NARUC Applauds FCC Decision on Broadband Data Collection

WASHINGTON, April 27, 2010 – The National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners is applauding a decision that no Federal Communications Commission ruling preempts states from collecting broadband data.

WASHINGTON, April 27, 2010 – The National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners is applauding a decision that no Federal Communications Commission ruling preempts states from collecting broadband data.

The FCC made that decision yesterday in response to a NARUC petition.

“With this clarification that states are not preempted from collecting broadband data, agencies like ours can continue their work of determining where broadband is and, just as important, where it isn’t, said association President David Coen of Vermont and NARUC Telecommunications Committee Chairman Ray Baum of Oregon in a statement. “States have the local knowledge and geographic expertise to collect and use broadband data in an efficient manner…This declaration lets us move forward.”