The Telecommunication Act of 1996 and its impact on local land-use ordinances

This study investigates the passage of the Telecom Act of 1996 and its effects on local land-use ordinances. Many communities were not fully prepared to handle the numerous amount of communication tower requests that this piece of legislation was to bestow upon them. This study is largely descriptive in nature, employing a case study approach in order to document the recent developments of local communities and their reactions to the proliferation of cellular towers within their jurisdictions. North Carolina was one such State that was quickly consumed with cellular tower applications once the Telecom Act was signed into law. So it is, that the Counties chosen in this study come from the State of North Carolina. The methods of data collection for this project consist of four types, 1) materials available on-line (Internet), 2) published articles. reports and community ordinances, 3) Interviews with County representatives, and 4) development of case studies. Case studies in this project will examine the history of each county and the Telecom Act’s impact on the communities The result of this study should indicate how a local community’s reaction to the Telecom Act of 1996 and their action/inaction has led to an improvement in land-use controls or simply, minor adjustments that have done little in the way of controlling the siting of cellular towers within their jurisdiction.