I 
117TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 1046 
To require the Federal Communications Commission to provide broadband 
availability data to the Department of the Interior. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
FEBRUARY 15, 2021 
Mr. CURTIS introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee 
on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committees on Natural 
Resources, and Agriculture, 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 require the Federal Communications Commission to pro-
vide broadband availability data to the Department of 
the Interior. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Federal Broadband 
Deployment in Unserved Areas Act’’. 
SEC. 2. LOCATING FEDERAL FACILITIES IN UNSERVED 
AREAS. 
(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 
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(1) 
APPROPRIATE
COMMITTEES
OF
CON-
GRESS.—The term ‘‘appropriate committees of Con-
gress’’ means— 
(A) the Committee on Energy and Com-
merce of the House of Representatives; 
(B) the Committee on Natural Resources 
of the House of Representatives; 
(C) the Committee on Commerce, Science, 
and Transportation of the Senate; and 
(D) the Committee on Environment and 
Public Works of the Senate. 
(2) COMMISSION.—The term ‘‘Commission’’ 
means the Federal Communications Commission. 
(3) COMMUNICATIONS
FACILITY.—The term 
‘‘communications facility’’ includes— 
(A) any infrastructure, including any 
transmitting device, tower, or support structure, 
and any equipment, switch, wiring, cabling, 
power source, shelter, or cabinet, associated 
with the licensed or permitted unlicensed wire-
less or wireline transmission of any writing, 
sign, signal, data, image, picture, and sound of 
any kind; and 
(B) any antenna or apparatus that— 
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(i) is designed for the purpose of 
emitting radio frequency; 
(ii) is designed to be operated, or is 
operating, from a fixed location pursuant 
to authorization by the Commission or is 
using any duly authorized device that does 
not require an individual license; and 
(iii) is added to a tower, building, or 
other structure. 
(4) COVERED LAND.—The term ‘‘covered land’’ 
means land managed by a Federal land management 
agency. 
(5) DEPARTMENT
CONCERNED.—The term 
‘‘Department concerned’’ means the Department of 
the Interior or the Department of Agriculture. 
(6) FEDERAL LAND MANAGEMENT AGENCY.— 
The term ‘‘Federal land management agency’’ 
means— 
(A) the Forest Service; 
(B) the Bureau of Land Management; 
(C) the National Park Service; 
(D) the Fish and Wildlife Service; and 
(E) the Bureau of Reclamation. 
(7) SECRETARY CONCERNED.—The term ‘‘Sec-
retary concerned’’ means— 
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(A) the Secretary of the Interior, with re-
spect to land administered by such Secretary; 
(B) the Secretary of Agriculture, with re-
spect to National Forest System land; and 
(C) the Secretary of Commerce. 
(b) SHARING BROADBAND AVAILABILITY DATA.— 
(1) NOTIFICATION.—Not later than 2 business 
days after the creation or update of any map re-
quired under section 802(c)(1) of the Communica-
tions Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 642(c)(1)), the Com-
mission shall notify the Secretary concerned that the 
map has been created or updated. 
(2) PROVISION
OF
INFORMATION.—Not later 
than 5 business days after the date on which the 
Secretary concerned is notified under paragraph (1), 
the Commission shall provide the Secretary con-
cerned any data the Commission has collected pursu-
ant to title VIII of the Communications Act of 1934 
(47 U.S.C. 641 et seq.). 
(3) CONTINUATION.—The Commission shall 
provide the Secretary concerned the information de-
scribed in paragraph (2) every 6 months unless the 
Commission no longer has such information. 
(4) PROTECTION OF INFORMATION.— 
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(A) IN GENERAL.—The Commission shall 
specify to the Secretary concerned which infor-
mation provided under paragraph (2) was col-
lected in a confidential or proprietary manner, 
and the Secretary concerned may not make 
such information publicly available. 
(B) FOIA.—Information provided under 
paragraph (2) is exempt from disclosure to the 
public under section 552(b)(3)(B) of title 5, 
United States Code. 
(c) WORKING GROUP.— 
(1) ESTABLISHMENT.—Not later than 30 days 
after the date of enactment of this section, the Com-
mission and the Secretary concerned shall establish 
an interagency working group to facilitate the prepa-
ration and interoperability of information technology 
systems for the provision and receipt of the informa-
tion described in subsection (b)(2). 
(2) NONAPPLICABILITY OF FACA.—The Federal 
Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.) shall not 
apply to the interagency working group established 
under paragraph (1). 
(d) REPORTS.— 
(1) PRELIMINARY ASSESSMENT OF POTENTIAL 
BARRIERS.—Not later 120 days after the date on 
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which the interagency working group is established 
pursuant to subsection (c)(1), the Commission and 
the Secretary concerned shall jointly submit a report 
to the appropriate committees of Congress with a 
preliminary assessment of any potential barriers to 
sharing the information described under subsection 
(b)(2). 
(2) ASSESSMENTS.—Not later than 1 year after 
the date on which the Commission provides the in-
formation described under subsection (b)(2) to the 
Department concerned, the Commission and the Sec-
retary concerned shall jointly submit a report to the 
appropriate committees of Congress with— 
(A) an assessment of the effectiveness of a 
user’s ability to locate broadband infrastructure 
on covered land in an area to be determined as 
unserved by the Commission on the basis of the 
maps created under section 802(c) of the Com-
munications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 642(c)); 
and 
(B) an assessment of whether the Depart-
ment concerned prioritized the review of appli-
cations for a communications use authorization 
in an area to be determined as unserved by the 
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Commission on the basis of the maps created 
under such section. 
Æ 
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