New Jersey Urban Mayors Association, led by Mayors, Ras J. Baraka (Newark) and Adrian O. Mapp (Plainfield), issued a release last week on why they support 5G but decry crippling legislation. They are concerned that if passed, legislation (A-1116/S 2674) would make it impossible for New Jersey Mayors to advocate for their residents in the face of a 5G rollout.
The mayors have called for an economic impact study prior to enacting any new legislation. To quote the two mayors, “There should be no misunderstanding. All mayors want our constituents to have access to the latest and fastest in wired and wireless broadband services. We just think that the community ought to have the right to recover all of its expenses for use of public property, have a say in the design that will dominate our city’s streets and seek to ensure that everyone in the community has equal access to the service. We think that would be 5G legislation worthy of New Jersey’s support.”
While the authors favor 5G advancement for their state, they question why expansion costs should become a burden for taxpayers when telecoms and consumers are not obligated to share the load. They have also asked why the proposed legislation does not incorporate cost savings for consumers whose tax dollars would be funding the 5G service. Additionally, the mayors wonder why New Jersey would be subject to mandated restrictions that are not in place in other mid-Atlantic states.
Further, Baraka and Mapp point out that communities across the state have been working with telecoms to come up with plans that both deliver connectivity and adapt to the locations where they are being deployed. “This bill is a slap in the face to those municipalities,” note the mayors, “As it does not grandfather in or take into consideration the time, money and work that went into those agreements.”
Reader Interactions