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TELECOMMUNICATIONS ACT OF 1996 <br />The following outline presents issues and applications of the Telecommunications Act of <br />1996. The following areas are covered; 1) Overview of the Telecommunications Act of 1996; <br />2) Moratorium issues; 3) Reponed cases since the enactment of the 1996 Act. <br />I.Overview of the Telecommunications Act of 1996 <br />A) Introduction <br />The Telecommunications Act of 1996, Pub.L. 104-104, S.652, 104th Cong., 2nd <br />Sess., Feb. 8, 1996, 110 Stat. 56 (codified at 47 U.S.C. § 151 et seo.T ("Act") <br />amends and repeals portions of the 1934 Act. The purpose of the 1996 Act is; <br />to promote competition and reduce regulation in order to secure <br />lower prices and higher quality services for American <br />telecommunications consumers and encourage the rapid deployment <br />of new telecommunications technologies. <br />The Act addresses seven main areas; <br />Title I Telecommunication Services <br />Title II Broadcast Services <br />Title III Cable Services <br />Title IV Regulatory Reform <br />Title V Obscenity and Violence <br />Title VI Effect on Other Laws <br />Title VII Miscellaneous Provisions <br />Two sections of the 1996 Act are particularly relevant to land use issues; <br />1)Title I, § 253 of the Act (codified at 47 U.S.C. § 253), which deals with <br />removal of barriers to entry and management of public rights of way, and <br />Title VII, § 704 of the Act (codified at 47 U.S.C. § 332), which deals with <br />facilities siting and the preservation of local zoning authority. These two <br />sections have been at the heart of the tension between municipal authority <br />to regulate wireless communications and the right of wireless <br />communications providers to conduct business under the Act. Salient <br />portions of each Title of the Act are identified in the following outline.4