Neighbors,

The Senate Utility Committee is holding a hearing about HB1164 on Thursday April 1st at 9am in room 130. This is at the State House, and there is no virtual option.

As a reminder, HB1164 would largely strip local jurisdictions of control over the placement of 5G cell towers. It would remove any height restrictions, and as written would require homeowners to pay the telecom company if they wanted to receive a notice if a pole is being installed near their home. HB1164 would not require companies to share equipment, otherwise known as co-location. Because of the nature of the frequency of 5G waves, the poles need to be placed in close proximity to each other to function- meaning we could see 3 or 4 poles per block. MKNA is advocating for common sense amendments to HB1164 if not a complete rejection of the bill. We believe that co-location should be required, local jurisdictions should maintain review and approval authority, telecom carriers should be required to provide notice to impacted homeowners and neighborhood organizations as well as meeting with homeowners and neighborhood organizations to discuss requested locations for installation.

If you are comfortable attending an in person meeting, this hearing is Thursday April 1st, at 9am in room 130 at the state house.