By Mike Saperstein, Senior Vice President of Government Affairs and Chief Strategy Officer, Wireless Infrastructure Association
There’s a reason the Wireless Infrastructure Association’s (WIA) tagline is “Enabling Connectivity Everywhere”—connectivity is at the center of America’s way of life. It is critical to the nation’s economic growth and global leadership on innovation, especially as the AI race takes center stage.
Wireless infrastructure is essential to the future of AI, with wireless networks serving as the nerve endings that simultaneously fuel, consume and integrate the data that powers AI. There is no data – or AI – without the connectivity infrastructure that forms the backbone of America’s networks.
FCC Chairman Brendan Carr has long been a champion of the importance of wireless infrastructure in enabling connectivity everywhere. This week, he kicked off a Build America Agenda to “make it easier for America’s telecom crews and tower techs to build out new networks and modern infrastructure.” In doing so, Chairman Carr’s goal is “unleashing investment and innovation” and “increasing connectivity for Americans in communities across the country.”
Count us in.
What does it mean to Build America? It means infrastructure investment and jobs, and we are proud to represent the companies leading the charge.
According to WIA’s annual Wireless Infrastructure by the Numbers Report:
- The wireless industry spent $52.7 billion on network operations in 2024 and $10.8 billion on network construction.
- An estimated 368,750 full-time workers or equivalents were engaged in building, maintaining and operating the nation’s wireless networks, supporting 5G, indoor and outdoor coverage and private wireless deployments.
- These men and women – from the tower techs to engineers – helped to build, maintain and operate 154,800 cell towers enabling this network connectivity across America.
To advance connectivity across the country and meet consumer demand, maintain our competitive edge in 5G, and lead on AI and 6G, we agree that America must build.
Chairman Carr said the FCC will take up several infrastructure-related items this month as part of its Build America Agenda priority to unleash high-speed infrastructure builds including “efforts to further streamline the many regulations that stand in the way of new infrastructure.” We applaud Chairman Carr for his leadership on ensuring smart policies for the rapid deployment of critical wireless infrastructure.
To fulfill the Administration’s broader plans for AI, Congress must also act to streamline infrastructure deployment. Legislation establishing a national framework for wireless infrastructure permitting is needed to ensure predictable, proportionate, and transparent processes. WIA urges Congress to reintroduce the American Broadband Deployment Act, which addresses these challenges.
Additionally, the Trump Administration must continue to focus on preparing the workforce of tomorrow. We were pleased to see President Trump set a goal of 1 million registered apprentices trained for jobs of the future, which is a recognition that a skilled workforce is needed to bring innovation into reality. At WIA, we are proud to prepare the wireless and broadband workforce of tomorrow through our Telecommunications Industry Registered Apprenticeship Program (TIRAP). From tower construction leads to wireless and fiber optic technicians to utility installer technicians, TIRAP helps to prepare the skilled and technical workforce needed to deploy wireless and AI infrastructure across America.
We join FCC Chairman Carr in thanking the tower technicians and the many other frontline workers who are supporting our communities with connectivity every day. We look forward to working with the FCC to continue to streamline the deployment of wireless infrastructure to Build America and with Congress and the Trump Administration to further bolster smart build policies.
Let’s get to work.
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