RAPID Act

Reducing Antiquated Permitting for Infrastructure Deployment Act or the RAPID Act

This bill modifies review requirements for deployment of a small personal wireless service facility and establishes a presumption related to the deployment of wireless facilities on properties owned by an Indian tribe or a Native Hawaiian organization.

Specifically, the bill exempts the deployment of a small personal wireless service facility from specified environmental and historic preservation review requirements.

The bill also establishes a rebuttable presumption that a wireless provider has completed a request for review if an Indian tribe or a Native Hawaiian organization has received certain completed forms with information reasonably necessary to ascertain whether historic properties of religious and cultural significance may be affected by the deployment of new or collocated wireless facilities.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 7374 Introduced in House (IH)]

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116th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 7374

  To provide that the deployment of a small personal wireless service 
 facility shall not constitute an undertaking under section 300320 of 
    title 54, United States Code, or a major Federal action for the 
purposes of section 102(2)(C) of the National Environmental Policy Act 
                    of 1969, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             June 25, 2020

 Mr. Scalise introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
 Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committee on 
 Natural Resources, 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

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To provide that the deployment of a small personal wireless service 
 facility shall not constitute an undertaking under section 300320 of 
    title 54, United States Code, or a major Federal action for the 
purposes of section 102(2)(C) of the National Environmental Policy Act 
                    of 1969, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Reducing Antiquated Permitting for 
Infrastructure Deployment Act'' or the ``RAPID Act''.

SEC. 2. REBUTTABLE PRESUMPTION ON SHOT CLOCK TIMELINE BEGINNING FOR 
              PURPOSES OF NHPA.

    (a) Definitions.--In this section:
            (1) Personal wireless service.--The term ``personal 
        wireless service'' means--
                    (A) commercial mobile service (as defined in 
                section 332(d) of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 
                U.S.C. 332(d)));
                    (B) commercial mobile data service (as defined in 
                section 6001 of the Middle Class Tax Relief and Job 
                Creation Act of 2012 (47 U.S.C. 1401));
                    (C) unlicensed wireless service; and
                    (D) common carrier wireless exchange access 
                service.
            (2) Personal wireless service facility.--The term 
        ``personal wireless service facility'' means a facility for the 
        provision of personal wireless service.
            (3) Small personal wireless service facility.--The term 
        ``small personal wireless service facility''--
                    (A) means a personal wireless service facility in 
                which each antenna is not more than 3 cubic feet in 
                volume; and
                    (B) does not include a wireline backhaul facility.
            (4) Wireline backhaul facility.--The term ``wireline 
        backhaul facility'' means an above-ground or underground 
        wireline facility used to transport communications service or 
        other electronic communications from a small personal wireless 
        service facility or its adjacent network interface device to a 
        communications network.
    (b) In General.--The deployment of a small personal wireless 
service facility shall not constitute an undertaking under section 
300320 of title 54, United States Code, or a major Federal action for 
the purposes of section 102(2)(C) of the National Environmental Policy 
Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4332).
    (c) Rebuttable Presumption.--
            (1) In general.--If an Indian Tribe or Native Hawaiian 
        Organization is shown to have received a complete Form 620 or 
        Form 621 (or any successor form), or can be reasonably expected 
        to have received a complete Form 620 or Form 621 (or any 
        successor form), and has not acted on a complete request 
        contained in the form within 45 days after such receipt--
                    (A) the Commission and a court of competent 
                jurisdiction (as the case may be) shall presume the 
                applicant has made a good faith effort to provide the 
                information reasonably necessary for Indian Tribes and 
                Native Hawaiian Organizations to ascertain whether 
                historic properties of religious and cultural 
                significance to them may be affected by the 
                undertaking; and
                    (B) the Indian Tribe or Native Hawaiian 
                Organization (as the case may be) shall be presumed to 
                have disclaimed interest in the application.
            (2) Overcoming presumption.--
                    (A) In general.--An Indian Tribe or Native Hawaiian 
                Organization may overcome the presumption under 
                paragraph (1) upon favorably demonstrating one or more 
                of the factors to be considered under subparagraph (B).
                    (B) Factors considered.--The review by the 
                Commission or a court of competent jurisdiction under 
                paragraph (1) shall give substantial weight to--
                            (i) whether the applicant made a reasonable 
                        attempt to follow up with the Indian Tribe or 
                        Native Hawaiian Organization not earlier than 
                        30 days, and not later than 50 days, after the 
                        applicant submitted a complete Form 620 or Form 
                        621 (as the case may be) to the Indian Tribe or 
                        Native Hawaiian Organization; and
                            (ii) whether the rules of the Commission 
                        and Form 620 or Form 621 is found to be in 
                        violation of a Nationwide Programmatic 
                        Agreement of the Commission.
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