To the North Carolina General Assembly:

North Carolina residents deserve access to reliable internet and protection from unsafe construction, property damage, and repeated disruptions to essential services.

Residents in Union County communities, including Stallings and Indian Trail, have reported damaged gas and water lines, interrupted utility services, damaged landscaping, and repeated excavation by multiple fiber providers. Residents also describe inadequate advance notice and difficulty getting clear answers about repairs and responsibility.

The Union County Fiber Accountability Coalition is gathering incident reports and communicating with town officials to document these concerns and seek solutions. We ask state lawmakers to review North Carolina’s existing protections and strengthen the laws governing fiber construction.

We call for legislation that provides:

1. Meaningful advance notice
Require providers to notify affected residents before planned construction, with an expected work schedule, a description of the work, and direct contact information for the provider and contractor. Allow reasonable exceptions for emergency repairs.

2. Clear construction boundaries
Require providers to identify the easement or public right-of-way authorizing their work and make approved construction plans and boundaries readily available to affected residents.

3. Stronger safety oversight
Strengthen enforcement of underground utility protection requirements and establish meaningful consequences for repeated or serious violations. Give the appropriate authorities clear power to pause unsafe work until hazards are corrected, consistent with applicable law.

4. Enforceable property restoration
Establish clear restoration standards and reasonable deadlines for repairing damage caused by providers or their contractors. Require a process for addressing incomplete repairs, failed restoration, and damage that becomes apparent after construction.

5. A clear path for complaints
Provide residents with an accessible complaint process, tracking numbers, response deadlines, and an identified agency responsible for follow-up. Residents should not have to navigate a cycle of referrals between providers, contractors, and government offices.

6. Financial responsibility
Require adequate insurance, bonding, or other financial safeguards appropriate to the work, so resources are available to address construction damage. Establish clear accountability when subcontractors perform the work.

7. Better coordination and transparency
Require reasonable coordination among providers and the authorities responsible for rights-of-way to reduce avoidable repeated excavation. Make construction approvals, substantiated violations, and enforcement outcomes accessible to the public, subject to lawful privacy protections.

8. Effective authority for towns and cities
Review state restrictions on municipal oversight and give local governments practical tools to protect residents, enforce safety and restoration requirements, and address persistent violations while complying with federal law.

We ask our state representatives and senators to meet with affected residents, review the evidence, and sponsor or support legislation addressing these concerns. We also request a written response identifying the actions they will take.

Broadband expansion should serve our communities. Residents should be able to benefit from better internet without bearing the costs of preventable damage or being left without a clear path to resolution.

By signing, we urge North Carolina lawmakers to make safe fiber construction, property restoration, and enforceable accountability a statewide priority.

Organized by the Union County Fiber Accountability Coalition
https://www.ucfac.com