Telecom Experts Urge Congress to Act Against Copper Theft in Capitol Hill Summit
Government Officials and experts showed their support for imposing stronger penalties for infrastructure vandalism.
WASHINGTON, July 15, 2026 – As the threat of copper theft and communications infrastructure vandalism rises, telecom experts and government officials are urging Congress to act.
In a July 15 Capitol Hill summit, industry leaders and government officials came together to speak in support of federal government action against the growing threat of communications infrastructure theft and vandalism.
Federal Communications Commissioner Olivia Trusty explained that addressing the issue will require action from federal, state and local governments. She noted that the federal government could extend protections to private communications infrastructure to help protect connections.
Trusty acknowledged the recent action states have taken but said there is room for progress. She said, “There are 28 states that classify infrastructure vandalism or copper theft as a felony, but it also means that 22 states do not, and so it creates opportunities for bad actors to engage in these kinds of operations and jurisdictions where the consequences are not as robust.”
The event discussed the proposed Stopping the Theft and Destruction of Broadband Act bill sponsored by Rep. Laurel Lee, R- Fla., and Rep. Marc Veasey, D-Texas. Trusty showed her support for the legislation, saying, “I think we need to raise the legal and economic costs of engaging in these acts.”
The bipartisan legislation introduced in April of 2025 would amend federal law to explicitly include broadband facilities under protections for communications infrastructure and impose stronger penalties for criminals who damage or steal broadband cables and equipment.
Veasey noted that he hopes Congress will pass the bill to provide support for those affected by theft, given its potential to undermine people’s ability to connect with essential services like first responders.
Lee explained that the bill was created to fill a gap in federal law. Currently, federal law only covers government communications infrastructure and not private infrastructure. This creates a situation where criminals consistently engage in copper theft because repercussions are small.
AT&T vice president Alicia Remek said that the company has seen an increase of four times the number of incidents over the last 18 months. In Kentucky, the company has seen 99 reported copper theft incidents, costing AT&T $500,000 in repairs.
Representatives from AT&T, Verizon, Comcast and Charter said that they have seen a large increase in incidents, with outages becoming more frequent and being underreported, leaving thousands without service.
The event was hosted by USTelecom, NCTA and CTIA, with NCTA CEO Cory Gardner, USTelecom CEO Jonathan Spalter, and CTIA CEO Ajit Pai moderating the event.
