McMorris Rodgers introduces Wildfire Wireless Resiliency Act

By Terry Murry on Thursday, February 18th, 2021 in Columbia Basin News More Top Stories

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-Spokane) is working to speed up projects to replace or improve wireless communications facilities that are damaged during a wildfire. Her Wildfire Wireless Resiliency Act creates an exclusion from the National Environmental Policy Act and National Historic Preservation Act that will speed up the process of rebuilding or improving broadband infrastructure that was damaged or destroyed by wildfire.

The act would apply to areas where the state’s governor has declared a natural disaster and would be in effect for up to five years following the declaration.

The devastating wildfires in Eastern Washington have left families and workers without reliable access to the internet,” McMorris Rodgers said in a prepared statement. “Unreliable internet and limited broadband access has also set countless children back in school because of connectivity issues while far too many schools remain closed.”

In addition, McMorris Rodgers said the bill would help restore service to people trying to access healthcare and work from home.

“My goal in introducing this bill is to restore and improve the wireless communications that are fundamental to our everyday life in Eastern Washington and across the country,” she stated.

McMorris Rodgers, who is the lead Republican on the Energy and Commerce Committee, introduced her bill as part of the committee’s Boosting Broadband Connectivity Agenda, a package of 28 bills designed to promote new and upgraded infrastructure deployments.