Let’s Improve Priest River’s Wireless Ordinance

2021-0215 Priest River Resident Proposed Wireless Ordinance.

Sample Talk for Businesses:

Hi. My name is ______________ and I’m asking you to support our effort to update our city’s telecommunications ordinance to protect our privacy and health.

I have two ordinances here, one is our current ordinance, and one is a version with additional language to protect us from overreach by the Wireless Carriers and Telecom companies.

The Wireless Industry is currently pushing communities to allow small – in size, not power output – wireless telecommunication facilities to be located as close as 15 feet from people’s homes. By Federal law, cities are only required to provide enough radiated power for the communication desired (5 bars on a cell phone for wireless calls).

The FCC already has rules that cap the maximum effective radiated power (ERP) that a Wi-Fi router can output: 0.1 Watts ERP. But these so-called “small” Wireless Telecommunications Facilities (sWTFs) output into bedrooms 25,000,000 times more ERP than needed for 5 bars on a cell phone for wireless calls.

Towns and cities have the authority to regulate the placement, construction, modification and operations (including maximum power output) of these sWTFs, and that is what is specified in the updated version of the ordinance. Our current ordinance is ten years old, and now obsolete.

There will be a meeting of the city council on _________________ at ________(time) at _______________(location) and I would really appreciate it if you would be willing to come and support the corrected version of the ordinance, or make a public comment via email.

Sample Email for Priest River Ordinance:

Send to: City Clerk Laurel Thomas; lthomas@priestriver-id.gov
To: Mayor: Jim Martin
       City Council members: Doug Wagner, Candy Turner, Greg Edwards and Kevin Wylie

Please accept my public comment into the public record.

Dear Mayor Martin and Priest River city council:

My name is ______________ and I live at _______________________. I attest and affirm that the following statements are true, accurate, and within my personal knowledge.

I have read Priest River’s current Wireless Telecommunications Facilities (WTF) ordinance, #10-8-1 and I notice that it contains no restrictions to prevent Wireless carriers from placing so-called “small” Wireless Telecommunications Facilities (sWTFs) every 1,000 feet or so in Priest River’s residential neighborhoods, as close as 15 feet away from homes, schools and parks. Please understand that 25-50 foot tall sWTFs may be smaller in size than 200 foot tall Macro Cell Towers, but due to the extreme proximity of sWTF antennas to homes, schools and parks, such antennas output tens of millions of times more electromagnetic power through the air into homes than do Macro Cell Towers.

sWTF antennas are simply far too low to the ground and much too close to homes, schools and parks.

I support updating Priest River’s telecommunications ordinance to change its title from “wireless” to “telecommunications” to include wired fiber optics and to provide protective measures for the City of Priest River and its residents that are within the law.

I support the updated telecommunications ordinance found at https://wireidaho.com/pr-residents-wireless-ordinance/

I express no matter of concern, but solely matters of substance, fact and law.

Sincerely,

________________________________________(your name and address)

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