placed at intervals consistent with industry best 
practices, as determined by the Secretary. 
‘‘(c) STANDARDS.—The Secretary shall establish 
standards to carry out subsection (b) that consider popu-
lation density in the area of a covered highway construc-
tion project, the type of highway involved in such project, 
and existing broadband access in the area of such project. 
‘‘(d) PULL TAPE.—The Secretary shall ensure that 
each broadband conduit installed pursuant to this section 
includes a pull tape and is capable of supporting fiber 
optic cable placement techniques consistent with industry 
best practices, as determined by the Secretary. 
‘‘(e) DEPTH OF INSTALLATION.—The Secretary shall 
ensure that each broadband conduit installed pursuant to 
this section is placed at a depth consistent with industry 
best practices, as determined by the Secretary, and that, 
in determining the depth of placement, consideration is 
given to the location of existing utilities and the cable sep-
aration requirements of State and local electrical codes. 
‘‘(f) ACCESS.—The Secretary shall ensure that any 
requesting broadband provider has access to each 
broadband conduit installed pursuant to this section, on 
a competitively neutral and nondiscriminatory basis, for 
a charge not to exceed a cost-based rate. 
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‘‘(g) WAIVER
AUTHORITY.—The Secretary may 
waive the application of this section or any provision there-
in if the Secretary determines such waiver appropriate 
with respect to a covered highway construction project. 
‘‘(h) COORDINATION WITH FCC.—In carrying out 
this section, the Secretary shall coordinate with the Fed-
eral Communications Commission as the Secretary deter-
mines appropriate, including in making determinations 
with respect to potential demand under subsection (b)(2) 
and existing broadband access under subsection (c). 
‘‘(i) DEFINITIONS.—In this section, the following 
definitions apply: 
‘‘(1) 
BROADBAND.—The 
term 
‘broadband’ 
means an Internet Protocol-based transmission serv-
ice that enables users to send and receive voice, 
video, data, graphics, or a combination thereof. 
‘‘(2) 
BROADBAND
CONDUIT.—The 
term 
‘broadband conduit’ means a conduit for fiber optic 
cables that support broadband or, where appro-
priate, wireless facilities for broadband service. 
‘‘(3) 
COVERED
HIGHWAY
CONSTRUCTION 
PROJECT.—The term ‘covered highway construction 
project’ means a project to construct a new highway 
or to construct an additional lane or shoulder for an 
existing highway that is commenced after the date 
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of enactment of this section and that receives fund-
ing under this title.’’. 
SEC. 3. CLERICAL AMENDMENT. 
The analysis for chapter 3 of title 23, United States 
Code, is amended by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘330. Inclusion of broadband conduit installation in certain highway construc-
tion projects.’’. 
Æ 
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