Rights-of-Way, Rental Schedule for Communication Uses

This final rule amends right-of-way regulations containing procedures for setting rent for communication uses located on lands administered by the Bureau of Land Management. The final rule establishes procedures and a rental schedule for determining rent for nine categories of communication uses. The rental schedule is identical to one recently adopted by the U.S. Forest Service for use on National Forest System lands in the Western States. These revisions establish a fair and consistent approach for determining rental payments for various communication uses, based on the population of the community nearest the site and reflective of fair market value as required by Title V of the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976. The final rule encourages tenants in a communication facility to consolidate their separate authorizations under one authorization, reducing billing costs and minimizing agency involvement in managing use and occupancy of the facility. The schedules will reduce BLM costs associated with obtaining appraisals, and can be expected to reduce the number of disputes concerning rental values. Rental payments will be applied on a consistent basis and allow users to anticipate changes in rent for planning purposes. At the same time, the administrative process implementing the schedule has been simplified and includes sufficient flexibility and safeguards to minimize disruption in business relationships and service.