Telecom gear ban would hurt cell service

Rural providers say proposal will force cutbacks

WASHINGTON — A proposed U.S. national security ban on equipment from two Chinese telecommunications companies would leave dozens of small, rural cellular companies that rely on their cheap equipment without working cell towers and greatly reduced coverage.

That could leave thousands of rural residents with less access — if any at all — to 911 emergency services, allowing fires to rage and accident victims to agonize. In short, a proposed ban may address national security concerns, rural operators say, but at a cost of American lives and a retreat in service.

Small wireless providers, some of which are cooperatives or family-run businesses, say they would have to stop operating some cell towers and reduce coverage under the ban.

“Those people who can only get service from me — if that service goes away, then they get isolated again,” said John Nettles, president of family-owned Pine Belt Communications, a tiny cellular company that operates in five impoverished counties of west central Alabama.

The Federal Communications Commission has proposed a new rule that would block small, rural cellular companies from receiving federal subsidies if they purchase equipment from companies deemed national security threats, including Huawei and ZTE, two Chinese telecom giants that U.S. legislators say are possible conduits for Chinese spying or cyberattacks.

FCC spokeswoman Tina Pelkey said keeping rural areas connected to the rest of the world and national security were not incompatible.

“We believe that it is possible to both close the digital divide and protect our networks against national security threats. For example, we believe that federal funds provided to companies for the purpose of closing the digital divide should not be used to construct networks that threaten our national security.”

Rural providers who rely on Chinese-made equipment operate in sparsely populated areas largely ignored by the four dominant wireless carriers.

“We are officially in the middle of nowhere, meaning we are five hours away from a town of 50,000 or more people,” said Mike Kilgore, president of Sagebrush Cellular, a wireless provider that is part of Nemont Telephone based in Scobey, Mont. The surrounding Montana plains have only a little more than one person per square mile. When residents get injured, help is far off.

Right now, Kilgore said, his company operates 161 cellphone towers across some 17,000 square miles of sprawling territory.

If the proposed FCC ban goes into effect, Sagebrush would have to spend an estimated $57 million to replace its Huawei equipment, a crippling sum that Kilgore said would compel him to cut back to 55 cell phone towers, dropping coverage in 11,700 square miles, an area larger than the state of Maryland.