On February 5, 2026, in its first decision under the new accelerated docket for pole attachment disputes, the Federal Communications Commission found that electric utility, Appalachian Power Company (“APCO”), a subsidiary of Ohio-based AEP, violated FCC rules by charging Comcast the full cost of replacing poles with preexisting violations of safety or engineering standards.
The dispute began when Comcast sought to attach to thousands of APCO poles needed for rural broadband fiber-optic deployments in Virginia associated with the state’s Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (“BEAD”) program. APCO demanded that Comcast pay the full costs associated with replacing poles that already were not up to code, subject only to potential partial refunds. In July 2025, Comcast filed a request for review with the FCC’s Rapid Broadband Assessment Team (“RBAT”), alleging that APCO’s pole replacement policy violated Section 224 of the Communications Act and the FCC’s rules. After mediation failed, Comcast filed its complaint with the Commission, which was placed on the accelerated docket.
In its February 5th decision, the FCC held that APCO’s “policy of charging Comcast up front 100% of the pole replacement cost is flatly inconsistent with the command of the regulation that, when poles are already out of compliance, a ‘utility may not charge a new attacher to bring poles . . . into compliance’ with safety and construction guidelines.” In other words, the Commission found that APCO’s pole replacement cost policy requiring Comcast to pay—up front— the full costs of pole replacements necessitated by the attachments of third parties was unjust and unreasonable under Section 224, as well as 47 C.F.R. § 1.1411(e)(4) and 1.1408(b).
According to the Commission, the prospect that APCO could issue partial refunds to Comcast did not save the pole owner’s policy because the provider’s “ability to obtain the partial refund is beyond [the provider’s] control.” The Commission’s decision clarified that Comcast need only “pay the incremental cost of installing a stronger or taller pole than the one that would be used to correct the previous third-party violation.”
The FCC’s decision also highlights how the accelerated docket can resolve disputes more efficiently and enable attachers to expand broadband access on an expedited basis. Commenting on the ruling, FCC Chair Brendan Carr remarked, “Too often, disputes between providers and pole owners are a significant obstacle in the way of that deployment. Today's action shows that the FCC’s new RBAT and accelerated docket procedures are a powerful tool to resolve disputes quickly.”
The FCC’s order follows several recent actions by the Commission meant to facilitate broadband deployment, including July 2025 and December 2023 orders addressing pole replacement costs and pole attachment application timelines. For example, the Commission’s 2023 pole attachment order expanded the definition of “red tagged” poles, clarifying that a pole replacement is not “necessitated solely” by a new attacher including when (1) a pole replacement is required by applicable law; (2) the current pole fails engineering standards such as those in the National Electrical Safety Code (“NESC”); (3) a pole replacement is necessary due to changes in a utility’s internal construction standards; (4) the pole must be replaced due to road expansion or moves, property development, in connection with storm hardening, or similar government-imposed requirements; or (5) the pole already is on a utility’s replacement schedule.
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Sheppard’s team of more than a dozen communications infrastructure and pole-attachment attorneys has handled pole attachment matters in more than 40 states—before the FCC, state utility commissions, state legislatures, and various state and federal courts. Our attorneys are also involved in broadband expansion, funding, compliance, and deployment issues in virtually every corner of the nation. We routinely handle commercial and contractual negotiations and disputes, involving facilities and rights-of-way owned and controlled by investor-owned utilities, electrical cooperatives, government-owned utilities, incumbent telephone company pole owners, railroads, and others. If you have questions about state or federal pole attachment law and regulation, or broadband funding and deployment, please contact a Sheppard attorney.