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May
30
I've just learned that AT&T lobbyists are holed up in state legislators offices and are rewriting state laws that they will attempt to get passed in the dead of night. One might think that this is some sort of nefarious plot to some Gotham City corruption scandal, but it's happening right now in the State of Illinois. With massive public opposition to HB1500, it appears likely that AT&T and it's legislators will attempt to attach amendments to SB 678.
This late-night switcheroo is a blatant attempt to change State laws without public comment or input -- it's a power-play by a telecom incumbent whose purpose is to maximize corporate profit margins at the literal expense of Illinois residents. As I've been warning for several months, AT&T is hellbent on having its way with the Illinois legislature.
The amendment that AT&T's lobbyists are working on would lower buildout requirements while granting this telecom giant unprecedented power to ignore local concerns. Meanwhile, consumer protections are gutted, and network neutrality has been entirely eliminated.
Back when I wrote about the worst telecom bill I'd ever seen i hadn't realized that AT&T, still wanting more, would attempt a late-night assassination of consumer- and municipal-rights and that government officials in Illinois would be so corrupt as to go along with this farce.
Neither ATT nor Verizon have moved from monopoly to competitive behavior. Both spend inordinate amounts of money to buy state and federal legislators, who support the Telcos in exchange for campaign contributions.
I have terminated all business with Verizon. I'm forced to choose a cell provider and use ATT, my only contribution to these contemptible companies.
Ray
AT&T PICKING ON THE LITTLE GUY
AT&T has launched it's "Lightspeed" initiative. Whereby they are putting in very large fiberoptic boxes next to their existing copperwire telephone boxes. The space that these boxes takes up is roughly 5 feet by 15 feet. These boxes are 3.5 to 4 feet tall and at least 5 feet wide.
They are an eyesore, a blight on the neighborhood. AT&T recently installed these behemouths in the back of my garage without any notifiication to me (the landowner) whatsoever. I had the area (an easement) all landscaped with cement pavers. I used the back of my garage as extra storage, a dog run, and was currently in the process of expanding my garden. AT&T ripped everything up without notice and piled everything I had back there in my yard. Now when you go behind my garage, it looks like someone parked a car back there. (these boxes are enormous)
I've met with 3 AT&T contractors so far and no one has given me a logical explanation as to why I was never notified. The original location was 70 feet west of my property, but they changed the location. Incidently the permit has the original location (address) on it, not mine.
I understand easement law, what I don't understand is how they can come in and confiscate 20 feet of my property?
This sort of behavior from AT&T is completely inappropriate and undermines community relations (at best) and may even be illegal. While the easement law AT&T cites may give them the right to do what they did, it's also quite likely that some sort of notification is required and thus, they may have not have been following the law. I'd recommend taking a close look at the law and, if they're in violation of it, consulting with a lawyer. One of the biggest problems is that AT&T will continue to engage in these sorts of behaviors until the punishment for violating either the law or simple etiquette is high enough to prevent these acts. I would definitely like to stay apprised of how this turns out.
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