodes throughout the
city, and city staff is currently reviewing permit applicants for another 10 proposed locations.
Based on feedback from Engineering staff, the following are the number of 5G permits in the
queue as of April 22, 2020.
43 applications submitted so far (40 Verizon, 3 AT&T)
The breakdown is as follows:
32 permits issued and in-hand (30 Verizon, 2 AT&T)
10 submittals in Tech Review (All Verizon)
1 submittal is correcting a failed completeness review (AT&T)
Date: April 24, 2020 Report No. 2020-040
CONCLUSION:
Per state law, the City of Denton is not allowed to issue a moratorium for considering 5G permit
applications. However, if Council wishes to act regarding the processing of 5G applications, they
may seek change at the state level. This can be done by either (i) petitioning the governor to take
action under his presently available emergency powers to remedy this problem (but this would
only be effective during the emergency declaration period), or (ii) seeking a change in the law
during the next legislative session. The next legislative session begins in January 2021.
ATTACHMENT:
1. Email from Resident
STAFF CONTACT:
Larry Collister
First Assistant City Attorney
Larry.Collister@cityofdenton.com
(940) 349-8198
Rachel Balthrop Mendoza
Assistant to the City Manager
Rachel.Mendoza@cityofdenton.com
(940) 349-8420
1
Balthrop Mendoza, Rachel J.
From:Canizares, Mario
Sent:Friday, April 24, 2020 4:10 PM
To:Balthrop Mendoza, Rachel J.
Subject:FW: Please consider protecting Denton citizens from 5G exposure with a moratorium
From: Shelly Eshbaugh‐Soha <ravensphere@gmail.com>
Sent: Thursday, April 16, 2020 10:17 AM
To: Hileman, Todd <Todd.Hileman@cityofdenton.com>; Canizares, Mario <Mario.Canizares@cityofdenton.com>;
Hensley, Sara <Sara.Hensley@cityofdenton.com>; Watts, Chris <Chris.Watts@cityofdenton.com>; Hudspeth, Gerard
<Gerard.Hudspeth@cityofdenton.com>; Briggs, Keely G <Keely.Briggs@cityofdenton.com>; Davis, Jesse
<Jesse.Davis@cityofdenton.com>; Ryan, John <John.Ryan@cityofdenton.com>; Armintor, Deb
<Deb.Armintor@cityofdenton.com>; Meltzer, Paul <Paul.Meltzer@cityofdenton.com>
Subject: Please consider protecting Denton citizens from 5G exposure with a moratorium
This message has originated from an External Source. Please be cautious regarding links and attachments.
Dear Mayor Chris Watts, City Council Members Gerard Hudspeth, Keely Briggs, Jesse Davis, John
Ryan, Deb Armintor, Paul Meltzer, City Manager Todd Hileman, Deputy City Manager Mario
Canizare, and Assistant City Manager Sara Hensle,
I am a concerned citizen writing to you in regard to the rollout of 5G and the growing mass of
scientific data which suggest there are real dangers posed by what will be unprecedented levels of
exposure to the millimeter wave (MMW) employed in 5G technology. At the very least, this technology
has NOT been proven safe. I am concerned not only for my own health, but the health of everyone in
our community, as no one, even those most sensitive to such interference, will be unable to opt out
once the technology is put in place. Because the pandemic is fueling a push for quicker rollout of 5G, I
ask you to please impose a moratorium on “small cells” and other wireless infrastructure permits
process and deployment until the COVID-19 emergency is over.
The wireless providers are using the COVID-19 emergency as cover to expand and cement their rapid
and virtually unsupervised deployment of harmful wireless infrastructure. Our local leaders should not
have to dedicate time and resources to policing whether the wireless companies are following local and
state law right now – they need to focus on more important things.
The FCC wireless permit rules allow emergency moratoria. Homeland Security guidelines emphasize
that maintenance of existing communications capability is the priority. But new construction is not
“essential.”
The FCC has directly held a local jurisdiction can impose a temporary halt to deployment and permits
during emergencies. In the Matter of Accelerating Wireline Broadband Deployment by Removing
Barriers, FCC 18-111, 33 FCC Rcd 7705, 7784-7785, ¶157 (2018) (“We recognize that there may be
limited situations in the case of a natural disaster or other comparable emergency where an express or
2
de facto moratoria that violates section 253(a) may nonetheless be ‘necessary’ to ‘protect the public
safety and welfare’ or to ‘ensure the continued quality of telecommunications services.’”)
Homeland Security has declared that local government is on the forefront and can take control over
determining whether to temporarily halt all non-essential activity. Homeland Security guidance
documents prioritize maintenance of existing Communications Systems, and do not support
“essential” status for new construction. See Homeland Security Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security
Agency, Identifying Critical Infrastructure During COVID-19, https://www.cisa.gov/identifying-
critical-infrastructure-during-covid-19 (local control); e-Critical Infrastructure and Key Resources
Support Annex, http://www.fema.gov/pdf/emergency/nrf/nrf-support-cikr.pdf (focus on
“protection, response, recovery, and restoration”). Homeland Security, like the FCC, understands that
it is essential in an emergency situations justify focusing on protecting, responding, recovering and
restoring of existing systems, but new communications facilities construction is and should be deemed
nonessential, and subject to lockdown for so long as we are under emergency conditions.
Cities can and should impose a moratorium on deployment in their local area and freeze the permit
process until the COVID-19 emergency is over, and after that, until the dangers to human and animal
life are better understood.
Thank you for your time and attention to this matter that will affect us all.
Sincerely,
Michelle Eshbaugh-Soha
1100 Ridgecrest Circle
Denton, TX 76205