H.R. 1588 — Facilitating DIGITAL Applications Act

This section requires the Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Communications and Information, not later than 90 days after enactment and every 60 days thereafter until notified under specified procedures, to report to the Committees on Energy and Commerce and Natural Resources of the House of Representatives and the Committees on Commerce, Science, and Transportation and Environment and Public Works of the Senate on whether the Departments of the Interior and Agriculture have established online portals to accept, process, and dispose of Form 299 applications for communications use authorizations (i.e., easements, rights-of-way, or licenses to place or modify communications facilities on covered lands, defined as public lands and National Forest System lands); and (2) any barriers to establishing such portals. The Secretaries of the Interior and Agriculture (the latter acting through the Chief of the Forest Service) must notify the Assistant Secretary within three business days of establishing a portal for their respective department. (Form 299 is the standard application form established under the Middle Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act of 2012 (47 U.S.C. 1455(b)(2)(A)).)