120 Days or Else: The FCC Wireline Permitting Shot Clock Coming for Cities and Counties

The Federal Communications Commission has put local governments on notice. A new rulemaking proceeding could impose a FCC wireline permitting shot clock on cities and counties, requiring permit decisions within 120 days or triggering a federal presumption that the municipality has violated the Telecommunications Act. For local governments already navigating complex broadband deployments in their

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Small Cells, Big Obligations: What Local Governments Need to Know About Small Cell Agreements

Local Governments / David Nagele

Small cells, also known as small wireless facilities, have been appearing on streetlights, utility poles, and other vertical infrastructure in the public rights-of-way with regularity over the past decade. For local governments, the legal framework governing small cell agreements is dense, and the decisions made in structuring those agreements carry long-term consequences for public infrastructure,

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The Meter Is Running: What Landlords Need to Know About Cell Tower Electricity Reimbursement

Lease Negotiations, Local Governments / David Nagele

Wireless carriers depend on a continuous supply of electricity to operate their cell site equipment, and in many leases, that electricity runs through the landlord’s own service. Cell tower electricity reimbursement is the mechanism by which the carrier is supposed to pay for what it uses, but in practice these arrangements break down more often

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DISH Wireless FCC Trust Fund Escrow: What the Regulatory Agency’s $2.4 Billion Condition Means for Property Owners and Their Leases

Local Governments, Lease Negotiations / David Nagele

Note, this post was updated on July 3, 2026, after its original publication to reflect changed circumstances following the DISH Wireless bankruptcy filing. The FCC’s conditional approval of EchoStar’s spectrum sale to AT&T in the matter of Applications of AT&T Mobility II LLC and EchoStar Corporation for Consent to Assign Licenses, WT Docket No. 25-303,

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Full Bars, Fine Print: What to Know About Distributed Antenna System Agreements

Local Governments, Lease Negotiations / David Nagele

Property owners and building managers are receiving more and more outreach from wireless carriers and third-party infrastructure companies looking to install distributed antenna systems (DAS) inside their buildings. Before agreeing to anything, it is worth understanding how these systems work, why carriers want access to your property, and what distributed antenna system agreements actually need

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Who Owns the Street? Managing Fiber Encroachment on Public Roads

Local Governments / David Nagele

Fiber optic cables, telephone lines, and broadband conduit have been running through public streets and utility corridors for decades, often under legal arrangements that were written long before the modern telecommunications industry existed. For the cities and counties responsible for those streets, fiber encroachment on public roads and the right of way issues it creates

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Cell Tower Audit: The Lease Check Carriers Hope You Skip

Lease Negotiations, Local Governments / David Nagele

Many cell tower landlords spend considerable time negotiating the original lease agreement, but then it “sits on the shelf” gathering dust without the landlord taking time to verify that their carrier is honoring it. Becoming a cell tower landlord is not as “passive” as it may seem. That gap between signing and checking is where

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Cell Tower Modification Requests and the Consent Letter Trap

Lease Negotiations, Local Governments / David Nagele

When a wireless carrier or tower company reaches out to request a cell tower modification, it can seem routine. They send a letter, ask for a signature, and sometimes imply that the whole thing is a formality. But for the landlord on the other side of that request, a cell tower modification is rarely as

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Cell Tower Radio Frequency Safety: What Landlords Need to Know

Lease Negotiations, Local Governments / David Nagele

When a wireless carrier installs antennas on or near a rooftop, the conversation with the landlord tends to focus on rent, lease terms, and equipment footprint. What often goes unaddressed is the subject of cell tower radio frequency safety and the Federal Communications Commission regulations that govern exposure limits on and around the building. Those

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Cell Tower Lease Optimization Letters: The Carrier’s Agenda Behind the Fine Print

Lease Negotiations, Local Governments / David Nagele

Cell tower lease optimization is a phrase that might sound reasonable until you read the fine print. Property owners across the country are receiving letters, emails, and phone calls from carriers or their contractors demanding to “optimize” an existing cell tower lease. These letters are rarely what they appear to be. The lease is only

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