Congresswoman Tenney's Statement on New York Fiber Fee Repeal

Washington, DC – Congresswoman Claudia Tenney (NY-22) today released the following statement in response to the repeal of New York's fiber fee, which charged private providers for installing, operating or maintaining fiber optic cable lines needed for quality broadband connections, running along or passing through State Rights-of-Way.

“I was honored to join with other members of the New York delegation, including Conference Chairwoman Elise Stefanik, in calling for the elimination of the broadband fiber fee in New York’s state budget earlier this month. It is already costly enough to run a business and raise a family here in New York, and this additional fee was just harmful and unnecessary. While so much of our state’s budget failed to cut back on onerous mandates and remove many of the most egregious taxes on small businesses and Upstate families, I’m pleased that at least the fiber fee was eliminated. This will make it easier to expand broadband in our state, especially in the rural communities across New York’s 22nd District that need it most.”

On April 1, 2022, Tenney joined House Republican Conference Chairwoman Elise Stefanik and other members of the New York congressional delegation in a letter to New York Governor Kathy Hochul, urging her to take action to expand broadband access by repealing the fiber fee, which the lawmakers said amounted to a tax on rural broadband. The fee was first imposed by the 2019-2020 New York State Budget but was recently repealed for new projects as part of the 2022-2023 budget.

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